Salih Al-Turaiqi Okaz newspaper IF someone writes that every citizen has the right to a free house and the government should provide him one, the writer would be greeted with a standing ovation wherever he goes. However, a government official would view the statement from a different perspective. He might simply ignore it and would not comment on it, true to the saying: “Bow down your head and let the wind pass by.” But if a writer argues that he can understand calls for giving free houses to old people, the physically-challenged and widows, but he cannot understand demands that people who are able-bodied and can be productive should get free houses because there is a huge difference between people who can work and people who cannot, this writer will be met with severe criticism. Even the government official who reserved comments on the first writer's remarks will not support his view and simply ignore him. After all, government officials around the world are pragmatic people. But again, some writers may question the logic behind giving free houses to some people while others are denied this support. The answer is another question: If someone steals public money and uses it to build himself a palace, does that mean the others have the right to do the same? If they do something like this, they will be definitely treated as thieves. If the writer asks: Are you against stealing the public money or against sharing with others the funds you have stolen? I am sure the writer will receive an avalanche of criticism from a certain section of society. The government official will gloat over it and tell himself, “This writer deserved it and he had it coming.” Let me say this: If you have a problem about how you view things and think about them, you should work on solving the problem. Otherwise, you will live with it forever. I wish to draw your attention to the fact that the writer of this article has just paid his apartment rent. Nevertheless, he insists that no one has the right to steal public money.
