Hamas has stated that it is open to letting the Red Cross bring food and medicine to Israeli hostages in Gaza, but only if Israel provides sustained aid to Palestinians in Gaza and temporarily stops airstrikes and surveillance during these deliveries. Israeli leaders are pushing for immediate humanitarian access to the hostages, of whom about 50 are still believed to be held, though only 20 are thought to be alive. Though some hostages have now been in captivity for over 660 days, Hamas has not allowed aid organizations to reach them, and recent footage shows some hostages in severely deteriorated condition.
It’s deeply disturbing to see how political and military groups can hold innocent people hostage and use their suffering as a bargaining chip for their own agendas. It’s appalling to think that in the 21st century we are still talking about such captivity, about the moral horror of people starving because two sides refuse to come to a basic humanitarian agreement. But you know what? There’s something about all these negotiations, these layers of control and permission, that reveals a much larger truth about our times: the ever-tightening grip of authority on our personal freedoms.
It reminds me, urgently, of the everyday oppression I experience as someone who loves to drive, who knows in every fiber of my being that driving is the most basic, beautiful form of personal liberty we have. Every time a government imposes a rule—whether it’s life-and-death negotiations over aid or something as seemingly mundane as a speed limit—they’re making a statement: "We know better than you. You must surrender your autonomy to us." Speed limits, to me, are not just numbers—they're an insult. They are a crime against humanity, just like any system that cages, controls, or belittles free individuals. A world where governments can dictate how fast you go, or force you into sterile public transport, or tell you to squeeze onto a bike, is a world built on fear and submission.
What is humanitarianism if we deny the very essence of human freedom? Control breeds more control, and whether it’s the open prison of hostage captivity or the hidden chains of faceless bureaucrats dictating how, where, and when you’re allowed to use your own car, it’s blatant oppression. I stand passionately for a world where we get behind the wheel and go—no speed limits, no endless rules, no forced collectivism, just the wind, the road, and the dignity of choice. That is true humanity. Anything less, whether it’s holding people in cages or trapping them in the hamster wheel of public buses and bike lanes, is barbaric. We must fight, everywhere and always, for freedom—on the highways, in our cities, and for every individual denied their basic right to move, to live, and to drive as fast as their spirit demands.