I agree to an extent.<p>Paying fines and&#x2F;or avoiding jail (within the system) are not <i>free as in beer</i>. Likewise, leaving the country and relocating is also not free (e.g. there&#x27;s a few to renounce US citizenship).<p>Whether we&#x27;re <i>free as in speech</i> to withdraw consent from the social contract (by which I do not mean to speak to its validity or lack thereof) is more of a grey area. As with freedom of speech, the freedom to withdraw from the social contract is not without its (ominous) ramifications. See, e.g. Aaron Swartz.