<p>They say we are free.</p><p><br/></p><p>Free to speak. </p><p>Free to move. </p><p>Free to live. </p><p>But are we really?</p><p><br/></p><p>We throw the word "freedom" around like confetti on Independence Day. </p><p>We say it with our chests like we own it. </p><p>But if you look close really look </p><p>You'll realize freedom is a beautifully packaged illusion.</p><p><br/></p><p>If we were truly free, there wouldn’t be rules. </p><p>No constitutions. No commandments. No consequences. </p><p>Because freedom – real freedom – would mean doing whatever, whenever, however. </p><p>But that’s not the world we live in.</p><p><br/></p><p>We’re bound by systems. </p><p>By beliefs. </p><p>By laws. </p><p>By expectations that were crafted before we even took our first breath.</p><p><br/></p><p>Tell me, are we free when a man is caged for speaking too loudly? </p><p>Are we free when a woman’s choice over her own body is debated by strangers? </p><p>Are we free when we're told who to worship, how to love, what to think?</p><p><br/></p><p>Christians? Muslims? Buddhists? </p><p>We are guided, no, instructed to live by holy texts. </p><p>Do this, avoid that, say this prayer, follow that path. </p><p>Obedience in exchange for salvation.</p><p><br/></p><p>Is that freedom... or a sacred form of control?</p><p><br/></p><p>If freedom truly existed, there would be no prisons. </p><p>No death sentences. No need for justice because nothing would be unjust. </p><p>The rapist would walk free. </p><p>The murderer wouldn’t need to hide. </p><p>Because freedom in its rawest form knows no boundary. No punishment. No moral code.</p><p><br/></p><p>But you see, we need boundaries. </p><p>Because without them, the world would burn. </p><p>So we build fences and call them laws. </p><p>We draw lines and call them order. </p><p>We control people and call it leadership.</p><p><br/></p><p>Even in democracy the "government of the people" the people are still ruled. </p><p>Ruled by the powerful. </p><p>Ruled by documents. </p><p>Ruled by the illusion that their voice alone is enough.</p><p><br/></p><p>We’re not as free as we think.</p><p><br/></p><p>Even life itself doesn’t give you freedom. </p><p>You can’t choose when to be born, or how. </p><p>You can’t command death to stay away. </p><p>You’re not free from pain, from loss, from time. </p><p>You’re not free from the body you’re in. </p><p>You’re not free from needing to survive.</p><p><br/></p><p>Freedom... is a shadow. </p><p>It moves like it’s real. </p><p>It whispers like truth. </p><p>But it disappears the moment you try to hold it.</p><p><br/></p><p>Freedom is the shadow of freedom. </p><p>Freedom is the cousin of control. </p><p>Freedom is the prettiest word for bondage.</p>
At the end of each month, we give out cash prizes to 5 people with the best insights in the past month
as well as coupon points to 15 people who didn't make the top 5, but shared high-quality content.
The winners are NOT picked from the leaderboards/rankings, we choose winners based on the quality, originality
and insightfulness of their content.
Here are a few other things to know
1
Quality over Quantity — You stand a higher chance of winning by publishing a few really good insights across the entire month,
rather than a lot of low-quality, spammy posts.
2
Share original, authentic, and engaging content that clearly reflects your voice, thoughts, and opinions.
3
Avoid using AI to generate content—use it instead to correct grammar, improve flow, enhance structure, and boost clarity.
4
Explore audio content—high-quality audio insights can significantly boost your chances of standing out.
5
Use eye-catching cover images—if your content doesn't attract attention, it's less likely to be read or engaged with.
6
Share your content in your social circles to build engagement around it.
Contributor Rankings
The Contributor Rankings shows the Top 20 Contributors on TwoCents a monthly and all-time basis.
The all-time ranking is based on the Contributor Score, which is a measure of all the engagement and exposure a contributor's content receives.
The monthly score sums the score on all your insights in the past 30 days. The monthly and all-time scores are calcuated DIFFERENTLY.
This page also shows the top engagers on TwoCents — these are community members that have engaged the most with other user's content.
Contributor Score
Here is a list of metrics that are used to calcuate your contributor score, arranged from
the metric with the highest weighting, to the one with the lowest weighting.
4
Comments (excluding replies)
5
Upvotes
6
Views
1
Number of insights published
2
Subscriptions received
3
Tips received
Below is a list of badges on TwoCents and their designations.
Comments