Perri Nelson wrote a very thought provoking post about the difference between “natural rights” and “invented rights.”
What are our natural rights, those inalienable rights bestowed upon us by our creator versus, as Perri calls them invented rights or rights we would like?
We really need to re-examine our concept of rights from time to time. We might find that there’s a difference between what we see as natural rights and what we merely desire. We might find that some of our “invented” rights ought to be trumped by our “natural” rights as well. After all, shouldn’t the right to life trump the right to choose? Perhaps what we really need to examine is the difference between “liberty” and “license”.
Visit Perri’s site and add to the discussion.
As to my opinion, I agree, that government paid health care, suicide, and abortion aren’t God given rights. I’d put gay marriage into that category also.
As to privacy, here’s my take. You have a natural right to be left alone, but only in a sense of travel, your personal communications, personal information, and your right to be left alone at home.
Additionally, one natural right that I strongly believe we have, is the right to travel. A driver’s license is not a privilege granted to us by government. When you buy into the line of thought that a government grants you a privilege, then you aren’t really a free man.
Following that line of thought, DUI checkpoints assume a blanket guilt and interrupt your freedom to travel and your right to be left alone. Government has not right to stop you unless your actions endanger others.
Anyway, I found Perri’s post to be something more American’s should be thinking about.
Do they even teach natural rights anymore in school?
Tags: natural rights
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