Posted by
Playful Walrus on Tuesday, August 05, 2008 3:41:38 PM
We often hear politicians and
activists talking about “rights”, as in a right to health insurance, or
“We should not take away a couple’s right to marry” or there should be
a “right” to just about anything. I have said before
that true rights do not obligate others without their consent. God
(that’s Nature, to you pagans, philosophical naturalists, etc.) has
given us many rights. The government does not give us rights.
It is supposed to protect our rights from those who would infringe upon
them by force or fraud. The Constitution does not give us our rights.
It lists some of our rights, but it also says that we retain
all rights and powers not specifically given over to the government in
the Constitution.
There can be a difference between a right and a freedom. Not everything that we have the freedom to do is a right.
For example, we can run through an open field because it is open. We
can have that freedom. But if that field is owned by someone else, we
do not have a right to run through it. If that owner decides to fence
off the property, our freedom to run across it is gone, but we have not
lost any right. I have the freedom to order a pizza from Domino’s. But
if they decide not to sell pizzas anymore, I can’t say that they’ve
taken away my right. What would be a violation of my rights
would be if the federal government told me I could not freely exchange
something I had for a pizza being offered freely for trade by Domino’s.
So
the next time you see someone claiming that their “right” will be taken
away, think about whether what they are talking about is really a right
or if it has been a freedom they’ve enjoyed.