{"article":{"id":34065,"heading":"Why do we have rights and where do they come from?","author":"Traveler","created":"2003-03-08 22:12:09","modified":"2013-11-10 23:48:57","last_modified":"Mon, 11 Nov 2013 06:48:57","article":"

We have many discussions regarding rights. Human rights, gay rights, Abortion rights, gun rights, and the list goes on and on. Every one has a right that they will fight for and ones they fight against. For the sake of discussion, I have a seemingly simple question that, in fact, is probably not that simple. Why do we have rights and where do they come from? So for the sake of the discussion, I will throw out three possibilities that will fit in to most people’s belief structure. Each of these sources have aspects that make them immediately attractive as a possibility; however, they also have there own pitfalls to our own ambitions. Do we owe our rights to Nature, Government, or God?

Many will say nature. After all, is not man born with a natural desire to dream and make his dreams come true? And as a part of nature, we have a symbiotic relationship with the entire planet; therefor, not only are their human rights but there are animal rights and the earth itself has rights. For all is nature. But wait. This actually limits our rights. If a rabbit has a right to live and the wolf has a right to live and the wolf needs to eat the rabbit for his daily survival, then what of the rabbit? His rights are violated. That is just part of nature you may say. It is a system that has evolved over the millennia and that is just how it is. This same logic is the same mind frame that has brought great horror to us. For example “The Jews are an inferior race and need to be exterminated.” Or the black people are not smart enough to take care of themselves and slavery is just a natural state for them. It would seem that nature is an unkind master.

This brings us to Government. We in the United States are a nation of laws. We have a system of checks and balances, all with the purpose to meet the principal that all of us have the right to Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. Many that frequent this site would think that we have not met our responsibilities as a nation; that government’s reasonability is to define our rights in such a way that all people can live their lives according to a proper set of ethics, so that all may live in equality. However, if our rights come from government and our government grants us no rights, then we have no rights to be violated. The flaws in this are obvious.

Since the beginning of time, People have looked to the skies and have said to themselves with the order of creation that there must be a creator. If we believe that there is a God, we can say, as did the founding fathers that our creator endows us with certain rights. This fit in with the thought that God created the earth and placed mankind as a keeper over it and that we have a fiduciary responsibility to care for it. God in his wisdom created all Men equal with a freewill. If we assume all of this is true that we are the creation of God are we not also the property of God. And as his property we have a duty to live by any standard he may have for us. Making it incumbent on us to truly seek his will for us. Otherwise we ungrateful for the gift of our life, liberty and rights.

I offer these thoughts to you my fellow seekers of knowledge in a hope that in the discussion that hopefully follows will help us in understanding our responsibility to each other.



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