Rights vs Values

I was having a discussion over on Ryan’s blog about One’s own personal choices in terms of values, lifestyle, etc. and where that fits into a Democratic society. This of course quickly turned into a discussion of Freedom Tolerance and Personal Responsibility and how these all tie together. It brought up many issues of where America is and what is wrong not just with our government but our culture

This all started as a result of Ryan witnessing a Lady complain to Baskin Robins for selling her child a caffeinated dessert… A Cappuccino Blast

The biggest question that seemed to come out of the discussion is “Where is the line between Personal Moral/Value Choices, Government Control (in the form of laws, censorship, regulation), and Tolerance. How can people of varying cultures, beliefs, backgrounds, values etc live together under one common rule, and where do we as individuals draw in the in terms of placing our own value system within the wider scope of the nation, - which includes not only federal government, but local governments, businesses, schools, neighbors churches entertainment etc.

For me the answer has always been fairly simple. We just like to overcomplicate things. . In my mind at least, it is simple and clear:

All we need is the basic bill of rights. Start from there, everything else revolves around that. It should be the center and focus. For the whole purpose of government is to serve the people and provide services that a collective is far more capable of achieving. And every law must be written from the point to which none of these human rights are violated. No law should be written that does not take these rights into account or that violates any one of them.

Your basic rights in simple non-legal terms:
1. Right to life
2. Right to vote
3. Right to fair trial by jury
4. Right to bear arms
5. Right to practice or not practice own religion/beliefs etc
6. Right to freedom of speech
7. Freedom/ownership of one’s own being/body
8. Right to death
9. Freedom of thought
10. Freedom of assembly
11. Right to a decent education
12. Right to healthcare
13. Right to ownership of property (land, goods, copyrights, etc)
14. Right to basic protection or person and properties (police, firemen etc)

So I added/changed some and missed some probably - it was slapped together quickly, just to get the idea across. But basically every law should revolve around individual basic rights – NOT values, NOT morals, NOT religious beliefs.

If the goal of Democracy truly is about creating a society where individual freedoms are promoted and perpetuated, than individual beliefs, values, and morals cannot interfere as they unnecessarily complicate, leave out, or oppose other belief systems.

The cardinal rule is: No law can violate any of these basic human rights. If basic human rights and individual beliefs and value systems are to be upheld, laws then should only be centered around these rights and in support and protection of them

So some might ask “How can we live without instilling a sense of values or moral judgment into the law?” Simple, basic human rights already cover this. The law protects against harm to person or property. If rights are violated, the action is illegal. It protects against harm, while providing the judgment free space for one to practice their individual beliefs.

I do not understand why it is so difficult for people to allow others live their lives the way they want to. If it doesn’t affect you it is not your business. As long as no one’s rights are violated there should be no problem. The only problem is that people want to force their views, values, or lifestyle upon others. Why is there problem with suicide? If someone wants to end their life, this is their choice (as long as they are of sound mind). That should be their right to decide. Euthanasia should not be a problem.

Even drugs. If someone wants to take them, let them. Just control certain aspects that could interfere/violate with the rights of others like driving under the influence. More accidents are caused by Cell phone use than drug use. Cigarettes are far more harmful than Marijuana, yet one is legal and the other is not. The thing itself should not be illegal. The real problem here is the “moral” issue surrounding drugs. If it were truly about the real practical danger to society, and that is the number one factor, far more things would be outlawed before drugs. Even experimental drugs should be allowed – If patients are given full disclosure about what is and isn’t known about experimental drugs or treatments, and if it has passed FDA inspections/guidelines etc, they should be given the choice to take them.

If it doesn’t affect your own rights, what is the problem? Isn’t that what we should be asking ourselves? Why is this country so obsessed with pushing our own beliefs on others, while at the same time claiming to promote Freedom and Democracy? Do we really value freedom then? Do we even know what freedom is when we still refuse to let others live their own lives, under their system of beliefs? Do Americans understand that their own beliefs and choices are their own responsibility? We seem to want the government to adopt our own system of values, enforce them upon others, and do the work for us. This seems to be in large part due to laziness, lack of ownership for our own choices, and unwanting to put in the work and effort it takes to uphold our own value system

Responsibility for ones own value system is a whole other issue that would take another blog topic.