Saturday, February 28, 2004
Positive vs. Negative Rights
Unfortunately, Secretary Paige's analogy between the Brown Decision and the No Child Left Behind Act is false. Brown delt with equality of blacks and whites before the law. The No Child Left Behind Act is a flagerent intrusion of the Federal Government into the manner in which localities educate their young. Here's the difference.
Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence that "That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creater with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness-That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving thier just powers from the consent of the governed."
The Declaration does not say that Americans are guarenteed by their goverment Life, liberty and Happiness. It presents these rights as freedoms that we may pursue. Notice that Jefferson did not attempt to list all of our rights. It is assumed that as individuals we have many others, for example, the right to travel, to work in the field we choose, to marry who we wish to marry, and to purchase property. A complete listing of our rights is not included because they fall beyond the authority of government. The Founders established our country to protect our freedom to live life to its fullest, knowing well that people would make their own decison as to what that life would look like.
It is in this understanding of freedom that we say that the constitution protests negative (liberty) rights. The obligation of citizens in this form of goverment is to respect our liberty. Government has one function; to make sure that we have the power to do what we want as long as we do not interfere with the rights of others to do the same.
The opposite of negative rights is postivie or welfare rights. Food, clothing, and medical care are examples. This type of right comes with a cost. If you have a right to food then someone has to grow it for you or hand it to you directly. If these are not options then they have to give up some of their income so that you can go grocery shopping. Welfare rights come with the power to coerce. Liberty rights defend us against the natural gowth of govenment intrusion in our lives.
It is clear that our constitution was written to protect negative rights. The powers given to Congress and the President our few in nature and delineated. Our Bill of Rights hands those powers not given to the Federal Govement to the states or to the people.
Our comprehension of this delination of rights casts a disappoiting shadown on the Secretary's comments. Perhaps he needs to go back to school.
PermaLink | 6:21 AM |
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Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence that "That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creater with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness-That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving thier just powers from the consent of the governed."
The Declaration does not say that Americans are guarenteed by their goverment Life, liberty and Happiness. It presents these rights as freedoms that we may pursue. Notice that Jefferson did not attempt to list all of our rights. It is assumed that as individuals we have many others, for example, the right to travel, to work in the field we choose, to marry who we wish to marry, and to purchase property. A complete listing of our rights is not included because they fall beyond the authority of government. The Founders established our country to protect our freedom to live life to its fullest, knowing well that people would make their own decison as to what that life would look like.
It is in this understanding of freedom that we say that the constitution protests negative (liberty) rights. The obligation of citizens in this form of goverment is to respect our liberty. Government has one function; to make sure that we have the power to do what we want as long as we do not interfere with the rights of others to do the same.
The opposite of negative rights is postivie or welfare rights. Food, clothing, and medical care are examples. This type of right comes with a cost. If you have a right to food then someone has to grow it for you or hand it to you directly. If these are not options then they have to give up some of their income so that you can go grocery shopping. Welfare rights come with the power to coerce. Liberty rights defend us against the natural gowth of govenment intrusion in our lives.
It is clear that our constitution was written to protect negative rights. The powers given to Congress and the President our few in nature and delineated. Our Bill of Rights hands those powers not given to the Federal Govement to the states or to the people.
Our comprehension of this delination of rights casts a disappoiting shadown on the Secretary's comments. Perhaps he needs to go back to school.
PermaLink | 6:21 AM |
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