Our republic was founded on what was then a radical, new idea – the notion that all people had rights that were inherent and inalienable. Although unprecedented in history, the concept was at the time widely accepted and clearly understood. Much more so, tragically, than the definition of “people” — an almost fatal flaw that, less than a century later, led to the bloodiest conflict in our history. However, subsequent efforts to deal with the consequences of the latter, definitional failure don’t justify the Orwellian evisceration of the former. A genuinely free society must remain clear on exactly what is and what is not a “right.”
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More on the subject of political philosophy:
- The Three Great Lies
- Natural Rights
- Two common (too common) misconceptions
- Political trends — moving beyond left and right
- A conservative divorce
Tags: American revolution, association, bigot, coercion, democracy, divine, Heart of the, individual, interstate commerce, intolerant, majority, market, property, rosa parks, treaty
