NationStates Jolt Archive

I have heard only two interpretations that are potentially valid in a Universe where we have rights.

1. Our rights consist of everything that we can do but we must give up some when we form a society that we may protect others.
ex: I agree not to kill you if you agree not to kill me

2. Our rights are the things that we cannot help but do.
ex: I have a right to resist a violent death (self defense, a police force defending you)

Guess which Thomas Hobbes (the first person to write about Rights) advocated?

interesting, pretty good interpretation in my book

Rights are simply what we can do. I think i like that.

I have heard only two interpretations that are potentially valid in a Universe where we have rights.
....
2. Our rights are the things that we cannot help but do.
ex: I have a right to resist a violent death (self defense, a police force defending you)


The way that is stated seems not to really be a valid interpretation of rights. For example, freedom of association - we cannot help but associate with certain peoples?
Freedom of peaceful assembly - we cannot help but assemble peacefully?
Well, we could quite easily not associate or not assemble at all...so does that mean that these aren't really rights?


I would guess he went for the second one and assume John Locke had an original thought with that first one. Though, I want to say he thought the first because the philosophers back in the day were very much into natural rights and them having come from God. So it would make sense if he thought it was everything we have and can do on our own, though we must give up some freedoms to gain the benefit of community.

Guess which Thomas Hobbes (the first person to write about Rights) advocated?

in the state of nature we have the natural right to do anything we think will benefit us. once we submit to the sovereign we give up all of our natural rights (except for our right to self defense). these may or may not be somewhat replaced by some legal rights, depending on if the sovereign feels like giving you any.

Obviously we give up on the kill, steal, rape, pillage, burn combination, but are there other things that we give up in order to be part of a society?

Rights are simply what we can do. I think i like that.
Agreed.

My definition of rights:

Any and all actions that one may perform, limited only to the point of where your actions infringe upon the rights of others.

Do we have the right to drive any car we want?
Do we have the right to buy anything that can be sold?
Do we have the right to anything that our labor acts upon as Locke wrote once?