Inalienable Rights: A Plea for Open Options
ABSTRACT: Recent analyses of the concept of inalienable rights (i.e., analyses of the inalienable rights to life) transmute these rights into restrictions on the choices of individuals who possess the rights. In this paper I argue that such construals are counter-intuitive, and incompatible with the modern notion of rights as positive benefits to be enjoyed by those who possess them. I offer an alternative (somewhat Lockean) view which proposes that inalienable rights be regarded as entitlements to discretionary options, options the objects of which need not be chosen. To flesh out the theory, such rights (construed as discretionary options) are distinguished from absolute rights, from alienable rights, and from some kinds of indefeasible human rights. I point to several advantages of the open options account of inalienable rights, including the fact that inalienable rights construed as open options are rights that may provide grounds for calling oppressive governments to account, while at the same time protecting areas of freedom which make the possession of the rights worthwhile rather than burdensome. A concluding appeal suggests that the open options view of inalienable rights awaits and encourages the development of theories which bolster modern intuitions concerning the plausibility of affirming individuated, comprehensive, desirable, and universally applicable human rights.
In recent philosophical literature one justification for placing restraints on individuals has been based paradoxically on the notion that those individuals possess basic inalienable rights to liberty and life. It has been argued, for example, that if one has an inalienable right to 0, then there is a du...
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...reatise of Government, in Locke's Two Treatises of Government, ed. Peter Laslett, Cambridge: The University Press, 1960, p. 287.
2. Ibid., p. 289
3. Ibid., p. 399
4. Ibid., p. 289
5. Ibid., p. 290. Locke suggests elsewhere that the fact that we are God's property should also restrain us from killing ourselves. But if this (I believe theologically suspect) premise is rejected, the only moral restraint imposed by the Lockean view on self-inflicted death would stem from the negative effects opting out of life might have on innocent others.
6. See listings for 'Right', 'Indefeasible', 'Inalienable', and 'Inalienable rights', in Black's Law Dictionary (West Publishing Company, 1978) and (West Publishing Company, 1985).
7. See Joel Feinberg, "Voluntary Euthanasia and the Inalienable Right to Life," Philosophy and Public Affairs, Vol. 7, No 2, 1978, p. 113.
Withers, Alexander Scott., Reuben Gold Thwaites, and Lyman Copeland Draper. Chronicles of Border Warfare: Or, a History of the Settlement by the Whites, of Northwestern Virginia, and of the Indian Wars and Massacres in That Section of the State, with Reflections, Anecodotes, &c. Parsons, WV: McClain Print., 1961. Print.
The primary purpose of this essay is stated in the title. It is to consider whether certain principles presented in the second paragraph of the Declaration of Independence and commonly referred to as human rights are supported by the authority of God 's word. A secondary goal is to consider how society might be influenced to establish and maintain laws which agree with God 's moral authority. Yet a third goal is to consider how free exercise of human rights might be impacted by obedience and disobedience to God 's moral authority.
Since the beginning of American history, citizens who resided the country lacked the basic civil rights and liberties that humans deserved. Different races and ethnicities were treated unfairly. Voting rights were denied to anyone who was not a rich, white male. Women were harassed by their bosses and expected to take care of everything household related. Life was not all that pretty throughout America’s past, but thankfully overtime American citizens’ civil liberties and rights expanded – granting Americans true freedom.
John Tasioulas introduces the idea that human rights are explained by the morals that humans possess through understanding of human dignity. He explains that are three connections that human dignity has to human rights. The first connection presented is that human dignity and rights are rarely distinguished between due to having virtually the same standards in regards to them. The second that dignity is a starting point in moral grounds that human rights build off of. And last, that the idea that human rights are justified by dignity, saying dignity is the ideal basis for human rights. Tasioulas chooses to focus on the last point, that it is our morals that bring about human rights and that our morals come from humans having dignity. The key thing being that human dignity is something that all possess by simply being human beings there is no merit in achievement or by what legislation or social position can give us.
“The first recorded use of attack drones occurred on Aug. 22, 1849 when the Habsburg Austrian Empire launched 200 pilotless balloons armed with bombs against the revolution-minded citizens of Venice.” (Brett Holman, 2009). Today drones are launched from allied countries, and are remotely controlled by pilots in the United States. Since drones are remotely operated, ground troops and aircraft pilots risk of getting hurt is minimized. Drones are very effective and create few errors. According to Peter Bergen (2012), in 2012 there has been 153 drone strikes in Pakistan, and no civilian casualties have been reported. Nations around the World questions whether drone strikes need more restrictions under international law because these nations believe that the technology of drones will spread to other countries, causing more violence than good. Drones help keep U.S. soldiers safer by keep troops of the ground in foreign territory. Annually 1% of the U.S.’ Military Budget goes towards funding drones. Use of military drones could allow for the military to downsize and spend less money.
The world of forensic science has evolved incredibly large during the past century, and it couldn’t have been done without the life-changing discovery of fingerprints. With most of the credit going towards Francis Galton, the discoverer of fingerprints, scientists have advanced the Fingerprinting world so greatly, the chances of failing to identify a human through the ridge patterns on their fingertips is nearly impossible. DNA Fingerprinting, a method of forensic science, is a reliable technique that has been around for centuries that accurately compares fingerprints at crime scenes to the rightful owner. Since the early 20th century, research has proven that DNA fingerprinting is the leading form of crime scene forensic investigation and has solved more cases than any other method of investigation. DNA fingerprinting in the 21st century is relied upon so much due to the various types of materials and technologies used, the vast amount of mysterious cases solved, and most importantly, the accurate results the method offers.
Over all, fingerprints are a big part of crime scenes and us. A fingerprint helps us identify others, and fingerprints are not just for humans, but for some animals too. Fingerprints are also unique on each of our fingers. Fingerprinting has been going on for almost one hundred and forty years, and has been getting more advance with technology and everyday life.
Fingerprints are the vital and reliable trace evidence in the investigation of criminal cases, as no one including identical twins would have the same fingerprints (Jackson and Jackson, 2011, ch. 4). There are 3 types of fingerprints which may be recovered from the crime scenes, namely: 1) Latent fingerprints, 2) Patent fingerprints and 3) Visible fingerprints (Jackson and Jackson, 2011, ch. 4). However, in this case scenario, I will be focusing on the latent fingerprints. (63 words)
In every society ever molded by the hands of man, an unquestionable though sometimes overlooked fact of such societies is the distinction between groups of individuals based upon their perceived worth. This distinction is a fundamental difference between a tragedy and a comedy. In a tragedy, a protagonist is "a prominent and powerful hero,(1),a king, or even a god (4). The hero tends to be stubborn, traditional, and experiences emotions strongly (2). The probability of an audience member having the ability to empathize with such an esteemed character, is low. A comedic protagonist tends to be quite the opposite. The protagonist of a comedy must display at least the minimum amount of personal charm to gain the audience's basic approval and support (1). The protagonist also tend to be more adaptable (2) than a tragic protagonist. The comedic protago...
Walsh, Lawrence E. Firewall. The Iran- Contra Conspiracy and Cover Up. W.W. Norton & Company. New York -- London. 1997
In 1686 Marcello Malphigi was the first to come up with the different patterns in a person’s finger but he didn’t go into that much detail. In 1880 Henry Faulds was the first to identify a fingerprint and came to the conclusion that they are used for identification purposes. By 1888 the first book about fingerprints called “Fingerprints” was published by Sir Francis Galton and he also developed the first system of classifying fingerprints. This system was made to state that no two prints are the same. In 1901 the Henry classification system was later developed by Sir Edward Henry, and this system categorized the ridge patterns into three groups: loops, whorls, and arches. These findings led to today’s fingerprint analysis. Which is used everywhere. Fingerprinting was later introduced to prisons, the army, and widely used for identification by law enforcement.
Fingerprints can be analyzed and matched to specific individuals. And because no one else in the world has the same fingerprints as us, it is guaranteed that any prominent prints can place a certain individual at the scene. Another distinctive characteristic of fingerprints is that they never change, from the day your born to the day you die, you are stuck with them. So by analyzing prints found at a crime, we are able to link a suspect or witness. By now we have a database that carries at least 700 million prints.
With origins from Ancient Greece, Comedy is one of the original four genres of literature as defined by the philosopher Aristotle in his work Poetics. The three other genres are consistent of tragedy, epic poetry, and lyric poetry. Not to be confused with the comedy associated with television and film which focuses entirely on humorous discourse generally intended to amuse; literary comedy is characterised by general humour, happy endings and communal celebration. This assignment will critically analyse the comedies of William Shakespeare and Bernard Shaw and consider what characteristics they share and how they differ. It is also important to fully understand the genre of comedy, exploring its origins, definitions and sub-divisions.
Bond, J. W. (2009). The value of fingerprint evidence in detecting crime. International Journal Of Police Science & Management, 11(1), 77-84. doi:10.1350/ijps.2009.11.1.111
When it comes to a crime, criminals are able to cover up many types of evidence. One piece of evidence that is almost impossible to cover up is prints. Because of the difficulty behind covering prints, they are the most important part of solving a crime. The types of prints range from Fingerprints to palm prints and even lip prints can be used to solve a crime. Prints are the most important piece of evidence because prints are left everywhere anyone touches, they are not easily covered up, all prints are unique, and because many parts of your body produce prints without you even trying. When talking about the importance of prints it is vital to notice that prints serve many roles and for the most part the average person doesn’t know any more about prints than what they have seen on CSI or other television shows. With enough research it is found that prints are more complex, interesting, and unique than might be thought.