[Radar]

Originally Posted by Juniper

Good gravy, Radar. Don't hold back, tell us how you really feel, OK?

The question of "rights" is complex. Are we born with rights by virtue of being human, or is it awarded by the government under which we live?

Enlightenment philosophes would say rights are integral to humanity and that all government is inherently oppressive, by its very nature.

Others, more pragmatically, might say "your rights end where mine begin."

And that is really the purpose of government, isn't it? It's about determining where one person's rights end, and another's begin, and enforcing the balance between the two. Pure, and distilled.

If you are a US resident, you have the "inalienable rights" to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." The First Constitutional Congress (and John Locke) said we should have the right to "life, liberty, and property." And then the Bill of Rights came along to give us some other stuff, like free speech, peaceful assembly, right to bear arms, trial by jury, that kind of thing. Amendments came along giving women the right to vote, etc.

My point, though, is are these all "inalienable rights" or are we just lucky enough to live in a time and place that recognizes them?

What gives you the right to do whatever it is you think you have a right to do? Or who gives you the right?

What is a "right" anyway?

Is it given by God? Whose God? How do you know?

I am not arguing that gays shouldn't be allowed to marry. I said as much. I just think you would be a much better asset to your cause if you had a more logical argument than "we've got the right." 'Cause what you're really saying is "I want this, others want this, and I want more people to agree with us than disagree."

Our rights don't come from government. Government is just here to protect those rights. We are born with our rights and they are one segment of natural law. There is no such thing as a Constitutional right. None of our rights come from the Constitution. The Constitution was just written so that other people would realize that all governmental power is derived from the rights of people, and that government may not have any powers that we have not granted to it. This means we may not grant any powers to government over and above the rights of any individual person.

Since no person has the right to use force to prevent the marriage of others, they may not grant this power to government.

How do I know what our rights are? Simple. We are born with the right to do ANYTHINGwe want as long as our actions don't physically harm, endanger, or violate the person, property, or rights of non-consenting others. This means, since I own myself, I own my voice. I therefore have the right to freedom of expression. You also have freedom of expression, but you do not have the right to go through your life without ever being offended by the expression of others. You don't have the right to use force against others to prevent you from getting your feelings hurt.

One persons right to marry any consenting other they choose is no more or less important than another person's right to life. Rights are rights are rights. If you violate one of my rights, I may violate one of the rights you hold more dearly.