I’m watching the Republican debate on Fox News and I’ve heard some really good things and some really frustrating things.
One of the most disturbing statements I’ve heard all night is not a new one. Every time someone says it, I realize how little we really believe some of the core principles of our foundation.
Answering a question about terrorism Congresswoman Michelle Bachman said something along the lines that most terrorists are foreign agents and therefore have no rights under our Constitution.
If that doesn’t send a chill up your spine, it should.
The core of this issue is our belief about where our rights come from.
If Congresswoman Bachman is right, then rights are a product of the state in which you live. In other words, rights are given by the state.
I do not believe that. I believe that “all men are…endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…”
I do believe that the government has defined some “rights” that are really privileges of living in a certain country (like the “right” to vote), however we get into dangerous territory when we start saying that someone doesn’t have rights because they don’t live in America.
Right are God-given. Once we lose that understanding, our government is given the power to run amok.
If rights are given by a government, that means those in power can grant and revoke them willy-nilly depending on personal ideology, favoritism, the need to pander to special interests, etc.
This destroys the fundamentals of American government.
Terrorists and other criminals still have rights, even when they have violated the rights of others. This does bring up many issues that need to be sorted out, but the solution is not denying them those rights.
Illegal aliens also have rights, even if they have broken the law. It’s not enough to say they are illegal and therefore have no rights.
Rights are not granted by citizenship. They are granted by God. Governments all over the world violate these divine rights. They will have to answer for that someday.
To say that we should be outspoken about the rights of individuals throughout the world is not a strong enough statement.
Being human is all that is required to have rights. All our constitution does is protect them.
We must defend those rights, always and for everyone. Even if they are terrorists.
Rights and Reason 