What right have you?

They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.

That, folks, was from the infamous and ingenious Benjamin Franklin. This statement is centered on rights. Many in the last few hundred years seem to put much stock into what our rights are and what they are not. I have a question though. From whom do we obtain these rights? I have heard many times that there are basic "human rights." You must pardon me, but I find the notion that we have rights simply for the fact that we are human rather absurd. Rights are bestowed upon one by another, they do not magically attach themselves to a person or persons because they happen to be taller or shorter than another person. Let us look at a document that we here in the United States and many outside our boarders know of. We wrote the Declaration of Independence July 4, 1776. In the second paragraph you will find the following sentence.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

In this previous statement it is suggested that we are given what rights we have from our Creator. This would seem to make sense to me. I work with the public. I also work in a building that has rooms and places the general public is not permitted while I am. I am able to go in these rooms and areas because I have been given the right to do so from my employer. Those who are not employed there are not permitted to go in certain areas as they have not been given permission by the owners of the property or by his or her representatives. In this case the person who owns this property and his/her representatives are the persons who have the authority to grant permission to access areas. In this example it is those who possess authority that grant a right to act in a particular manner such as venturing into a particular area. If there were no owners of land and property there would be no person or persons to prohibit venturing into or onto certain regions or areas. Such rights are given and revoked by that person in a particular office of authority and can be given or revoked by an even higher authority if such an office of authority exists. When one bestows upon another certain rights and there is no other in a position of authority that is higher than that of the original authority than there is none that can revoke the rights bestowed excluding, again, that original authority.

Let us say that there is a person. This person is represented as person "A"and has absolute and unquestionable authority. This person would then be God or as our forefathers called Him the Creator. Perhaps it would be better to say that this is a representation of God. Let us then say that we also have another person. This is person "B" and he represents humanity as a whole. When person "A" bestows upon person "B" rights there is no other entity that can revoke these rights. The only person with the authority to revoke these rights is person "A". Person "B" may chose not to exercise certain of these rights, but he still has them. Therefore, it may be inferred that no person within the group of person "B" has the authority to strip another in the same group of the rights that person "A" has bestowed.

As you can see it is rather absurd to think that a man can revoke the rights of another. It is as equally as foolish to believe that any one should ever attempt retard the rights of another.

Let us touch on a very heated topic. Immigration. There are those who say that people who cross our boarder through illegal means have none of our rights. Many if not all of these people will say the same for a supposed terrorist. To those of you who would say this I call you an idiot of the worst and most dangerous sort. The rights that we possess as I have previously stated are given to us by God. To think that you or any other man, government official or not, have the power and authority to revoke or inhibit the rights of another man even if he is from another country is pure and unadulterated idiocy.

I concede the fact that there are occasions when rights are to be revoked. Let us look at the covenant that God made with Noah. If a man takes the life of one man his life, too, is to be taken. In that particular occasion his right to life has been revoked when it is proven beyond a reasonable doubt that he has needlessly taken a life. Entering a country illegally, however, is not murder.

Make no mistake, the moment that a person can find an excuse to inhibit the rights of a particular group, be they immigrants, supposed terrorist, or any other particular group of people that same person has then opened the door to inhibit those same rights that belong to you. Let us take a second look at that first statement.

They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.

Those of you who would give up rights for your own safety are welcome to it. Just remember you are in fact doing something that is already outside of your right to do. You are denying the rights that God himself bestowed upon you. The moment that you accept that the end justifies the means is the moment you lower yourself to the level of those who you would seek to combat.

Of course there is much more to say on this topic, but I don't want to write a book on here. This is enough for now.

Almost forgot, as a disclaimer it should be noted that if you do not believe in an almighty Creator, than this, while it still does apply, is not so intended for you. Honestly, if there is no Creator I don't see how rights can exist at all. Good thing He does.