Rights and Responsibilities

When we look at ownership, we are looking at our responsibilities toward tangible things. People like to spiritualize this in different ways. Some say we belong or are owned by an ecosystem/mother earth, others by a god of some kind, yet others claim we are owned by chaos and random events. But we have to look beyond these philosophies since they deal with intangible things. Our passions are also intangible and allowing these to be the determining factor for ownership is too vague. Using intangible ideas to determine ownership for tangible things doesn't work out well. Making claims that things are owed to us because of affiliations to a god or a class of people upsets clear thinking.

At it's most basic form, we have souls and bodies that have desires and needs. We own them both and that is what makes us individuals. If we could be islands, nothing beyond that would matter, but we need others in order to be satisfied and to have a sense of accomplishment. But when another person is involved, we have to concede certain areas of our private lives. As a worker, we have to give a portion of our day and attention to work. This is in exchange with others for pay. If we live with someone, there is an exchange also. Sometimes we feel we give too much for the benefits we receive. This is a common human issue since we always want more for less effort and it can come from either side.

These principles also apply to governing. We have a need for order and protection because of the human tendency to take more that what is given. If we rightly assume everyone has greed, the question concerns how to approach this with the least amount of greed involved. The word "rights" involves the areas in our lives that we don't want to concede to another entity. Today the meaning has morphed into the concept of wants and needs, but then it is open to broad interpenetration. What does a person need besides food and shelter? How much transportation and entertainment are we responsible to provide for another? How much should a person be allowed to keep and how much work should be required? When the concept of rights is confined to what areas we are willing to concede to another entity, our ability to define parameters becomes possible.

When government is involved with wants and needs, greed becomes a problem. Those who are on the receiving end expect more benefits while those who are governing want more security and honor in their positions. They look for creative ways to extort payment from each other. The dynamic of wanting more for less on both sides is put into play. By laying aside passions concerning what we think people should have, the question becomes confined to freedom and insuring that people keep what they earn. This is important since ownership is what motivates people to do their best.

We have concluded in the past that sharing everything equally socially makes the participants feel less responsible for their actions. They easily pass the blame on others and honor is lacking. Actual close relationships have to exist before a concept of country can be comprehended. Without loyalty and honor established among his closest peers, a person will not practice it toward a country. Along the same lines, if we share everything material, there is little practice of benevolence. Neither the recipients or the givers have an appreciation for what is being done. With ownership comes responsibility. Responsible people are more apt to take care of what they have and give the proper amount to help others. A society based in good character will coincide with good stewardship. Prodigal behavior is that which wastes what is needed for everyone to survive in order to experience the pleasure being a hero. It becomes more complicated when the resources are compulsory from a governing entity.

When we cede over areas to another entity, they have to be well defined to prevent abuse. The benefits of having an ownership based society far outweigh one that is based in sharing by compulsion. But it has to be coupled with a culture of good character. Law and order will have to be enforced by compulsion. Even this can get out of hand without well defined rights.