That’s why the rights of people today shouldn’t be dictated by a document written over a century ago. Idolizing a document over human rights is terrible.
Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
- George Santayana
That’s the full quote that people like to reduce to the final sentence.
Documents are a species’ way of remembering the past and establishing core ideals so that future generations don’t have to reinvent those wheels.
Not to say any given document is without flaws or captures the right values, and as our societies grow and mature so too should the values that we align ourselves with.
Idolizing a document over human rights is terrible.
Well, to be clear, human rights, other than being a vague philosophical concept, are also a document. Much younger, and much more sensible and uncompromising, but still also a document.
Hopefully if new rights are deemed to be needed, they can be added.
I mean, if a document has specific rights written on it and society moves forward and has need for new rights to be added then we should be ready to rewrite and add rights as opposed to treating the document as divine and unchangeable.
I know you’re not being serious, but for the sake of the argument, if we’re going to force a person, against their will, to be in a certain place for a certain amount of time then we should have to cover all the basic needs that that person may have.
I totally disagree. Why, someone could frame you for murder and have you for a slave before you know it. I wouldn’t take that chance as long as the Justice system is fallible.
The right to a fair wage while imprisoned. Or else your justice system only serves to produce slaves.
Slavery is legal in prisons here in the U.S.
Yes, precisely.
written into the constitution
That’s why the rights of people today shouldn’t be dictated by a document written over a century ago. Idolizing a document over human rights is terrible.
- George Santayana
That’s the full quote that people like to reduce to the final sentence.
Documents are a species’ way of remembering the past and establishing core ideals so that future generations don’t have to reinvent those wheels.
Not to say any given document is without flaws or captures the right values, and as our societies grow and mature so too should the values that we align ourselves with.
Well you benefit from that very same document right here (free speech). The first thing tyrants do is get rid of things like constitutions.
I meant the ability to add rights and amend, not destroy the document.
Well, to be clear, human rights, other than being a vague philosophical concept, are also a document. Much younger, and much more sensible and uncompromising, but still also a document.
Hopefully if new rights are deemed to be needed, they can be added.
I mean, if a document has specific rights written on it and society moves forward and has need for new rights to be added then we should be ready to rewrite and add rights as opposed to treating the document as divine and unchangeable.
Sadly. We should change that, but you-know-who would be against it, like they had been throughout the nation’s history.
Should they then also pay rent in prison? :D (not serious)
Oh boy, let me tell you about pay-for-stay.
At $249 per day, prison stays leave ex-inmates deep in debt - AP News (2022)
Essentially, that already happens. They get charged for rent. And food. And medical care. And whatever else can be charged.
Ok not funny anymore. What a dystopia! Thanks for the info.
I know you’re not being serious, but for the sake of the argument, if we’re going to force a person, against their will, to be in a certain place for a certain amount of time then we should have to cover all the basic needs that that person may have.
You lose your rights when you go to prison. Murderers shouldn’t have a right to wage laws.
I totally disagree. Why, someone could frame you for murder and have you for a slave before you know it. I wouldn’t take that chance as long as the Justice system is fallible.