Principle: Natural Rights. I believe that all human beings have inherent natural rights bestowed upon them by their creator which are inalienable. Natural rights are those rights we are born with. We are endowed with these rights by our creator or by virtue of our humanity. These rights are inherent to our being. What are these natural rights? Thomas Jefferson succinctly listed them as the right to life, liberty and property.
Life: We have a right to live. Our life is our own and we have a right to live it according to our own will as long as we do not infringe on the natural rights of others. This does not mean that we have a right to the sustenance of our life, that we have to earn, but our right to our life cannot be denied.
Liberty: We have a right to liberty. We have a right to do as we please as long we do not infringe upon the rights of other people. Liberty is the freedom to act according to our own free will without undue coercion or restraint.
Property: We have a right to own property. The right to property means that we can retain the fruits of our labor and enjoy the benefits of the property that we are able to acquire through our own enterprise.
I believe in the concept of natural rights because I believe in the innate value of each and every human being. God created men to be free, to achieve, to create, to build, to risk and to love. These natural rights are what allow us to freely work to reach our potential. They are what make us human.
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