On Wed, 11 Aug 2004, Bill Bartlett wrote:
> At 9:54 PM -0700 10/8/04, Miles Jackson wrote:
>
>
> >
> >Yes, because I believe in democracy. The answer would be the
> >same for the death penalty, funding public libraries, the
> >selection of a state senator, or any other meaningful
> >decision people need to make.
>
> Not ANY other decision, there have to be limits to what we can
> tolerate in the name of "democracy". Such limits as are set out, for
> instance, in the universal declaration of human rights, or the US
> Bill of Rights.
>
Sure, as long as the definition of "fundamental rights" is consensually arrived at. You're treating human rights as a priori when in fact they are defined, negotiated and enforced by real people in real social settings. If people in a community somewhere didn't want to live according to the U. S. Bill of Rights, should they be compelled to?
Is the "universal declaration of human rights" even possible, given the diverse values, religious beliefs, and cultural practices around the world? I'm skeptical.
Miles