How (not only the Declaration of human) RIGHTs slowly kill(s) the society

RIGHT of the bat, I have to say that I agree with every single point in the Declaration of human RIGHTs past by the UN in 1948, yet I feel that the way it was written did more harm than good.  In fact, the longer it stays the way it is, it is going to teach the future generations a really bad approach to life.

When I later state my argument, you will realize, that almost everywhere in the world, when someone states he or she has a RIGHT or when a public authority declares someone’s RIGHT, they always miss the second half of the equation that goes along any RIGHT, it being a human RIGHT, Government RIGHT or citizen RIGHT.

Without this second half not only does the implementation of any RIGHT does not work, but more than that, it causes more harm.  Harm that is not visible at the first sight, but eventually poisons the society that tries to implement a given RIGHT.

So here it goes:  In order for any RIGHT to work, there must be an OBLIGATION that goes along with it.

Let’s start with a simple example how I implemented this with my son who is 13 and then we can move on to more serious topics.

One day my son says to me  “Dad I’m 13 and I want to go to bed not at 10pm but at 11pm, because I’m already a teenager and I feel I already have the RIGHT to choose when to go to bed.”

To that I said, I agree, but with every RIGHT there is an OBLIGATION so from now on, because you are a teenager, I expect you to do the dishes, vacuum clean and go out with the garbage all the time.  No one will be doing it but you.

He went to bed at 10pm that night.

Another example was when he wanted a cell phone with a tariff.  I said, you want phone with a tariff, here it is, but you must always have it on so we can reach you and make sure you always have the battery charged otherwise I will take it away from you (of course I understood that there are times the he could not answer).

What I wanted to teach him is that there is never a RIGHT without an OBLIGATION.  Life never works like that.  If you want to claim something, you have to give something.  If you want a RIGHT, you always have an OBLIGATION.

When you look at today’s society it’s almost funny when in certain areas this principle is perfectly normal and in other areas people would almost spit on me if I were to implement it.

For example, it is perfectly normal once you turn adult (in the Czech Republic it is 18) that you can do all the good adult stuff like drink alcohol, drive a car, get a mortgage, job, yet everyone understands that along with it goes obeying the laws and if you break them you get punished.

This also works the other way around.

One day my ex-partner in a company came and said.  There is debt that we have to pay.  I said, what is it? He says, I bought this into our venture, now I have no money so you have to pay this amount.  And to that I said, for every RIGHT, there is an OBLIGATION, and if I have an OBLIGATION to pay now, how come you did not give me the RIGHT to decide with you if it were good or bad to buy something into our venture.  And because you took this RIGHT away from me I have no OBLIGATION.  So from then on he became an ex-partner.

I believe you understand the equation now.  So let’s check the more controversial stuff.

In a standard democracy every citizen has the RIGHT to vote.  Well, where is the OBLIGATION??  There is none.  The OBLIGATION is you have to contribute to the state.  How?  By paying taxes.  Because in its simplicity, elections are about selecting people who take care of the pile of money the citizens pay through taxes.  So if someone does not pay taxes, they should not have the RIGHT to vote.

And now to the Declaration of human RIGHTs.  Every human has a RIGHT to have a religious believe.  Ok, so there should be an OBLIGATION that says as long as the practice of this believe does not interfere with the way other person wants to live his life.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.  Again no obligation.  It should say, everyone has the right to life, liberty and security as long as they contribute to the society that is protecting the right to life, liberty and security.

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.  This is a typical one.  Someone has to pay for the independent and impartial tribunal.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.  Again, no obligation.  There should be added as long as what they do in the privacy does not interfere with other person’s honor and security.

Now of course the rights I cited are fine, but they should had always mention the obligations, to teach people.  The Declaration of human RIGHTs is a widely cited document, without the OBLIGATIONs, it is teaching everyone in the world that RIGHTs are without OBLIGATIONs, that there is something without nothing that you can take without contributing.  And that is wrong, but it is happening now.

That is why I have the RIGHT to write anything I please here, because you do not have an OBLIGATION to read it.

Jiri George DVORAK

founder of Entrypoint company