Rights and Responsibilities

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" (Declaration of Independence). The Revolutionary War was fought to obtain God-given Rights for every individual. The United States Constitution was written and ratified to protect those basic Rights. The Bill of Rights was written and ratified to emphasize and to protect other freedoms that our forefathers and foremothers considered to be important. Other amendments to the Constitution provide and protect even more privileges. The principle that many people do not understand is that where much is given, much is required. Because we have these basic and other wonderful Rights, we also have Responsibilities to understand, utilize, and protect those Rights. Here are a few examples. 1. "Right to Life" gives us the Right to live as well as the Right to protect our lives and the Responsibility to protect the lives of other people. The Right to Life does not mean we have the privilege of having a healthy or even a happy life. It simply means that we have the Right to live. If we want to be healthy or happy, then we have the Responsibility to develop those habits and do those things that lead to health and happiness. 2. "Right to Liberty" gives us the Right to live freely, to come and go as we desire. No one has the authority to lock us up or to confine us in any way. The Responsibility that goes with this Right is the duty to insure that others enjoy this same freedom and the obligation to obey the laws of the city, state and nation. Those people who choose to disobey law also choose to lose freedoms. 3. "Right to the Pursuit of Happiness" is generally considered the Right to own property because owning property is a means of improving one's station in life - or to pursue happiness. This Right does not mean that we have the right to be happy; it simply gives us the privilege of pursuing happiness. We have the Right to own property but NOT the right to expect other people to buy the property for us. This Right is being threatened with words like "social justice" and "wealth distribution." 4. "Right to Worship" means that we can choose who, what and how we worship. It also means that we must allow other people the same privilege. This Right is slowing being destroyed. This destruction began long ago when politicians began saying that there was a "wall" between the government and religion. There is no wall and never was. Other indications that this Right is being destroyed is the law that prayer cannot be included in any school activity and the way that the "religious right" is condemned for standing on principle. 5. "Right to Free Speech" gives us the Right to say what we want to say, but it also gives us the Responsibility to check ourselves in what we say. This Right is being threatened under the new communication policy that is being discussed. The Fairness Doctrine would control talk radio and limit what could be said on television, thus giving the government room to give us whatever propaganda they choose. 6. "Right to Free Press" gives us the Right to receive the news without propaganda from the government. It gives us the responsibility to not print libelous news. This Right is being threatened under the plans for "responsible journalism". There is even a liberal organization called "Free Press" that is trying to destroy this Right. There is talk now of setting up a $50 billion "trust" in order to keep the mainstream newspapers in business, thus bringing the newspapers under the government umbrella. The free use of the Internet is being threatened by those who want to control Americans, including social networks like Face book. 7. "Right to Own and Bear Arms" gives us the Right to own guns. The Right of the individual to own guns was recently ruled constitutional by the Supreme Court. This Right brings the obligation to be a responsible gun owner. We have the Responsibility to protect the lives and rights of others. 8. "Right to Vote" brings the Responsibility to study the matters thoroughly to learn the pros and cons of each issue. This Right brings the obligation and duty to go to the polls to make one's position known. It also brings the duty to accept the decision of the majority of voters. The opportunity to live in the United States of America under the protection of the Constitution brings the Responsibility, the obligation, and the duty to study the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and other important papers. It also brings the Responsibility to defend and support the Constitution. We cannot be ignorant and remain free! Americans must wake up and take action because our Rights are slowly but surely being stripped away. The speed with which this process is taking place has been increased under the Obama Administration One of the best things that you can do is obtain copies of the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. A free copy of each of these two documents can be obtained from http:www.askheritage.org/premium.aspx. The signers of the Declaration of Independence pledged their Lives, their Fortunes, and their sacred Honor to bring freedom to Americans. Can we give any less if we want to pass this same freedom to our posterity? For more information on this subject: http://www.patriotpost.us/Alexander/2009/10/22/the-rights-and-obligations-of… and http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/11/is_barack_obama_atiamerican.html