Philosophy Personal Liberty Argument Term paper
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One of the many debates that continue to rage on amongst people in the United States, as well as various other countries around the world, deals with under what circumstances, if any, should the government interfere with a person s liberty. This issue has struck great debate amongst many people and has led to opinions varying from one extreme to the other with many in between. There are many different aspects to consider when determining if thiskind of restriction of one s liberty is ever completely justified. The main issue in question is when can the government infringe on personal freedom. One of the answers to this question that has been debated is to prevent harm to one s self. I will attempt to show that this is not a legitimate reason for governmental interference with the right of human liberty. This principle states that the state is justified in prohibiting actions that hurt or endangerThe belief that the government has the right to prevent someone from doing harm to the agent himself; the state can interfere for the person s own good . This principle allows the government to pass laws to ensure the safety of an individual from himself and to prevent causing harm to oneself. Some of the areas this covers include suicide and mercy killing. The government is trying to place restrictions on what it thinks is harmful to the people by making certain
acts illegal. In placing these restrictions on personal liberty, the government is in fact undermining exactly what this country was founded on. The United States was founded on the idea that humans possess certain freedoms and liberties that cannot be taken away under any circumstances. People were given the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (class handout). However, once this freedom begins to impinge on another
person s freedom to do the same, the action now becomes illegal. So as long as our own actions don t intrude on another person s freedoms, the actions should be legal and the government should not place any restrictions on them. If a certain action causes harm to another then that person s rights have been infringed and we should be held accountable for the action. Some acts seem to fall under the category of causing personal harm to one s self such as contracting to be a slave/mutilated, over-the-counter sale of heroin and valium, and not wearing seat belts. Upon closer inspection, it can be seen that these acts can cause harm to others and impinge on others rights. It is for this reason that these acts should be illegal,
not because they cause harm to the self.
The over-the-counter sale of heroin and valium can lead to the serious harm of other human beings by those that are using the drugs. These two drugs have extreme consequences when used and can lead to the grave danger of others. Those that take these drugs can become enraged, lose control of their senses, or even hallucinate. These side effects have serious consequences to those surrounding the drug user, not only the drug user himself. The drugs could cause the person to act in such a manner that he would normally
not be accustomed to acting. This could impact those around him if he decides to do something under the influence of the drugs which may cause harm to others, such as drive or even go to the mall. The drug user could become so enraged by such a minor thing that he takes his anger out on another person. This infringes on that other person s rights. Some might argue that all drugs and even alcohol could cause this to happen as well. I am not denying this totally. I am saying that the use of valium and heroin are dramatically more
likely to cause this to occur and therefore are more severe in nature. To make these drugslegal would be to drastically put more people in harm s way.
The act of justifying the illegality of not wearing seat belts is a little more complicated. When a person decides not to wear a seat belt, not only can he harm himself physically, but he can also harm others in another...
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