Dr. Martin Hash Podcast

Natural Rights come from the concept of Natural Law, which was part of Greek philosophy. Natural Law advocates believe morals are encoded in people's DNA, or possibly endowed by a divine presence. To most people, if it's found in the Bible, it's natural. Basically, Natural Rights are the justification to insist morals, which are subjective, can override the traditional role of legal jurisprudence. Secular Natural Rights advocates use the word “inalienable” because of the unquestionable authority it implies, and they include ethics & values in their list of Natural Rights. One of their favorites is “pursuit of happiness,” which has quasi-legitimacy due to its fame, though it isn't even part of U.S. legal canon.

There's no specific number of Natural Rights because ethics & values are as subjective as morals, and vary per culture & tradition. This makes it difficult to enforce Natural Rights around the world but often throughout history, a powerful country will feel it's their moral and ethical duty to do so; usually as justification to expand an empire or make a profit. Interestingly, nowhere do Natural Rights guarantee food, shelter, clothing or security? That would be charity, which isn't a Natural Right, apparently because it costs money.