In my first post on human rights I ended with a quote from Ayn Rand who was no friend of the Christian church.
That quote is found in a collection of articles gathered under the title, Textbook of Americanism.
Rand of course didn't come up with this. These ideas may be traced to Thomas Jefferson to John Locke and others. We can find them stated succinctly in our Declaration of Independence.
I will attempt to head off criticisms of these principles from my Christian brothers and sisters by referring to Thomas Paine.
In his pamphlet, Common Sense after his introduction he begins with these words," some writers have so confounded society with government, as to leave little or no distinction between them; whereas they are not only different, but have different origins. Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former promotes our happiness POSITIVELY by uniting our affections, the latter NEGATIVELY by restraining our vices. The one encourages intercourse, the other creates distinctions. The first is a patron, the last a punisher."
I would add that society is obviously first. It is brought about because man was created a social creature.
Though man was created upright he of course fell so that sin mars any society and must be dealt with. From this arises the need for Government.
So in America, at what point did society run amuck so that the Government became more punitive? Maybe when states began to secede from the Union?
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