PHIL 2103 Lecture Notes - Thomas Pogge, Contract Theory, Dignity
21 Nov 2012
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Hr are rights to those things that human beings need in order to live minimally decent lives, lives that are worthy of human dignity and respect. If this approach is correct, it would distinguish hr from moral rights that are not hr. We may have moral rights to have others not lie to us, or not break promises for no good reason, etc. But if they do such things, this will not usually lower our well being below the acceptable minimum. Some things we have a hr to are not necessary to a minimally decent life, eg: a right to free speech, right to vote, right to move anywhere in the country Some things necessary to a decent life may not be things we have a hr to, eg: health care. By our very nature human beings are autonomous rational agents. This is what separates us from animals and makes us distinctively human.
