Simply put, federal government provides "negative" rights.....often in the form of "Government shall make no law.....".
Philosophically, government provides no rights. They are given by our "Creator," by the Declaration of Independence.
Essentially saying that government is there for a specific reason and they are not to engage in things such as forcing religion on people
When has that happened?
or denying people free speech.
Free speech is not absolute (see: Yelling fire in a crowded theater"
In any case, what free speech rights have been lost?
When the federal government starts to engage in "positive" rights (setting aside the general statement of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness)
When and how did that happen?
....the right to health care, the right to retire, the right to clean water....etc. They are now engaged in setting standards and regulating something.
Is that un-Constitutional? Is that beyond the pale of OUR government if we want it to do that?
So when we talk about "loss" of right....often it is the loss of protection from the government
Who, or what, is "the government?"
.....or, in other words, the intrusion of government into our lives.
Does government intrude into our lives without the Will of The People? Evidence, please.
And, do you include state, county and local government in that, or just the federal government?
The real problem is that you may not know you've lost those negative rights until way after they are gone.
What "negative" rights have I lost?
Probably the most prominent loss of rights or liberty is in the form of the loss of personal property going to taxes. This takes away from being able to make economic choices.
I still have my property, in spite of paying taxes on it. It's mine and the mortgage holder's. What have I lost and what choices do I not have?
.
As an aside...the city I live in retroactively made and ordinance where you can't finish your basement unless you have window openings of a certain size (for egress). That applys to homes that were built 30 years prior.....thus hurting peoples opportunity to enjoy the home they purchased. Of course, what really happens is that about 90% of homes in the area have finished basements that were done without permits. So the very codes you hope will protect you are bypassed.
Huh?
