Rights vs. Entitlements

Freedom of speech is a right. Freedom of choosing one's religion is a right. Information is a right. Freedom to pursue happiness is a right. Freedom to own property is a right. Food is an entitlement. Education is an entitlement. Work is an entitlement.

So what is the difference? Rights are freedoms from oppression by the state or by the society. Rights are based on the premise that all humans are born equal and the society and government cannot restrict the freedom of a person or discriminate between them based on race, gender, or religion. Entitlements are welfare measures entailing government handouts and are naturally constrained by budget. Rights are universal, entitlements are not.

Rights don't cost government a penny in principle. But government is responsible for protecting the rights of a citizen if any one else or any part of government machinery is infringing on it. This is part of the policing function of government. All citizens have same rights.

Entitlements however cost money. Government has to plan for welfare within its budgetary constraints. Welfare is mostly targeted towards the poor of the country. A rich person doesn't need government support for food or the education of his children. Its the poor of the people who cannot afford such things on their own who need government support for the same. Nevertheless food, education, work and infrastructure are important basic requirements for well being and successful living of the citizens of a state. Hence they are also called secondary rights. Still they should be planned very carefully. Too much of it can make people become complacent as well as lead to the bankruptcy of state. Communist states gave priority to entitlement over rights. This was a road to the servitude to the state and led to massive unrest in the society. Today very few of the communist states are left in the world. Democratic countries like Greece which prided too much on socialist entitlement to its people; are finding it very difficult to take care of their public debt now.

We should appreciate the difference between fundamental rights and secondary rights or entitlements. This will help us plan much better for the future of our country.

Reference:

Swaminomics, Times of India, August 29, 2010, Lets not confuse entitlements with rights

I disown CWG 2010

Sheila Dikshit says that if the rain doesn't stop then she will pray and she will ask the whole country to pray. I want to be clear that I am not going to pray for the gigantic mismanagement and the loot carried out by CWG 2010. I disown CWG 2010. I will not watch it either in TV or in person. I will not read about it in news papers. And I will not care if its failure leads to a so called severe blow to the pride of India. It is probably the biggest organized loot ever in India since its independence. It has destroyed CP and created a havoc all around Delhi. Nobody cares about actually meeting deadlines. It has put enormous tax burden on citizens of the country. I do not wish to have a sense of guilt for the failure of a set of people who have no sense of responsibility and who only care about filling their personal coffers.