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Society
Can a majority vote away your rights?
If nearly everyone votes to take away one person's basic freedom, what makes the vote illegitimate? Where do rights get authority over the majority?
A democracy needs a way to decide together, but also an account of what cannot be put to a vote. Explain where that boundary comes from.
Your answer
Nearby questions5
- Suppose punishing a guilty person would deter nobody, protect nobody, and change nothing. Would they still deserve punishment?
- What gives you a stronger claim to a safe, prosperous country than someone born just across its border?
- A law is unjust but was passed through a fair democratic process. When is breaking it a duty—and who gets to make that call?
- You must design society before finding out whether you will be rich or poor, healthy or ill, powerful or ignored. Which rules would you refuse to leave to luck?
- Should people be free to say things you believe are dangerous and hateful? Where would you draw a limit that you would trust your opponents to enforce?