> The only thing that's natural are the laws of nature, otherwise known as physics, and there is no law of physics that prevents me from torturing someone. Goo

> The only thing that's natural are the laws of nature, otherwise known as physics, and there is no law of physics that prevents me from torturing someone. Good thing I didn't imagine the idea of rights would physically prevent you from torturing someone. Basically, rights are an idea meant to help us in drawing boundaries between what's acceptable behaviour and what's not. But it's got nothing to do with the government, and everything to do with reason, logic, consistency and common sense. A government or a piece of paper can't grant any rights or take any away, and in fact, governments only violate our rights.