[Avodah] John Locke and Tzedaqa

[Micha Berger]

On Mon, Jan 11, 2010 at 02:23:10PM -0500, Zev Sero wrote:
: Even correcting the name, this is very confused.  I don't really know
: what you mean by "duties based law"...

So then how can you asses whether it's confused, if you didn't find me
clear on the basic chaqira?!

: what you mean by "duties based law", but the legal system adopted by
: the colonies was not at all different in principle from that which they
: inherited from the UK...

The US designed a constitution whose focus is on limiting powers.
Because the US's legal philosophy is about guaranteeing rights.

Monarchs order, and thus create duties.

There is little pragmatic difference between "right to property" and "do
not steal", but the first is rights-based, and the latter is duty based.
What does the gov't guarantee me vs what does the gov't demand of me.
They are philosophically and culturally very different.

RMM gave a good example... By definition, a rights-based law can't
order charity. You appear to have agreed, invoking the fact that our
relationship to G-d isn't based on an approach in a state of nature.
I believe you then added that the approach G-d expects between two Jews
is similarly not.

I would add that this is why "kol Yisrael areivim", and why the issur
of ribis (tarbit) is all about "akhikha".

I see these as covenental -- not duties in the sense of responsibility
to the other. The idea is that there isn't full other-hood.

The Torah's issur on geneivah could be viewed as duty-based, but because
the source of authority is a beris, the duty isn't to the other -- it's
to a whole that includes oneself.

There are a few halakhos that imply rights: gezel shinah and geneivas
daas presume the other owns an intangible related to getting their
sleep or knowing what's going on around them. But even they are phrased
as demands on my not broaching their rights, not my own sleep and daas
being protected. Because the basic legal philosophy isn't a constitution
guaranteeing rights, liberties and freedoms.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Nearly all men can stand adversity,
micha at aishdas.org        but if you want to test a man's character,
http://www.aishdas.org   give him power.
Fax: (270) 514-1507                      -Abraham Lincoln