The Rights Paradox
When we declare certain rights inalienable, yet create exceptions through legislation, we reveal the conditional nature of our most cherished freedoms. Rights exist not as absolute protections, but as negotiated boundaries within social contracts, continuously rebalanced as technologies and cultural values evolve.
The smartphone debate in schools exposes this tension perfectly: we simultaneously affirm children's autonomy through constitutional protections whilst acknowledging their vulnerability requires intervention. This contradiction isn't a failure of principle but rather reflects the inherent complexity of rights themselves—they are neither granted nor discovered, but emerge from the ongoing conversation between individual liberty and collective wellbeing.
Perhaps the most profound realisation is that rights are not immutable truths waiting to be uncovered, but dynamic equilibria we must constantly recalibrate as circumstances change. The true challenge isn't determining which rights are "natural" or "fundamental", but rather how we navigate their inevitable conflicts with wisdom, compassion and foresight.