Declaration's 'unalienable rights' are really only means to an end

"Does the end justify the means?"

That's one of the oldest, toughest philosophical questions of them all, and where I generally would fall on that question is that it doesn't. That in fact there are no ends, only means, and it is the means we use to achieve our goals are what define us.

But today is Independence Day, and I have a different motive in asking the question. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Liberty, a means to an end.

You can ask almost any American and they'll tell you those are the big three, pretty much in that order. We've even got a political party of a sort that rates Liberty as the most important thing in the world.

Anybody who has been a regular reader of my writing knows how I feel about them. Whether it's "Every man for himself" or "I've got mine, Jack," to me Libertarianism is pretty much the ultimate in political selfishness.

It's actually sort of silly, too.

You see, Liberty isn't an end.

It's a means to an end, and if we want to be honest about it, so are Life and the pursuit of Happiness. On the most basic level, Liberty means you are free.

To do what?

If you are free, no one is telling you what to do or not to do. You are free to do what you want. So Liberty is a means, not an end.

Ditto with the pursuit of Happiness. You can call Happiness an end, certainly, but pursuing it is only a means to an end.

As for Life, it's mostly a condition. You're either alive or you aren't. Being alive is a means to an end. You have to decide what sort of life you want to live, either one serving others or one serving yourself.

In the end, being alive, being free and pursuing happiness aren't the things that matter most. What matters most is how we use them, what we strive to achieve to make the world a better place before we leave it.

There really are no ends for us.

Only means.