I just sent this off to a [[wp:BDSM]] mailign list I am on. The topic is ( as usual ) what rights a slave retains no matter what agreement he / she has made with their owner.
Heya ๐
The concept that someone cannot “give up” a right is one that can only be discussed in two ways:
1) We can discuss the ethical construct. Is a right “inalienable”? Does that right always remain with someone no matter the circumstances or their own actions / desires?
2) We can discuss the legal / social construct. Is there some mechanism in place to enforce and protect the rights that the society has created a legal protection for.
In the context of a submissive’s right to “life” discussing #1, while fun, is basically a “religious” argument. There is no way to make an objective point … and no way to prove your point of view. Some people here feel that the right to life is inalienable and non transferable. Others of us feel that this “right” (if it exists) is something that is transferable.
The discussion of point #2 is, in its own way, more interesting but similarly pointless. Society and the legal system disagree with BDSM in various ways and to various degrees. It is safe to say that the vast majority of those who “do” BDSM (at least in the US) are choosing to break the law.
The convergence of #1 and #2 is the sweet spot. An interesting discussion can be had about where different people feel their ethics and the law overlap, and what they do with those areas where they do not line up.
Personally? I do not abdicate my ethics to society or the legal system. There are many actions I consider ethical and moral that the law considers to be illegal and wrong. There are many things I consider wrong that the law allows without comment. Nothing about a discussion of ownership and/or submission is any different in this regard.
As a side note – US law does not recognize an “unalienable” right to “life”. While there is a assumed right to life there are many circumstances where that right can be trumped -by the rights of others, by the needs of society or it can be surrendered by your own actions.
More thoughts… /core_dump/archives/001485.ascx
Soulhuntre
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