There is a disturbing trend in politicians to try to put ‘new rights’ up for vote: should gay couples be allowed to marry, or should women be allowed to drive cars.

Here’s the problem: true rights are not supposed to be voted on. Once discovered, they must apply instantly, universally. They are there to protect us from those who vote. If all rights could be voted on, democracy would become what has erroneously been attributed to Benjamin Franklin:

Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch

If we allowed the wolves to vote on protection for minorities, they’d vote that down in an instant. Then the’d vote on lunch.

That’s why we must never allow votes on rights. We must simply implement them once we discover they exist.