No one asked to be born - Justice and Equality - Philosophically Speaking

Justice and Equality

Philosophically Speaking

By Richard E. Noble



Ontologically speaking, there is no such thing as justice. One’s being or existence is arbitrary. No one asked to be alive and no one could have asked to be alive. To make such a request implies existence or being. In other words, only something which exists could make a request - any request. For an existing thing to request existence is, of course, self contradictory and ludicrous. And a non-existing entity by definition does not have being and, consequently, is incapable of requesting anything. If something has being, in any way, shape or form, then it certainly can not request that it exist or be given being since it already has it. Being is.
We are all here, with no exercise of our will, whether we like it or not. We are each the product of an arbitrary authority and the product of an injustice - creation. Our being is without just cause.
Equality: One simply has to look at the sexes, the different races, the unequal distribution of talents, abilities and physical attributes to know that all humans have not been created equal. This is self evident.
So then, when we talk of justice and equality what are we speaking about? The American Constitution:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, 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.”
That all men are created equal is self-evident? Isn’t it just the contrary?
Well, if we accept the notion that all of creation is arbitrary, then it would be true to say that we are all equal in the fact that we are created arbitrarily or unjustly. In other words, the injustice of creation applies to all things, and all humans, universally - equally. The unjust and arbitrary act of creation is applied to each of us without distinction. We are all in the same boat, so to speak, in the even distribution of the fact of our uncalled for existence. So then, all existence is equal in that anything and everything is uncalled for and exists without a choice in the matter of its being.
So then, it is in this respect that we can interpret the words of the American Constitution. All men have been created equally or under the same restrictive code. In relation to this circumstance, it can certainly be claimed rationally that all men are equal with regards to the circumstance of their being or existence.
The Constitution then goes on to proclaim that in accordance with this being or arbitrary act of creation there are implied certain unalienable rights that are a basic consequence of that imposed existence and that follow naturally from that existence and that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
This is stating that once you have been granted existence it follows that there is a natural inclination to maintain that existence in a free and happy state. What constitutes freedom or happiness is not defined but it is implicit that everyone would and does have an accepted understanding of these concepts as applied to their existence. To maintain one’s existence, in a free and happy (positive, contented) state is the natural inclination of all living things. This is a presumption based on the philosophical thought and natural science of the era.
It is not outrageous to suggest that living things have a natural tendency to continue living - to pursue a continued existence. It is equally un-shocking to suggest that doing so is a part of the natural-ness of being. This tendency and others unmentioned are unalienable in the respect that they are a composite of being and can not be removed from the instinct of life or existence as a living entity. That they can be deprived, inhibited, dissipated or discouraged by other forces of creation or mankind is not denied in the concept as stated. That these things are the unalienable inclinations of living things is what is being stated as a matter of fact.
So then, all men are created equal and endowed by the very act of that creation with unalienable rights. These rights are unalienable because they are intrinsic to the nature of life and all living things. The creation is equal because it has been applied to all life in the same universal manner.
Justice is a human concept. Justice does not come down to humankind from above. From above or from Nature, Humankind is brought to understand arbitrariness, non-uniformity of treatment, randomness and indifference. Justice is the yearning that stems within the heart of man, fired inside of him from the injustice of his creation and his observations and reflections upon his experiences of this existence. The outrage that fills humankind from the unexplainable fact of his arbitrary creation and the indiscriminate happenstances of nature, leave humankind yearning for, among other things, a sense of fairplay, evenness of circumstance, stability or, for lack of a better term to describe these yearnings - justice.
There is no justice in Nature or the natural circumstances of human existence. Justice exists in the imagination of mankind. All religions, theologies, mythologies, philosophies, governments and legal codes are attempts on the part of humankind to pacify this sense of outrage that is instilled in the heart of man by the nature and circumstance of his existence. For some strange, unexplainable reason man has been endowed with the capacity of, not only, self-awareness, but also, social-awareness. This could have come about as a part of his genetic makeup or as a result of the evolution of his inductive learning and conditioning over the centuries. But where it came from or how it evolved is secondary to its reality in the heart and soul of aggregate mankind.
The fact of war in the circumstance of the present day existence of humankind would be evidence pointing towards an evolutionary genesis of this justice-seeking phenomenon. If the phenomenon of justice-seeking were instinctual to the very genetic makeup of humankind then would it not follow that war would not be possible or, at least, the exception and not the rule. That war is the rule and not the exception is verified by history. By the same token, if all men by their nature had a justice-seeking gene would we have any need for laws, governments, societies or civilization?
So all men are equal in their arbitrary creation, and are consequently filled with a burning sense of outrage at such an injustice - as a result of this circumstance each man is left with a desire to sustain himself, his liberty and his pursuit of personal happiness and in this circumstance we understand the basic equality of all men.
Justice is the human desire not to inflict on others what man feels to be unjustly imposed upon him and a practical learned attempt to resolve conflicts which result among individuals who are each seeking to sustain what each considered to be his natural rights.
Obviously this is where the problems begin. If there were no conflicts resulting between individuals in pursuing their rights to life, liberty and happiness we would have no need of laws or governments or societies.