The “right to be forgotten” from Internet searches ought to be a civil right
The “right to be forgotten” from Internet searches ought to be a civil right.
Civil rights are purposed to protect freedom and equality among citizens. They are to protect individuality against society, which, by promoting self-development and self-identity—albeit ironic—ultimately leads to a collective progress. However, a society void of personality is also void of freedom—i.e. a state of being able to make decisions without external control. Individual dignity and integrity are driving forces of self-determination and form the basis of trust and societal intelligence—i.e. ability to evaluate itself and to improve. Personal autonomy and independence constitute the premise of civil rights because civil rights promote individuals. When a society lacks personality and freedom there are no civil rights, no individuals, no humanity; there is only society, a cold mechanism of functions and persistence. This is because lack of personality indicates lack of personal identity, which is a premise of the need for civil rights. Inviolate personality is essential to a society where true civil rights can exist. By adopting the “right to be forgotten” from Internet searches as a civil right, the government is rightfully protecting the citizens’ dignity, integrity, autonomy, and independence as an individual. Free and equal citizenship comprises equal voice and equal vote of a citizen, and “moral independence,” i.e. ability to decide for oneself what gives meaning and value to one’s life and to take responsibility for living in conformity with one’s values. These two components stem from the “two moral powers” of personhood: the capacity for a sense of justice and the capacity for the conception of a good.
To be a free and equal citizen is, in part, to have those legal guarantees that are essential to fully adequate participation in public discussion and decision-making. A citizen has a right to an equal voice and an equal vote. In addition, she has the rights needed to
Civil rights are purposed to protect freedom and equality among citizens. They are to protect individuality against society, which, by promoting self-development and self-identity—albeit ironic—ultimately leads to a collective progress. However, a society void of personality is also void of freedom—i.e. a state of being able to make decisions without external control. Individual dignity and integrity are driving forces of self-determination and form the basis of trust and societal intelligence—i.e. ability to evaluate itself and to improve. Personal autonomy and independence constitute the premise of civil rights because civil rights promote individuals. When a society lacks personality and freedom there are no civil rights, no individuals, no humanity; there is only society, a cold mechanism of functions and persistence. This is because lack of personality indicates lack of personal identity, which is a premise of the need for civil rights. Inviolate personality is essential to a society where true civil rights can exist. By adopting the “right to be forgotten” from Internet searches as a civil right, the government is rightfully protecting the citizens’ dignity, integrity, autonomy, and independence as an individual. Free and equal citizenship comprises equal voice and equal vote of a citizen, and “moral independence,” i.e. ability to decide for oneself what gives meaning and value to one’s life and to take responsibility for living in conformity with one’s values. These two components stem from the “two moral powers” of personhood: the capacity for a sense of justice and the capacity for the conception of a good.
To be a free and equal citizen is, in part, to have those legal guarantees that are essential to fully adequate participation in public discussion and decision-making. A citizen has a right to an equal voice and an equal vote. In addition, she has the rights needed to