
About this episode
The episode explores various philosophical and practical questions surrounding human rights and their implications in society.
Are you a born criminal? Is genocide ever justified? Is meritocracy a ‘garbage’ concept? What are the entitlements that you have by virtue of being a human being? Do rights exist because the State exists, & vice versa? Are rights sometimes anti norms? Do nomadic and sedentary societies think differently of rights? Are rights always a product of struggle? Are you 42 and a communist? Are all rights inter-related? Can the right to dignity be limited? What gets transmitted across generations? Are the normative social structures of the past in our prefrontal cortex today? Does reservation come under the framework of equality? What are a prisoner’s rights? Does it suit us to have certain sections of people stigmatised? Must social, political & economic rights go hand in hand? Can societies be changed without economic incentives? Is West Africa still scarred by slave trade? Can historical recompensation be done forever? Do you have a present bias? When are gender points a good idea? What makes rights effective - is this scale dependent? Why is Geneva Convention not always enforceable? Which rights are non-derogable? &, what are the rights of the next generation today? SynTalk thinks…
People in this episode
Guests: Prof. Arvind Narrain, Prof. Ajay Dandekar, Prof. Sujoy Chakravarty
Topics covered
- rights
- society
- politics
- economics
- history
Keywords
- born criminal
- genocide justification
- meritocracy
- human entitlements
- rights and the State
- nomadic vs sedentary societies
- prisoner's rights
- social structures
- equality and reservation
- non-derogable rights
Mentioned in this episode
Places: West Africa, New Delhi, Delhi, Bangalore
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