Humans, Humanity, and Human Rights - an Update

This project commenced with a conceptual outline, published on Saturday 1^st December, 2018, at: https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2018/12/humans-humanity-and-human-rights.html

Since then, I’ve been working on what I am terming my “first, un-researched draft”. By that I mean:

. . . what I have been able to come up with, based on the materials I have readily at hand, including via the internet (which has a range of issues), and from I have learned in six and a bit decades of living. Should I live long enough, I intend to produce a version where I have extended by knowledge by more formal (maybe even – shudder – academic) research and/or study (I have started working through some of the openly available political science courses, for example.

I’ve decided I’ll post each chapter in its first, raw state, and you, Dear Reader, can see if my later research (probably long after I've finished this first version, in my retirement, should I be fortunate enough to do so) led to any change. (You can also think about the points I am making.) 

I've come up with an initial (no guarantees it won't change) structure of the book, and will add the links to each chapter in the latest installment as they are published. Owing to the size of each chapter, I will have to publish this using the sub-chapters. Links below, and also here.

• Foreword (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/03/humans-humanity-and-human-rights-intro.html) 
• Chapter One – Introduction to Concepts and Early Humans
  

  A.  Human Evolution and Human Rights (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/03/humans-humanity-and-human-rights-intro.html)
  I've started creating an audio version of the book, and the first interim video is on YouTube at https://youtu.be/zyd4LR_nudw.
  B. The benefits of human rights (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/03/humans-humanity-and-human-rights-intro_8.html)
  C. Words - definitions of human, human rights, and humanity C. Words - definitions of human, human rights, and humanity(https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/03/humans-humanity-and-human-rights.html)
  D. Potential Criticisms of the Idea that Decency and Fairness are Beneficial (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/03/humans-humanity-and-human-rights_24.html)
  E. Our genetic neighbours, early (gatherer-hunter) humans, and being humane (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/04/humans-humanity-and-human-rights.html)
  F. Population growth, and moving out of Africa (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/05/humans-humanity-and-human-rights.html)
  G. What perspective does psychology and other modern thinking contribute? (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/06/humans-humanity-and-human-rights.html)
  H. What perspective does modern human rights theory/understanding contribute? (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/07/humans-humanity-and-human-rights.html)
  I. Summary / conclusions (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/07/humans-humanity-and-human-rights_29.html)
  Chapter One: What I don't currently know to my satisfaction (https://politicalmusingsofkayleen.blogspot.com/2019/07/this-projectcommenced-with-conceptual.html)

• Chapter Two – Civilisation: The Domestication of Humans
• Chapter Three – Empire: The Concentration of Power Begins
• Chapter Four – Human Rights: The Concentration of Overarching Power Unravels
• Chapter Five – What Does the Future Hold in Store?
• Chapter Six – The Soul: The Influence of Spirituality and/or Religion on Human Rights
• Chapter Seven – For the Pragmatist: Using / Applying All This “Stuff”
• Chapter Eight – Change: the Soul and the Bane of Humans, Humanity, and Human Rights
• Chapter Nine – My Last Trick: Ending . . .

  

PS - this project starts by considering how or when human rights developed when the human species started.I've since come across an interesting additional question, through reading an article contemplating what connection there could be between transhumanism and human rights (see here). My question is, what happens to human rights as go "beyond" or stop being human? We evolved into existence a few hundred thousands of years ago: what happens when, possibly millions of years in the future, we evolve into a new species?