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Originally Posted by All Systems Go
We give rights to children and the mentally ill, these are animals which cannot consent.
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Children, as definite potential consenters, are a case of excerption not abstraction.
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We as people (theoretically at least) assume the responsibility of protecting those who cannnot defend themslves.
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This has nothing to do with consent but okay.
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We look after the mentally ill who may not be able to understand their rights and responsibilities in society.
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Similarly to children you can view the mentally ill as potential consenters pending medical advances. That said I don't consider "braindead" people as deserving of rights and I'd lean more towards considering them the "property" of whoever they expressed a desire to become the "property" of in some sort of will.
Besides that we clearly have to draw the line somewhere. I'd rather not live in a society which goes around imprisoning people for squashing irritating insects to be honest.