The right to say "No"

      We have a right to say "no" anytime, anywhere, for any reason.  If someone asks you to do something you don't want to do, you should be able to answer "no".  Your reasons are nobody's business but your own. 

      If you are a customer or potential customer, and a merchant asks you to purchase some good or service, you have the right to say "no".  No reason need be given.
      If you are a business person and someone wants you to hire them and pay them a salary, you should have the right to say "no".  Again, no reason need be given.
      Likewise, if somebody wants to pay you money to do something, you should be able to say "no".  An example of this is some business and a customer or potential customer wants to purchase goods or services from you, then you have a right to say "no".  Your reasons are irrelevant and immaterial.
      You and your potential buyer or seller or trading partner can haggle over the price if you wish.  Perhaps a different price may persuade you to change your mind.  But ultimately, anyone should have the final option to say "no".
      I say that you SHOULD because, sadly, this basic right is often not recognized.  For example, if an armed robber says "Give me your money", you should be able to say "no", but the robber may violently overpower you and take it anyway. 
      It's no different when the tax man says "Give me your money".   If you disagree with what the government does with it and reject this silly notion that they know how to spend your money better than you, then you should be able to say "no" without the fear of violence.  But sadly, that is not the case. 
      The government has lots of laws and rules and regulations that forbid you to do some things or require you do to other things.  Paying taxes, as mentioned above, is the classic example of a law that requires you to do something despite the fact that you would probably prefer not to do it.

      Anti-discrimination laws are the big issue these days which represents a blatant denial of the right to say "no".  If you are, for example, a businessman and are hiring employees, then you, as the one who will pay the employee's salary, should have the right to say "no" to any job-seeking applicant.  There are an unlimited number of reasons for NOT wanting to hire a particular individual, and you should not be required to state your reasons.

      The so-called "equal opportunity" crowd will scream that this will allow employers to reject candidates for the wrong reasons, such as race, sexual preference, age, etc.  But in order to enforce anti-discrimination laws, you need to get lawyers and bureaucrats involved in every step of the hiring process.  Do you really want to conduct job interviews with a lawyer and a bureaucrat looking over your shoulder, ready to overrule your decision?
      The same applies for if a customer requests some good or service.  To enforce anti-discrimination laws, then you will need a lawyer and a bureaucrat present each time a customer wants to buy something.  If the merchant says "no", then it initiates an inquisition, an investigation, and a lawsuit, and then the lawyer and the bureaucrat will have the final say.
     Yes, it is true that there are unscrupulous business persons who discriminate for the wrong reasons.  But the free market is a FAR more effective mechanism for correcting these errors. 

     In the movie "42", a biography of baseball legend Jackie Robinson, the bus carrying the negro baseball players stopped for gasoline.  But the racist white gas station owner refused to let the men use the restroom!  So Robinson told him: never mind, our bus will just go somewhere else to fill up.  The gas station owner realized that giving up $90 in sales wasn't worth it, so he relented.

      A business that strives to hire the BEST person for the job, regardless of any other factors, is the business that will make the most profit.  A business that strives to sell the MOST of their goods and services will make more profit than one who disrespects potential customers for the wrong reasons.