...The USA Patriot Act, the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the Bill of Rights were all established by the government to protect the citizens of the United States of America. These forms of legislation were predominantly written with intentions of enhanced security but could also be construed as allotting more power to the government to generate decisions without the consent of the citizens. The USA Patriot Act is the most recent of the three forms of legislation, but its objective is probably more understood by citizens during a time of terrorism and constant states of “High Alert” issued by the government. The Act affects everyone in the country, and since it gives the government the ability to search any personal records and conduct surveillance on any citizen with little judicial oversight, people of the United States are annoyed, angered, and apprehensive too. Following the events occurring on September 11, 2001 and the ongoing wars in the Middle East, the government now maintains the right to jail non-citizens solely on suspicion and the FBI can investigate any American citizen for criminal matters if the Bureau declares the investigation involves matters of intelligence, all because the government endorsed and enacted the USA Patriot Act. The Alien and Sedition Acts are comprised of four smaller acts: the Alien Enemies Act, the Alien Act, the Naturalization Act, and the Sedition Act. During the time these Acts were passed, the government was comprised of Federalists who...
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...The Declaration of Independence promised each American the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” as our colonies branched away from the king. Our founding fathers disliked the King, given he was an alleged tyrant for corrupting the American colonial government to suit his own country’s needs. When our colonies were no longer a parliament, we struggled to find a well-formed government. One thing was guaranteed: The right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Years later in the Constitution, the first ten amendments became the American people’s Bill of Rights, fully granting us life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness under the code of law. Amendment five directly addresses the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit...
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...The most important amendment of the Bill of Rights is the First Amendment. There are five freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment: the freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly and petition. Another way to express this amendment is that it gives us our most basic freedoms as American citizens. The reason this amendment is important is because it protects an American’s citizen’s basic rights. There have been many challenges to this amendment over the years. Two of the primary challenges to the amendment are Bethel School District v. Fraser and Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District. In the case, Bethel School District v. Fraser, Fraser, a public school student, was suspended for using sexual references in a speech endorsing one of his friends for a student government position. Bethel School District decided to suspend Fraser which led to Fraser suing Bethel School District for violating his freedom of speech....
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...September 17, 1789, the U.S. Constitution was ratified and made law. In this essay we are going to take a look at the Bill of Rights and the amendments. We will be reviewing how and why the amendments become part of the Constitution, what problems the original document motivated the adoption of the Bill of Rights, what are the effects of the Bill of Rights, what problems with the original document, or changes in society led to later amendments. All of these are very necessary and fun topics to address. Now let’s take a look. There are multiple ways for trying to add an amendment to the U.S Constitution, creating it into law. One way is to propose the amendment in the U.S. Congress who is the law-making body of the United States. Congress is composed of two houses, the House of Representative and the Senate. The amendment must be approved by at least two-thirds of both houses. If they then approve the amendment it is sent to the legislatures of each state of the union. Then all state legislatures must approve the amendment by three-fourths vote. After all is approved, the amendment then becomes law. If vote was not passed in any of the houses the amendment will fail to become law. An amendment is made to the constitution when it is necessary for change while still preserving what the constitution represents. The original document called for a stronger and centralized American government. Antifederalists believed this centralized government would be tyrannical. They believed that the...
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... | | |HIS/301 Version 6 | | |U.S. Constitution | Copyright © 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2000, 1997, 1994 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This course is an introduction to the historical, political, philosophical, and economic roots of the U.S. Constitution. It first reviews the philosophical arguments of the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists, those that supported and opposed ratification of the Constitution. The course then examines milestone Supreme Court decisions and the Court’s evolving interpretations of the Constitution. This course focuses on the first ten amendments of the Constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, and the issues of slavery and civil rights as seen through major court decisions. Policies Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: • University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document. • Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum. University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the...
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...The Second Amendment For many years there has been an ongoing debate over the Second Amendment and how it should be interpreted. The issue that is being debated is whether our government has the right to regulate guns. The answer of who has which rights lies within how one interprets the Second Amendment. With this being the case, one must also think about what circumstances the Framers were under when this Amendment was written. There are two major sides to this debate, one being the collective side, which feels that the right was given for collective purposes only. This side is in favor of having stricter gun control laws, as they feel that by having stricter laws the number of crimes that are being committed with guns will be reduced and thus save lives. However while gun control laws may decrease criminals" access to guns, the same laws restricts gun owning citizens who abide by the law; these citizens make up a great majority of the opposing side of this argument. These people argue that the law was made with the individual citizens in mind. This group believes that the Amendment should be interpreted to guarantee citizens free access to firearms. One major group that is in strong opposition of stricter gun control laws is the National Rifle Association (NRA). The NRA argues that having stricter gun control laws will only hinder law-abiding citizens. The final outcome on this debate will mainly depend on how this Amendment is going to be interpreted. The Second Amendment...
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...protecting the rights of it’s citizens. Wars have been fought and many people have died so we could have the rights that present today. The freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly, and most importantly the right to petition our government; all of which fall under the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights. Our nation’s flag is an everlasting symbol of freedom and hope that stands as a testament to our nation’s power. Most importantly our flag represents the freedom of the individual to express his ideals as they see fit. Therefore when the very essence of Americans freedom is challenged by the “flag amendment,” that would forbid the desecration of the American flag, a dilemma forms. While flag burning is highly offensive, it is none the less a means of expression and is protected by the constitution of America. Forbidding an individual from expressing themselves is the opposite of what our flag represents. By protecting the American flag under a constitutional amendment not only conflicts with the First Amendment, but opens a door for the government to take away even more of our rights. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution, states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press; or the right of people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” [Source A] The First Amendment clearly gives all...
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...Bill of Rights Ronald Lee Similarity Index 0% Similarity by Source Internet Sources: 0% Publications: 0% In this paper of the Bill of Rights and several amendments will be discuss, which is the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth. Also will discuss how the Bill of Rights evaluates different areas in security and the administration of justice. Such as challenges of law enforcement, roles of the courts, roles of the security, and recommendation. The main purpose of the Bill of Rights is to protect the freedoms and the rights of the American citizens. Also, so that every individual can worship wherever he or she feel comfortable without restrictions. If an individual born inside the country or outside the country his or her citizenship as an America and recognized as an America. American citizens protected from seizures and searches by law enforcement agencies unless there is a warrant presented. The warrant must be present before the seizure and search take place. The warrant will specify what and who will be search so that an individual privacy not invaded. The United States Constitution of the first amendment states Congress cannot make laws condensing the right for people the peacefully assemble, speech, the press, and religion (Bill of Rights). Chris Neefus wrote article that challenge the First Amendment. The title of that article was “Justice Breyer suggests that burning a Quran could be like shouting fire in a crowded theatre...
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...Bill of Rights and Amendments Paper Jessica Ruiz HIS/301 April 4, 2013 Ryan Tarr Bill of Rights and Amendments Paper The Constitution is a fundamental law, which describes how a strong government should work (Zink, 2009). The Framers had stated that America’s Constitution was a vast contribution to the governments practice, and offered a new form of government to the United States. The United States Constitution is also known as the ultimate law, which was created by our founding fathers to establish a strong governmental structure, to meet the needs of the people in our nation. The Constitution was created to protect the rights of the people and their freedom by enforcing laws on the individuals who did in fact hold power on a political level. The vision of the Framers of an appropriate government for American’s was incorporated in the Constitution known as the Bill of Rights. Amendments becoming part of the Constitution In the Constitution Article V reads, that there are two ways for an amendment to become a part of the United States Constitution. The first way is with a two third vote in both houses of Congress the House of Representatives and the Senate. Today the most common used method of the amendment process is the first way by having the Representatives and Senate vote. The second way is a convention that has been set up by two thirds of the state’s legislatures followed by ratification for the amendment (Patterson, 2009). The ratification process is...
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...when we feel it is necessary. What would happen if we never had these rights? The first amendment went into effect in the year of 1791, but up until that people did not have the rights to religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. The first amendment is arguably the most important part of the Bill of Rights due to its meaning, purpose, and lasting impact on the U.S. The first amendment is meaningful and purposeful in many ways. The first amendment states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom...
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...control has been a hot topic for very long time. People on the anti-gun control side believe that gun ownership is a Constitutional right backed by the Second Amendment. The anti-gun believes that you should be able to possess and own any firearm. They also believe that gun laws only restrict the law abiding citizens. Pro-gun control believes that guns are the backbone to our crime problem. They also believe that gun laws help keep guns of the street and deter crime. The Second Amendment reads, a well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. Underlying this amendment are two goals of an individual and collective defense from violence and aggression, which have been recognized by Congress. The second amendment should help secure right of the people to have a gun in their home. The government should not be permitted to declare who would or would not be able to bear arms on the basis of vague religious tests or any other nebulous standard or artifice.(Adams, 1996) The first infringement on the Second Amendment came on November 30, 1993 when President Clinton signed Brady Bill I. The law required that there be a five day waiting period on all hand gun purchases. The Brady Bill also banned semi-automatic rifles and other military type weapons. The five day waiting period is supposed to stop felons from buying guns. But, Waiting periods do not stop felons from getting guns. Since 1968...
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...Texas v. Johnson The American flag. It’s arguably the most iconic American symbol. Even our national anthem includes the reference“whose broad stripes and bright stars”. In this song, lyricist Francis Scott Key isn't just mentioning how the flag looked at the time. He’s alluding to a deeper meaning. This flag is not only a symbol of a country, but of a brave and heroic people who defend their country’s citizens and freedoms. This illustrates the sacrality of the flag- it represents a lot more than miles of land. It represents thousands of lives lost for American citizens of all ages, colors and genders, and thousands of more lives that will be lost. The American flag is a venerated object, a national treasure- and it should be treated as such. However, Gregory Lee Johnson had a different opinion. Johnson’s unpatriotic actions in the state of Texas led to the infamous court case of Texas v. Johnson....
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...The Right to Bear Arms Gun control has been a controversial issue for many years. A vast majority of citizens believe that if gun control is strictly enforced it would quickly reduce the threat of crime. Many innocent people feel they have the right to bear arms for protection, or even just the pleasure of hunting. Americans have a constitutional right to own hand guns and stricter laws and licensing will not affectively save lives. The second amendment states “A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” The Founding Fathers included this in the Bill of Rights because they feared the Federal Government might oppress the population if the people did not have the means to defend themselves as a nation or individuals. “We established however some, although not all its (self-government) important principles. The constitutions of most of our states assert, that all power is inherent in the people; that they exercise it by themselves, in all cases to which they think themselves competent; (as in electing their functionaries executive and legislative, and deciding by a jury of themselves, in all judiciary cases in which any fact is involved,) or may they act by representatives, freely and equally chosen that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed” (Jefferson). It is believed that The Founding Fathers thought that the society benefited from...
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...change. According to Article five of the U.S Constitution, the United States Constitution can be changed in two ways. Firstly, a change occurs by the House of Representatives voting 2-3rds and our Senate matching via an endorsement of 3-4ths of the different national assemblies. This first strategy for alteration is the one and only, in which we use today. Secondly, Americas Constitution may be changed via a Convention by 2-3rds of the national lawmaking bodies, when the Convention's suggested changes have been approved by 3-4ths of the national assemblies. Amendments are hindered by13 states support from any of their 2 houses. Just 27 amendments were approved since Americas Constitution became active, and 10 of those amendments became what we U.S citizens consider the Bill of Rights. In changing the Constitution, considerably escalates the significance of the Supreme Courts’ choices in understanding the Constitution, on the grounds that reversal of the Supreme Court's choice is doubtful, aside from in situations when peoples’ disagreement is extreme and near unanimous. Even disliked Supreme Court choices, for example, the Supreme Court's prevention of burning a flag are liable to stand unless the Court itself deviates from its original choice. As to the occurrence of burning a flag, we see the troubles in passing such an amendment. There is a passionate and recorded tie between the American individuals and their Flag, and when you include the rights in which every U.S native...
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... Gun control has been a disputed topic for a long time. Many citizens believe that if gun control is strictly enforced it would reduce the crime rate.Many innocent people feel they should have possession of guns for their protection or just to go out and hunt. Some gun control advocates believe that banning all guns is the best way to protect people. Banning guns can do many things, but it doesn’t protect anyone. Some say that a gun in the house is more likely to cause the death of a family member or innocent person than a criminal/intruder. That is true, but that does not mean guns cause more innocent deaths than guilty ones. That is because only about 1 in 1,000 uses of firearm self defense results in the death of the criminal. Guns are used hundreds of thousands of times a year in lawful self defense. Unless you are a criminal, or psychopath, the constitution should apply. My parents own guns, and have never had one go off accidentally. Every couple weeks we go to the range and and just have fun shooting. When a government tries to outlaw guns, its de-arming its citizen. George Washington said "A man with a gun is a citizen, a man without a gun is a subject"If a criminal really wanted a gun, they could get it illegally, and then the only thing the control does is not allow the law abiding citizen from having one to protect himself and his family. There are no pros to gun control, other than take away rights to the people, which is exactly what the makers of the constitution...
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