...have a living Constitution and should we have a living Constitution? A living Constitution is one that changes with times; one that is continuously evolving and adapting to new ways of life and circumstances without being formally amended and changed. On one side of the argument, the answer to the question must be yes: a living Constitution seems like the only realistic option, as every generation faces different issues that must be politically dealt with in ways that are modern and efficient. Our Constitution, the document that was created around 230 years ago and currently resides under a glass bubble at the National Archives, can be amended and changed with the times, however, the amendment process is long, exhausting and most of the times unsuccessful....
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...September 11th, 2001 potentially changed the legal structure of the United States. Following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the President and Congress saw fit to protect the United States by passing a bill called the Patriot Act. The Patriot Act significantly expanded the powers of law enforcement by allowing law enforcement and intelligence agencies to use types of electronic surveillance that were previously only allowed with legal warrants (Ibid, 2001). Additionally, the Patriot Act allows government agencies to detain suspected terrorists for unspecified lengths of time in order to investigate their activities (Ibid, 2001). The detainment of terrorist suspects does not allow these individuals access to an attorney, a trial, or any other guarantee promised in the Constitution. The United States legal and judicial systems utilize a network of checks and balances to ensure that the rights of citizens, as enumerated by the United States Constitution, are not violated. These systems call for crime investigation to require a warrant issued by the judicial branch in order to execute any search or seizure of personal property, as declared by the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution (Madison, 1789). The framers of the United States started the Constitution with a Bill of Rights that set our inalienable rights. These rights are not allowed to be violated and the legal system is designed to protect these rights, even if suspected of a crime...
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...full as follows: WHEREAS, the President has given orders prohibiting the interprovincial movement of carabaos and the slaughtering of carabaos not complying with the requirements of Executive Order No. 626 particularly with respect to age; WHEREAS, it has been observed that despite such orders the violators still manage to circumvent the prohibition against inter-provincial movement of carabaos by transporting carabeef instead; and WHEREAS, in order to achieve the purposes and objectives of Executive Order No. 626 and the prohibition against interprovincial movement of carabaos, it is necessary to strengthen the said Executive Order and provide for the disposition of the carabaos and carabeef subject of the violation; NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby promulgate the following: SECTION 1. Executive Order No. 626 is hereby amended such that henceforth, no carabao regardless of age, sex, physical condition or purpose and no carabeef shall be transported from one province to another. The carabao or carabeef transported in violation of this Executive Order as amended shall be subject to confiscation and forfeiture by the...
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...like African-American’s from the 50’s & 60’s, we are being discriminated on by a government that is so full of it and afraid to take a strong stand even if they agree with it. The fear of theirs is for retaliation and just like the subject of interracial marriages was in the 60’s, most politicians are afraid of this hot topic and just keep it on the back burner hoping it will go away and it won’t. The days of old are no more, the world was destroyed by flood and then Jesus Christ died for all of us not just a small number of sinners. So all of you without sin can cast the first stone on this project but remember unless you have a flowing gown and sandals, I think that means you are not perfect either. Gays have the right to speak out, to religion, to equal rights in marriage with the insurance as a married couple and to not be ridiculed. Lesbians and Gays have a right to speak out, as given to us by our 1st amendment rights. We should not be forced to stay in a closet any longer. The congress has recently passed an amendment where it would be illegal to discriminate against a person for their sexual preference in employment; it only needs to be signed to become a law. A few states already have this in place as a law but without the Federal backing. Lesbians and gays have the right to worship in the church of their preference. The churches of today were all built with the idea that it was a place for sinners to go for blessing and forgiveness. The use of a few scriptures...
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...INTRODUCTION Section 1, Article XIV of the 1987 Philippine Constitution states that “the State shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all”. Truly, the state must provide an accessible and quality education to all the citizens of this country regardless of their social status and also the education the state must provide is free at all levels. This means that the government must provide all the facilities, equipment, and teacher force to educate its citizens. However, nowadays, Philippine educational system earns its prestige having produced a low quality graduates due to some factors. Thus, the current administration decided to upgrade Philippine educational system to a k+12 basic education curriculum thinking that it is the years we have studied that we learn a lot not knowing the fact that public institutions’ facilities are in scarcity. No.5, section 5 of the article XIV of the 1987 Constitution also states that “The State shall assign the highest budgetary priority to education and ensure that teaching will attract and retain its rightful share of the best available talents through adequate remuneration and other means of job satisfaction and fulfillment”. But what this that I heard that the budget for the tertiary level of education will be cut off? Does it mean that tertiary education is no longer a priority of the government? Sad to say, the quality...
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...debate. Arguments Against: The death penalty inculcates nothing in the condemned. They are taught precisely nothing because they are no longer living to learn from their wrongs. The penalty does not dissuade. Research has revealed that capital punishment does not dissuade other people from committing murder. People still murder other people in spite of courts still pronouncing executions. In 2012, for instance, the rate of murder in the United States was 4.8 victims in every 100,000 people. This means that approximately 15,000 people were victims of murder that year. Capital punishment, therefore, does not seem to be serving its purpose. The penalty is hypocritical. It is outlandish that a country that deplores the practice of murder commits the same act. Moreover, it is religiously wrong to intentionally kill another person. The Bible and other religious books condemn this killing and urge us to protect life instead. This is because life is sacred and precious. God alone should make the decision to take away the life of a person, even if that person has taken away the life of another. Furthermore, the Holy Books urge us to left vengeance to God. Subjecting the condemned to the death penalty could amount to subjecting them to torture, cruelty, inhuman, or degrading punishment. This would be a violation of the Constitution of the US as well as a violation of international law such as the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Though the government uses...
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...debate. Arguments Against: The death penalty inculcates nothing in the condemned. They are taught precisely nothing because they are no longer living to learn from their wrongs. The penalty does not dissuade. Research has revealed that capital punishment does not dissuade other people from committing murder. People still murder other people in spite of courts still pronouncing executions. In 2012, for instance, the rate of murder in the United States was 4.8 victims in every 100,000 people. This means that approximately 15,000 people were victims of murder that year. Capital punishment, therefore, does not seem to be serving its purpose. The penalty is hypocritical. It is outlandish that a country that deplores the practice of murder commits the same act. Moreover, it is religiously wrong to intentionally kill another person. The Bible and other religious books condemn this killing and urge us to protect life instead. This is because life is sacred and precious. God alone should make the decision to take away the life of a person, even if that person has taken away the life of another. Furthermore, the Holy Books urge us to left vengeance to God. Subjecting the condemned to the death penalty could amount to subjecting them to torture, cruelty, inhuman, or degrading punishment. This would be a violation of the Constitution of the US as well as a violation of international law such as the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Though the government uses...
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...“To what extent are Affirmative Action programs no longer needed in the United States?” Affirmative Action is a policy in the United States that “aims to enhance educational and career opportunities for minorities and women by granting them preferences in college and graduate school admissions, promotions, and contract awards.” (Boxill) Such programs are designed to ensure that qualified individuals in America have equal access to opportunity in areas such as education and employment, and receive a fair chance to contribute all their abilities. As T.H. Andersen points out: “Supporters declare themselves the champions of racial justice, protectors of Martin Lurher King’s Dream, while the opponents see themselves as the defenders of merit, of colorblind equal protection enshrined by the U.S. Constitution.” (Anderson Preface X) Therefore, although at first these programs were considered a huge success, many argue that Affirmative Action has been out dated and is not working anymore. Affirmative Action has served its purpose, and is no longer needed and should be abolished or reformed, as it will no longer be useful in helping eliminate the racial gaps in the United States. Affirmative Action has achieved a great deal since it was first introduced in the 1960s. Politicians have characterized Affirmative Action as a policy “designed to right the wrongs of the past, as a quota system, or a set of remedial programs aimed to compensate for the inadequacies of people of color”(Crosby...
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...Balanced Budget Amendment Throughout history, multiple attempts to improve America’s economy have been proposed as amendments to the Constitution. The economy of the United States is surely a huge ordeal to our citizens and policy makers. However, the national debt continues to increase without showing any signs of stopping or slowing down. One way the United States could combat this surge in debt would be to implement a federal budget in which all states must abide by. This concept has been approached many times in the past but there have been multiple issues with past-proposed amendments. Implementing an amendment that addresses these potential issues and works to balance a budget that does not exceed taxpayer money will greatly improve...
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...The American Political System The American political system is based on two historical yet very important documents, the Declaration of Independence (1776) and the Constitution (1789). Each document serves a distinct purpose; The Declaration of Independence states the country as a free independent nation, separate from the European countries many settlers migrated from, and the Constitution lays the baseline from which the federal government is formed and executed. The US Constitution lays the framework for the separation of power between the nation’s three governing branches, the executive branch, the judiciary system, and the legislature. The separation of power amongst the three branches along with the different terms served by each member of the corresponding branches, avoids the monarchial system most Americans of the time were familiar with from Great Britain, France and the likes of the various European nations America’s immigrants hail from. The political system up to this day is unique but leaves too many national issues to be lost in legalities, slowing the nation down while political and economic developments move faster and faster in our modern world. We will examine the US governmental process through political, economic, and social dimensions. In addition, we will discuss the character of American society, and the change in society throughout American history. The political aspect of American government is built on bureaucracies who handle the different flavors...
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...The United State Constitution CJ 310-02 Criminal Law April 7, 2011 In Criminal law, there is an ancient proposition saying,” no crime without law, no punishment without law. That in criminal law is based on the principle of legality. The ancient saying means that no one can be convicted or punished, unless there is a law that defines it’s as a crime. The case of Treva Hughes, Ms Hughes was driving while under the influence. She ran into Ms. Reesa Poole and killing her unborn child and was convicted. The Appeals Court reversed her conviction because the law didn’t give Ms. Hughes fair warning that it included the unborn in homicide stature. An Ex Post Facto Laws criminalizes an act that was innocent when it was committed. It is the clearest example of ex post facto laws, they’re also the rarest. Ex Post Facto also increases the punishment for a crime after the crime was committed. Just as clear an rare like the first one. An example is raising the age of statutory rape form 16 to 21. Finally it takes away a defense that was available to a defendant when the crime was committed. The Ex Post Facto ban is protect private individuals by ensuring that legislature give them a fair warning about criminal and that they can rely on that requirement. The other purpose is to prevent legislators form passing arbitrary and vindictive laws. The Void-for-Vagueness Doctrine takes aim similar to the ban on ex post facto. Void laws fails to give fair warning to individuals...
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...Introduction to Law Federal State and Pakistani Example SHAH BASIT HUSSAIN QURESHI 5/10/2015 Federal state with the reference of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973 example SUMMARY Definition of Federal State Preamble Introductory Fundamental Rights Principles of Policy The President Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) The Federal Government The Governors Provincial Assemblies The Provincial Governments Distribution of Legislative Powers Administrative Relations between the Federation and Provinces Special Provisions Regional State and Unitary State Federal state with the reference of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973 example Page 2 Federal State with the reference of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973 Example Definition of Federal State: A federal state is one that brings together a number of different political communities with a common government for common purposes, and separate “state” or “provincial” or “cantonal” governments for the particular purposes of each community. The United States of America, Canada, Australia, Switzerland, Russia, Belgium, Germany, Pakistan and India are all federal states. Federalism combines unity with diversity. Preamble of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973: 12th, April 1973 Whereas sovereignty over the entire Universe belongs to Almighty Allah alone, and the authority to be exercised by the people of Pakistan within the limits prescribed by Him is a sacred...
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...Air India Etc. Etc vs Nergesh Meerza & Ors. Etc. Etc on 28 August, 1981 Equivalent citations: 1981 AIR 1829, 1982 SCR (1) 438 Bench: Fazalali, S Murtaza PETITIONER: AIR INDIA ETC. ETC. Vs. RESPONDENT: NERGESH MEERZA & ORS. ETC. ETC. DATE OF JUDGMENT28/08/1981 BENCH: FAZALALI, SYED MURTAZA BENCH: FAZALALI, SYED MURTAZA VARADARAJAN, A. (J) SEN, A.P. (J) CITATION: 1981 AIR 1829 1982 SCR (1) 438 1981 SCC (4) 335 1981 SCALE (3)1275 CITATOR INFO : F 1983 SC 130 (14) RF 1987 SC1086 (29) F 1987 SC1515 (2,3,10) RF 1987 SC2354 (11) ACT: Constitution of India 1950, Articles 14 and 16, Air India Employees Service Regulations, Regulations 46 and 47, Indian Airline Service Regulation, Regulation 12. Different conditions of service of Air Hostesses employed by Air India in India and United Kingdom-Validity of. Conditions of service-Discrimination-Determination of question. Indian Kanoon - http://indiankanoon.org/doc/1903603/ 1 Air India Etc. Etc vs Nergesh Meerza & Ors. Etc. Etc on 28 August, 1981 Retirement of Air Hostesses in the event of marriage taking place within four years of service-Whether unreasonable or arbitrary. Retirement of Air Hostess-Provision in service rule, or on first pregnancy whichever occurs earlier-Whether unconstitutional. Retirement age of Air Hostess-Fixation of at 45 instead of 58-Whether in valid . Air Hostess-Extension of service-option conferred on Managing Director- Whether excessive delegation of power. Air India...
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...(UOI) and Ors. Hon'ble Judges: Harilal Kania, C.J., Saiyid Fazl Ali, Patanjali Sastri, Mukherjea and Das, JJ. Subject: Constitution Catch Words Mentioned IN Acts/Rules/Orders: Constitution of India - Articles 14, 19(1), 19(5), 31 and 32; Sholapur Spinning and Weaving Company (Emergency Provisions) Act, 1950 Citing Reference: McCabe v. Atchison Discussed Middleton v. Texas Power and Light Company Discussed Barbier v. Connolly Mentioned Army v. Dalziel Mentioned Yick Wo v. Hopkinas Mentioned Southern Railway Company v. Greene Discussed Gulf C. & S.F.R. Co. v. Ellis Mentioned Southern Railway Co. v. Greene Mentioned Radice v. New York Mentioned Minister for State for the Army v. Datziel Discussed Pennsylvania Coal Company v. Mahon Discussed Lindsley v. Natural Carbonic Gas Company Discussed Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe'Railway v. W.H. Ellis Discussed Case Note: Sholapur Spinning and Weaving Company Act 1950-Act Dismissing Company's managing agents, removing its directors, authorising government for appointment of new directors and curtailing shareholders' right in the voting matter etc.-Validity-Whether infringement on fundamental rights-Right of property save not to be deprived by authority of law-Right to acquire, hold and dispose property-Right to equal protection of law Constitution of India, Arts. 14, 19(1) (f), 19(f), 31, 32-Deprivation of property,-- Meaning of “property”, “acquisition”, “taking possession”...
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...Amendment people that owned guns basically made up their own laws. They were able to carry and use guns in a way that fit their life style. For the most part they would use them for hunting and self-protection being able to carry their guns either concealed or in the open was a decision they were able to make themselves. As stated, people could use their guns for hunting which provided food for their family or possibly an income if they could sell the game killed. But there were some people that would use their guns in more destructive ways. They would use their guns as a source of power to control different situations. Some examples would be, bank, train, or stagecoach robberies, territorial fights for land (The Hatfield’s and McCoy’s) the fight for political power. In each of these examples if things went wrong or if someone died there is a very good chance that guns were involved. It was only a matter of time that manufacturing of firearms for the purpose of distribution needed to be controlled. Hence the 2nd Amendment, whereas the people of this great nation have the Right to Keep and Bear Arms through the eyes of the law. Though this amendment is a big part of our constitutional right as people of this land we must abide by the decision made by the United States Supreme Court. Whereas the right to keep and bear arms is not granted by the constitution; neither is it in any manner dependent upon that instrument for its existence” and limited the applicability of the Second...
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