Symposium
APLGer's here is your chance to earn some credit that you maybe didn't get a chance to do during class today.
The one rule is "you can only post a question(s) about Constitutional meaning or application".
ie Is the military's policy of "don't ask, don't tell" unconstitutional based on the 14th amendment?
What would the Constitution say about a school trying to drug-test student athletes for performance-enhancing or illegal drugs?
Why wouldn't the Framers use specific language to either allow or deny capital punishment rather than use vague language allowing interpretations?
You have until Monday to post. We will review some of the questions posted in class that day.
Mr. Thompson
posted by erdecker @ 2:16 PM
30 comments
30 Comments:
Should human rights extend to corporations, such as when corporations are tried in court or attempts to limit corporate donations to political campaigns?
Is constitutional interpretation, judicial review, how the constitution is truly growing and adapting, or is it still the amendments?
Is adjusting our interpretation of the constitution our way of "modernizing" the constitution without having to alter the amendments?
Should all marriages, homosexual or heterosexual, be allowed in every state of at least recognized and respected by every state? This means that every married couple is entitled to all the state policies alotted to married couples. Tax cuts, health care, etc.
Is the government denying our right to life, liberty, and happiness by not providing us with healthcare?
Is the constitution still totally applicable to this time and age or should it possibly be restructured by the United States of America to modernize it?
Should a President be forced not to run for a 3rd term in office, as the 22nd amendment dictates, even though he may be the best candidate for the job? Some might say "so someone cannot be a dictator," and I guess my follow-up question would be "can a President who is elected by the people really be a dictator?"
I'm sorry, my post should say "even though they may be the best candidate?" I don't want to be attacked by rabid Hillary supporters ;)
Why aren't tabloids considered slander?
Is the second part of the 13th amendment saying that slavery is a legal punishment for crime? If so, how would this work?
Why doesnt the constitution focus on the good or the rights of the majority ALWAYS?
Where are crimes like information sharing or insider trading addressed within the constitution?
If the constitution is focussing on the rights of the people as a whole or the majority, why do we have an ammendment about the few people in congress?
Could the constitution ever be completely overhauled to change how our government works, or is that outside the scope of the amendments? Would it even be possible? Say that Congress is out of date and there are better methods of government (Imperialist Direct Democracy, anyone?), it would be impossible to get rid of Congress because they would have to sign their own destruction by passing the amendment. That would seem like a conflict of interest
Should the right to vote be given to anyone over 18 stated in the 26th ammendment or it be given to anyone who shows some knowledge of our political system?
When a president dies or resigns, and the vice president takes over, does the acting president nominate a new vice president or is that right saved for the people during the next election?
In the symposium we discussed search and seizure at airports and libraries. Since, through the rights given in the constitution, airports search people for weapons for the safety of others, and libraries don't, are we implying that citizens who go to libraries are less important/needing of our protection than citizens who go to airports?
Should there be a law deeming lies from one political candidate about another, unconstitutional/punishable by law?
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/07/us/07lying.html?ex=1349409600&en=54414bcb775514d8&ei=5124&partner=digg&exprod=digg
I also wanted to post an article about religious discrimination in our government.
http://ethicalatheist.blogspot.com/2007/09/systematic-religious-discrimination.html
By our unenumerated rights not being specifically identified in the constitution, are we endangering them? How are we protecting them today? (ie, education, privacy, etc.)
Just a question...
Does the 22nd amendment mean that no person can be elected or serve as president more than twice ever, or does it just mean that no person may be elected more than twice consecutively?
Here is a snip-it from the link Spencer posted about religious dsicrimination. (Way to go Spencer you did your research)
If you live in Texas, Arkansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, or Tennessee and are an atheist or an agnostic, you can not hold public office. For example, Article I Section IV of the Texas constitution states:
No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being.
Mr. Thompson
Does the Fifth amendment protect euthanasia? "No person shall be ... deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law." Do Americans have the right to deprive themselves of life if they are terminally ill or in great pain?
I couldn't resist adding on to that...
"Or if they could prove in a court of law that the deprivation thereof was justified, could they legally sentence themselves to death?"
Where does the Civil War fit into the Constitution? I know that one of the causes of the war was difference of opinion regarding states rights and such, but I can't imagine how certain rights and laws became a part of the Constitution if so many Southern states were against it. When the states seceded, did they form their own constitution? How long did it take for the 15th Amendment to come into effect after the war ended?
Should businesses be allowed to perform background checks on people or is it unconstitutional and violating their privacy?
//Pam B
Should G.W. Bush be impeached for commencing war in Iraq without congressional approval?
P.S. Go Ron Paul?? ;]
In Amendment 13 it is stated that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States.." Does this still apply to today? Can people convicted of crimes be sentenced to slavery or involuntary servitude?
If the framers of the Constitution purposely used vague language capable of multiple meanings for the future generations, do you think that they knew what the future could and would entail?
(Example: The Eighth Amendment vs. the death penalty, The Fourth Amendment and abortion)
Bush doctrine + no congressional agreement regarding the war = Bush's actions are fully warranted.
Though it obviously is in the best interest of people and the nation as a whole, maintaining and promoting good education (or any for that matter) is entailed nowhere in the Constitution; so is it "constitutional" for the U.S. Department of Education to authorize and require states to adhere to programs such as IDEA and No Child Left Behind? Is it okay for states to face financial consequences within their educational budget if they don't cooperate? And if programs such as IDEA are federally required, how come only fifteen to twenty percent of it is actually federally funded??
How is censorship backed by the Constitution, specifically the 1t Amendment, if swearing is not slander?
How can these people :
http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/08/07/words-of-protest-challenging-musics-lyrical-standards/
use the consitution to their advantage when saying that music companies " have a responsibility to filter out lyrics that are offensive..." ?
Post a Comment
<< Home