HAPPY CONSTITUTION DAY!

Today, in 1787, the Constitution of the United States of America was ratified.

And it begins like this:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

There are seven articles to the Constitution and they define:

• The legislative branch
• The executive branch
• The judicial branch
• The states' power
• How to amend the Constitution
• Federal authority
• Ratification

There are 27 amendments to the Constitution (you'll have to look all them up yourselves) but the first ten are called the Bill of Rights:

• The First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech, religion, the press, assembly and the right to petition the government for the redress of grievances
• The Second Amendment guarantees the rights of the States regarding militias and the right to keep and bear arms
• The Third Amendment guarantees the right not to have soldiers quartered in any citizen's homes, in time of peace
• The Fourth Amendment guarantees protection against unreasonable search and seizure
• The Fifth Amendment guarantees protection against self incrimination, double jeopardy, guarantees due process and eminent domain
• The Sixth Amendment guarantees us all a fair trial
• The Seventh Amendment guarantees the right to a Civil Trial
• The Eight Amendment guarantees protection against excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishment
• The Ninth Amendment states that there are other rights enjoyed by the people yet not listed in the first eight.
• The Tenth Amendment guarantees that the rights not spelled out in the Constitution and not prohibited by the states are, nevertheless still to be enjoyed by the people

HAPPY CONSTITUTION DAY, EVERYONE

Go read it for your self. Including the Bill of Rights. Aloud if necessary.

Yes, it's important.

Good Times

In part of what a NYT's editorial called "A theatrical production of unusual pomposity" the Constitution was read aloud in the House chamber today.

And, on cue:

An apparent member of the birther movement seated in the gallery of the House of Representatives on Thursday interrupted a reading of the Constitution. The woman yelled out "Except Obama, except Obama, help us Jesus!" as Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) read the "natural born citizen" clause of the Constitution.

Moreover, despite their claims to be reading the entire Constitution, House members are reading an amended slavery-free version of the US Constitution.

Good times.
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Scalia: Constitution does not prohibit discrimination against women

Via HuffPo:

In a newly published interview in the legal magazine California Lawyer, Scalia said that while the Constitution does not disallow the passage of legislation outlawing such discrimination, it doesn't itself outlaw that behavior:

In 1868, when the 39th Congress was debating and ultimately proposing the 14th Amendment, I don't think anybody would have thought that equal protection applied to sex discrimination, or certainly not to sexual orientation. So does that mean that we've gone off in error by applying the 14th Amendment to both?

Yes, yes. Sorry, to tell you that. ... But, you know, if indeed the current society has come to different views, that's fine. You do not need the Constitution to reflect the wishes of the current society. Certainly the Constitution does not require discrimination on the basis of sex. The only issue is whether it prohibits it. It doesn't. Nobody ever thought that that's what it meant. Nobody ever voted for that. If the current society wants to outlaw discrimination by sex, hey we have things called legislatures, and they enact things called laws. You don't need a constitution to keep things up-to-date. All you need is a legislature and a ballot box. You don't like the death penalty anymore, that's fine. You want a right to abortion? There's nothing in the Constitution about that. But that doesn't mean you cannot prohibit it. Persuade your fellow citizens it's a good idea and pass a law. That's what democracy is all about. It's not about nine superannuated judges who have been there too long, imposing these demands on society.

Here's the relevant part of the 14th Amendment:

Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

This would mean that either Scalia believes that women still aren't "persons" or "citizens" or that since discrimination was allowed against women when that amendment was written they still don't have rights. You know, the same way that he believes that the 2nd Amendment only allows people the right to own muskets and cannons. Right.

Apparently Scalia said something similar back in September. Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks points out his hypocrisy when it comes to being a "strict constitutionalist" here:


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New TSA Grab & Grope Screening Posse Announced

It's possible that I may have my stories mixed up.

Be that as it may, if you have objections to the TSA's Naked Photos Vs. Grab & Grope policy, you can voice your complaints/sign a petition at the ACLU website.

Sister Sarah Speaks From On High

Sister Sarah brings the new and improved
US Constitution down from Mount Sinai.
Sarah Palin speaking at an evangelical women’s conference (via The Plum Line):

I beg you, Women of Joy, to bring light and be involved, loving America and praying for her. Really, it is our solemn duty. Praying for true spiritual awakening to overcome deterioration. That is where God wants us to be. Lest anyone try to convince you that God should be separated from the state, our Founding Fathers, they were believers. And George Washington, he saw faith in God as basic to life.

(Pssst. Sarah. It was the founders who created the separation of church and state. )