Bill of Rights Impact and Causes

Bill of Rights Impact and Causes Brandon Huff The Bill of Rights are the first ten Amendments in the Constitution, and were created for greater constitutional protections of our individual rights. These were written by James Madison, a member of the House of Representatives at the time. There were two parties at the time, the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. The Federalists believed that they did not need a Bill of Rights because the people and states had the powers not given to the government. While the Anti-Federalists believed that it was absolutely necessary to have, and was needed to protect the individuals rights. While Madison was writing these Amendments, it was argued that Congress couldnt change the constitution, so Madison proposed they be added on as Amendments. Madison wrote twenty amendments and of those the House approved seventeen of them. From there they were sent to the Senate where only twelve survived. Of those twelve sent to the states, only ten passed. These amendments are a list of limits on government power. This means that a right that was seen as a natural are protected with this document The Amendments include freedom of speech, the right to bear arms, no soldier shall live in the house of a citizen without consent, the right against unreasonable searches to house, car, self, and effects; the right to not be tried of the same offense twice, the right to a quick trial by an impartial jury, the right of trial by jury of an offense over twenty dollars, no excessive bail or unreasonable punishments, the enumeration of certain rights may not be construed, and the powers not delegated nor given to the states by the Constitution are the rights of the states. These rights given to us will always be ours and nothing can take them away from us. But why did the they choose only these amendments to ratify and use for our Bill of Rights? Each of those who voted and ratified these believed that these were unalienable rights given to us by God and therefore, shouldnt be controlled by the government. These are right that were put on paper to prevent the government from taking over the country and trying to take our rights away.   Each of these amendments protects very specific things, that as a nation we will need in order to keep the big government in check. Lets look at each amendment individually and see why it would be chosen. The first amendment protects our right to exercise our religion, speech, peaceful assembly, and press. This means that no matter what you believe in, you can believe it in the open and not having to fear the government is going to come after you. Next, you can say what you want where you want, though it probably isnt the best idea all the time. You can also write in the papers, or say on the news what you believe about certain things and it wont be taken out or edited. Last, we can gather in protest of something anywhere as long as it is a peaceful and controlled protest. This freedom allows us to keep the government in check and allows us as the people to offer changes or things we believe will help the country. Next, our right to bear arms. This seems pretty self-explanatory, if the need arises we can protect ourselves. Whether that mean from an intruder, or an attacker, or even from the government itself. This is probably one of the most important things given to us as a people, because protecting ourselves is not an option in a lot of other places around the world. Our third right is the right we have to our own house. A soldier cant come and live on our house during a time of war unless given permission. This doesnt really apply to todays world, but when it was made people attacking and fighting on American soil. So, it was only obvious that they would make one stating the privacy you have within your home. Fourth is the right that protects us, our property, and belongings from being unreasonably searched, or without a warrant. This is very important because without it the government could just take and go through whatever they want to without a reason. This protects the right to privacy and ownership. The idea that you own something and have the ability to say no is a very good thing to have. Our fifth right is the right we have to avoid being charged the same offense twice. If we have been accused and proven not guilty, we wont be tried again for the same crime. It also protects our other basic rights listed above, such as the thing of ones property. This is one that is not well known and is underestimated in its importance, but is a crucial part of the Bill of Rights. Next, is the right to a speedy trial and the ability to have someone able represent them in a court of law. It also protects against people that would be trying to influence you as a witness, or someone who wants to do you harm. This protection and help in the courts is very important even now as people still try to change the minds of those involved with trials and so forth. The seventh goes along with the previous two in a sense it involves the courts. Any crime exceeding went dollars must go through a court and have a trial. This helps prevent unjust rulings by one or another in   the sense that they must be a jury to decide what happens. Since most every crime exceeds twenty dollars almost every crime is done through our legal system. This is the best way to do things because our legal system is very through and very good. Next is our right to not have an excessive bail set for our release form jail. It must be appropriate with the crime committed, we dont need to worry about a million dollar bail if all we did was graffiti. This is for us as a people to feel like we can still have some hope of getting out early, whether or not thats what we need is something else entirely. The ninth amendment protects us from having all of our other ones being misinterpreted. Some people will try to pretend they dont know what our rights mean, or will try to violate them even if do not know they are. This will protect us from that and if one is caught misinterpreting our rights they receive and just punishment. Our last right states that any power not delegated to the United States by the Constitution is given to the states. This prevents the government controlling everything in all the states all the time. It gives the states a right to control a more local area and it helps keep an eye on the government. With each state having its own rights they can watch and keep the government in check. Now, of all of the amendments proposed to be in this Bill of Rights, the people chose these ten. They couldnt have chosen better. These are the very things that, if not specifically given to us as the people and the stats themselves; that the government might want to control at a later date. This Bill of Rights is a very important part of the United States and helps keep this country free and allows it to be run by the people. Without the foresight of our early leaders and the compromise they came to in the making of this document, America might be a very different place. I believe that this document helped shape the nation into what it is today. Without these rights given to us we couldnt do some things that we needed to do, nor could we guarantee that we would be safe from corrupt and unlawful people and trials. With these set in place we can have protection from corrupt people, are able to watch the government, and are free to protect ourselves from more upfront threats. These give us security in our nation and knowing that we the people have the power to make this country what it is. We elect our leaders, we elect our representatives, we elect all of the people in any position of power. If they dont do a good job we elect someone else, but it is always our choice who is in charge. That is a luxury that many nations dont have, and we as a people have forgotten how important it truly is. By reading this people can realize what we have in this country and how much we can really do for it. People act like they cant do anything so why bother, or some try to change things that doesnt need to or the have no control over. We need to go back and read what we can do, what we cant and all work together to make this country better for all.

Compare and Contrast Federal and State Prisons

A penitentiary is an institution established and controlled by the government. The penitentiary system in the United Stated has as its primary goal of detaining, housing and punishing individuals who have been convicted of felony crimes. Up until the 19th century, prison systems were not common. The common jail dates back to ancient times, but was used to detain persons temporarily until he or she was found innocent, fined, or subjected to corporal punishment. Generally, corporal punishment was most often reserved for the lower classes, since those with means were able to most fines levied against them. Those crimes that were not deemed capital crimes were punishable by means of public whippings, maiming, or being shamed. Historically, there have been two types of prisons or penitentiary systems in the United States. The Pennsylvania and the New York penitentiary systems form the basis are penitentiary systems in the United States. Although the two share some of the same principles, they differ in many respects and it is not surprising that supporters of each type believe strongly that his or her preferred system is the most desirable and best represents that which characterizes the penal system. Hattery, 2007) The Pennsylvania system was introduced into American society by the Quakers and is far and away the more conservative of the two penitentiary systems. The religious Quakers sought to replace the existing cruel methods of punishment that had been associated with corporal punishment with mandated yet productive labor intensive methods. Prior to the enlightened Quakers entry int o the penal system, criminals were abused at the hands of both formal and informal governments. Punishment included branding, mutilation, whipping and other harsh punishments. Under the Pennsylvania system, prisoners are housed in individual cells. Prisoners are required to engage in unpaid laborious service for as long as he or she is housed in the government run institution. Working hours are clearly defined and convicts are expected to comply with prison policy. While imprisoned, convicts are not allowable to interact with other prisoners and if they come into contact with others, they are not allowed to engage in conversation. Haslam, 2008) The New York system, which was implemented at Auburn, is similar to the Pennsylvania system but markedly differs in that prisoners are allowed to form bonds with other prisoners. Prisoners were afforded the opportunity to interact with each other while working and they were also allowed to eat meals together. Under this model, socialization and relationships were not seen as an enemy of punishment; instead, relationships and socializatio n were seen as that which was inevitable. Under the New York system, prisoners were assigned separate cells where they slept. Generally, this was the only form of isolation allowed under the New York system. Although there seemed to be less rigidity than that of the Pennsylvania system, rules were strictly enforced. (Haslam, 2008) During World War II, the United States created prisoner of war camps at the request of the British allies who were unable to house large number of captives. During this period, numerous prisoners of war who happened to be of German and Italian nationality were housed on American military bases and were forced to provide prison labor. The POWs were treated in much the same way as modern prisoners are treated. The Prisoners were required to work while being held on the military installation and were expected to adhere to all prison camp policies. Since World War II, the prison system in the United States has grown tremendously. A somewhat foreseeable result of this growth has been the evolution of prison labor. Prisoners throughout the country work in numerous manufacturing and service industries. The growth of prison labor in the United States has come under attack by both Americans and human rights advocates around the world. Many people argue that the United States is hypocritical because it denounces China’s use of prison labor while encouraging the privatization of prisons at home. (Hattery, 2007) Works Cited Haslam, J. (2008). Pits, Pendulums, and Penitentiaries: Reframing the Detained Subject. Texas Studies In Literature and Language, 268-284. Hattery, E. S. (2007). If We Build it They Will Come: Human Rights Violations and the Prison Industrial Complex 1 . Societies Without Borders 2, 273 –288.

The Criminal Responsible for the Deaths of Romeo and Juliet

In the days of old, a friar was a man to be respected and revered for his relationship with God. However there was the occasional servant of the Lord that would abuse this massive amount of respect and use it to obtain his wishes. A main character presented in Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence, is one of these untrustworthy Friars. He is, undoubtedly, responsible for the deaths of the Romeo and Juliet as a result of being too compassionate, manipulative, and deceiving.As a result of being too compassionate, Friar Lawrence makes rash decisions and is undoubtedly to blame for the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. For instance, when Juliet discovers that she has no choice but be married to Paris, the Friar attempts to comfort her by saying that â€Å"he already knows [her] grief; / It strains [him] past the compass of [his] wits. / [He] hears [she] must, and nothing may prorogue it, on Thursday next be married to County Paris† (IV. i. 47-50). Friar L awrence proves to be a truly compassionate person, as shown with the usage of the hyperbole â€Å"past the compass of [his] wits†.Despite the intended exaggeration made by the Friar, this hyperbole proves itself to be true, later in the play, when Friar Lawrence makes many ineffective plots that only lead the star-crossed lovers closer to their deaths. The extent of Friar Lawrence’s compassion is shown, again, when Romeo threatens to kill himself after successfully ending the life of the Capulet, Tybalt. The Friar chides Romeo’s â€Å"rude unthankfulness† and explains that â€Å"the kind prince hath turned that black word â€Å"death† to â€Å"banishment†Ã¢â‚¬  (III. iii. 24-29).The Friar’s exalting tone toward the lightened punishment causes Romeo to reconsider taking his own life and keeps him alive. However, this compassion of keeping Romeo alive only leads to Juliet’s demise after Romeo regains his want to kill himself an d succeeds in doing just that. There is no doubt that Friar Lawrence has compassion, but the intensive compassion leads to rash decisions, eventually ending the lives of Romeo and Juliet. Along with an extreme compassion that proves to be detrimental, Friar Lawrence leads the fated couple to their deaths by being manipulative.One such example is shown as the Friar marries Romeo and Juliet when he comments that â€Å"by [their] leaves, [they] shall not stay alone / Till the Holy Church incorporate two in one† (II. ii. 35-37). Friar Lawrence hints with the broad statement â€Å"incorporate two in one† that he does not only want to incorporate Romeo and Juliet, but also the Capulet’s and Montague’s under the marriage of the lovers. The Friar, simply, only wants to unite the two families, of a seemingly never-ending feud, and uses Romeo and Juliet as pawns at the front line, in the chess game of fate.Manipulation is shown again when the Friar addresses this a rt of manipulation, earlier in the play, when he explains the various properties of herbs. He notes that the herbs are â€Å"nor aught so good but, strained from that fair use, / Revolts from true birth, stumbling on abuse† (II. ii. 19-20). Shakespeare uses Friar Lawrence’s knowledge of the manipulation of herbs as foreshadowing into the Friar’s extensive knowledge of manipulating people, as well. This quote explains how the Friar understands the art of manipulation and intends to obtain his goal of uniting the two families.Friar Lawrence does not hesitate to use his tact of manipulation, which causes the death of the fated lovers. Another ungodly skill possessed by the Friar is his ability to be very deceiving, which results in the death of the destined lovers. For example, after Juliet fakes her death, Friar Lawrence chides the Capulets by saying that they â€Å"love [their] child so ill / that [they] run mad seeing that she is well /†¦ [They should] Dry up [their] tears and stick [their] rosemary / on [the] fair corse /†¦ and bear her to church† (IV. . 75-81). Despite being a prominent man of God, The Friar can easily deceive without remorse, as made vastly apparent with this quote. This skill of deception brings the star-crossed lovers ever so closer to their deaths when the Friar makes the Capulet parents to arrive much faster and rush Juliet into killing herself. Deceiving traits by the Friar are shown, once again, when the Friar hatches the plot to fake Juliet’s death.He shares this idea with Juliet saying that she should â€Å"take thou this vial being then in bed, / And this distilling thou off;/ When presently thou all thy veins run / A cold and drowsy humor, for no pulse† (IV. i. 93-96). As the Friar becomes more desperate, he begins to hatch more plans that have only a slight possibility of success, like this one of putting Juliet into a deep sleep. The deceiving Friar again, is responsible for a plan that later proves to be responsible for the death of both Romeo and Juliet.The Friar’s skill of deception and his constant use of this skill leads to the downfall of Romeo and Juliet. As a result of too much compassion, manipulation, and deception, Friar Lawrence is completely at fault for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. Despite his want to help Romeo and Juliet, many, if not all, of his plans were unsuccessful and were done without any thought of the consequences. Friar Lawrence abused his position of high respect, causing a devastating event that ended badly for the star-crossed lovers.

Asian Cultures And American Cultures Essay - 2460 Words

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