Friday, September 19, 2008

From Curly

"The instructor said,
Go home and write
a page tonight
And let that page come out of you---
Then, it will be true."
(Theme for English B by Langston Hughes)

A page about giving up five rights. Well, I would definitely not give up any of my rights without a fight, but if I were in a ‘do it or die’ situation, I think I would choose to live and just hope the following five rights were the rights I would have to lose:
Amendment 2- Bearing arms
Amendment 5- Criminal proceedings; due process; eminent domain
Amendment 7- Civil trials
Amendment 8-Punishment for crimes
Amendment 10- Powers reserved to the states

Protecting oneself is very important. If people lost the right to bear arms, they would no longer have the right to own firearms and the state might lose its right to maintain a militia. With out this right, anyone in possession of firearms without a license would be severely punished. The laws for gun licenses might have to be rewritten, and those in possession of a license would have to obtain a new license.

If the fifth amendment was nullified, people accused of crimes would still have the right to an impartial jury and a lawyer, but the government would no longer have to obtain a formal accusation, and therefore, the accused might not be put on trial. The accused would then suffer the consequences for the actions he/she was accused of doing. If the accused is put on trial, they could legally be tried twice for the same crime. The accused could also be forced to testify during a trial. Also, the government would now be able to take private property for public use without paying the owner.

If the right to civil trials is annulled, a person would no longer be guaranteed the right to a jury if the sum of money at stake is more than $20.

If the eighth amendment was negated, the court could legally impose bail that is excessive and an accused person could receive cruel and unusual punishment, such as physical torture, for their actions.

If the tenth amendment was void, powers not given to the federal government would no longer be given to the states. These powers are not written in the constitution, so there is a possibility that all the powers could be withdrawn from action.

Our country would suffer greatly from the loss of so many important rights. The court systems would change tremendously. After a few unfair trials and awful punishments, people might try to avoid crimes so they could stay away from the courts. There is a slight chance that our economy would improve, then again there are some people who are addicted to crime like others are to cigarettes. Still, no one ever said more amendments couldn’t be added after five of the first ten were taken away....

No comments: