From Silence Dogood

In many ways, we all take advantage of our rights given to us by the Constitution. For many of us it does not even slip through our mind, that before this sacred document was written, people did not have these rights. Nobody was allowed to express negative views about the government, and even your religion was a decision of the government. People were not entitled to a trial by jury, and government agencies were not required to have a warrant in order to search your belongings. Such a life seems almost to be fictional, and yet even today many countries have not given their citizens these rights which we Americans feel to be essential.
It is my strong belief that the first amendment to our Bill of Rights may be the most cherished out of all. The freedom of religion, press, and expression allow every person to be an individual. It enables us to make our own decisions, and show the world who we are, whether by the god we worship, or the words we write, or even the clothes we wear, this right allows us to be unique individuals. It also permits us to make a difference in our society. If we disagree with the government, we should be allowed to protest, and see that this problem is resolved. I allows us to reach out to each other and express our problems, and improve our society together. Finally it allows us to pursue whatever goals we strive to achieve. Whether we are choosing which vocation to pursue, or fighting for a cause, the first amendment is crucial. In addition, the 4th amendment is also important. Nobody should be allowed to search through anyone’s belongings without a legitimate reason and a warrant. This ensures privacy and security of personal belongings. To commence, another indispensable amendment is the 8th. It ensures that the penalty for a crime will correspond to the crime committed. Therefore, this will ensure that penalties for crimes will stay reasonable and however also making sure to address the crime sufficiently. Furthermore, amendment 6, right to a speedy trial, confrontation of witnesses, is also vital, in order to be sure that what the defendant is saying is true. Witnesses are key to understanding what actually happened during a crime, if they are unbiased, and therefore, it is very important that a defendant or plaintiff is able to call their witnesses. Lastly, the 9th amendment, or construction of constitution states that rights are not limited to those stated in the Constitution. This is important, because as time goes on, our society changes, and therefore, our laws must change as well. In many cases, it is required to add more laws so that everyone can live in a just society.
However, not all of the rights in our Bill of Rights are imperative. For example, the right to bear arms(2nd amendment) is one that is unnecessary. Guns, and other firearms are dangerous when in the hands of inexperienced people, and may result in terrible accidents. Therefore I do not believe that it is a needed law. In addition, the 3rd amendment is also unnecessary. Nowadays, soldiers live in their own tents with others, and do not need shelter from others. In addition, the 5th amendment, or trial and punishment, compensation for takings, is also an excess to our Bill of Rights. If a person is under suspicion of committing a crime, they should be able to explain the situation that had occurred. If they do not answer the questions, that may only arouse suspicion that they are guilty and are concealing the truth. I believe that if evidence is discovered to suggest that a person who was penalized for committing a crime, is actually innocent, that the court should be able to reexamine the case and attempt to reimburse the person. Therefore, the 7th amendment is also extraneous. Furthermore, the last amendment, or powers of the states and people, states that if a power is not entitled to the United States by the Constitution, nor is it prohibited to the states, then it is given to the states, or the people. This is unreliable, because a lot of state laws are unjust and don’t make much sense. For example, one New Jersey law states that it is illegal to frown at a police. Therefore, I believe that the people of a state should not be relied upon because some suggestions may be extreme or strange. In summary, many of our rights are essential, while others aren’t as needed. However, all of these laws should not be taken advantage of . Everyone should be thankful that our country entitles these rights to us, whereas many citizens fo other countries are not as privileged