A Perfect 10
Amendment X
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.
—excerpt from the Bill of Rights to the U. S. Constitution
The complete text of the
The text of the amendment quoted above is probably the most appropriate starting point for this blog and its initial post. Yes, freedom of speech is more important, for without it, I could not post this nor future snippets of opinion. So, though more important, not equally as appropriate given the prevailing winds of change in our country. Don’t worry — I’m certain, that if I am at this long enough,
I am not a Constitutional lawyer, although, probably forty years too late, I now think that would have been an extremely satisfying career. I think it would have been a privilege to argue the finer points of Constitutional law.
The
It explicitly states that the Federal Government has absolutely no authority in matters not directly given to it by the states or the Constitution. It gives no leeway for any politician or lawyer to speculate on how large a role the Federal Government may be able to play in the lives of the American people.
It means the President of the United States does not have the authority to fire a janitor at a public or private company, let alone the CEO, no matter how much power the President may have in the world. It means Congress does not have the authority to enforce its edict that baseball “clean up its act.”
In fact, after the protection of the borders, the raising and collecting of taxes, and controlling immigration, the Federal Government doesn’t have legal leeway to do much else according to the Constitution. The cynic in me at this point says, “one outta three ain’t bad.”
In the U.S., however, over the last century, it has become socially acceptable to protect people from their own foibles and failures, much less mistakes, and expect the government, as some neutral third party to provide the protection.
—Richard Browne
As Mr. Browne indicates, the government should never be allowed this level of infringement into the affairs and everyday happenstance of the American people. Government of any kind, by its very nature is voracious, insatiable.
The more we ask government to do, the more money—taxes—they require to do it. The more we expect them to be responsible for, the less efficient those services become. The more we allow the government to control, the fewer our options for dissent.
Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.
—Wendell Phillips (1852)
There is a good point being made here. The government at all levels is being ever more intrusive into our lives. This is something that was not intended when the founding fathers set the whole thing up. As a matter of fact the intention was to keep government at arm’s length or further if at all possible. The proliferation of the internet, computers and databases have made privacy all but nonexistent to most people. The policies of lawmakers have further intruded into our lives. Here I would like some genuine conversation as to what we can actually do to rectify this situation! A good start this is- let’s keep it going!
MJ