Justice Stevens Pens Six Amendments to Tune-Up Constitution

[geardaddy]

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/01/28/1360644/-Justice-Stevens-Pens-Six-Amendments-to-Tune-Up-Constitution?detail=facebook
Since William Rehnquist joined the Supreme Court, it has made several rulings that have knocked the U.S. Constitution out of whack. Retired Justice John Paul Stevens, who deliberated on most of those rulings, has written six amendments to fix the damage and tune-up the Constitution. Stevens published his proposed amendments last year in the book "Six Amendments: How and Why We Should Change the Constitution." The amendments are terse, surgical fixes, which seem to fit the Constitution's style of saying much with few words. The book gives a good history and description of each problem. Here is a brief rundown with the text of each amendment:

1. The "Anti-Commandeering" Rule: In 1997, by a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court, created an "anti-commandeering" rule, which bans Congress from ordering state officials to carry out federal duties. The case was brought by two county sheriffs, who did not want to do background checks for firearm sales as ordered by the Brady Act. The new rule led to holes in the database that would allow persons prone to violence, like the killer in the 2007 Virginia Tech mass shooting, to get firearms. Stevens notes that the "anti-commandeering" rule could also cripple other Congressional acts, from routine administration of federal programs to emergency responses to national catastrophes or acts of terror. His fix adds four words (in bold below) to the Constitution's Supremacy Clause:

This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges and other public officials in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

The rest at link

[Baitball Blogger]

1. Anyone with me that we're in serious cray-cray territory?

The Constitution was thrown out of whack and now it has to be shored up?

[Donald Ian Rankin]

14. I have never understood constitution-worship.

There is nothing special about the US constitution. It was written by people who a) were trying not to come up with the best possible system of government, but a system of government all the states would agree to sign up to, and b) were slave-owners, etc.

It's very, very flawed, and there are many ways it could be improved.

Suggesting "we should change the constitution" is no crazier or more sacrilegious than suggesting changing any other part of the law.

[Baitball Blogger]

24. Completely disagree with your assessment.

Those of us who are old enough to remember, this country was once defined on on the 1st, 4th and 14th Amendment.

Freedom of Speech, Reasonable Searches and Due Process of Law.

The Patriot Act changed all that.

[Amishman]

32. be careful what you wish for

the easier it is to ignore or change the constitution, the easier it is for a single administration to wash away everything we have. Imagine the harm a teabagger president could do with the current congress if changes to the constitution had the same process as regular legislation.

[Hoyt]

2. Stevens is a smart dude, he even understands the 2nd Amendment that yahoos misinterpret.

6. Gun Control: For more than two hundred years, federal judges have, according to Stevens, uniformly understood the Second Amendment to be limited in two ways. One, that it applies only for military purposes, and two, that, while it limited the power of the federal government, it did not limit the power of state or local governments to regulate ownership or use of firearms.

Thus, in 1939 the Court ruled unanimously that Congress could ban possession of a sawed-off shotgun because that weapon had no reasonable relation to "a well regulated Militia." But the Roberts Court has twice ruled against governments trying to tamp down gun violence. In 2008, a 5-4 majority, citing the Second Amendment, threw out a Washington, D.C., law and created a new Constitutional right for a civilian in D.C. to keep an enabled handgun at home for self-defense. And in 2010, the same 5-4 Court, citing the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, threw out a Chicago handgun ban, and extended the Court's newly-created Constitutional right to the states.

To restore the Second Amendment to its original meaning, and to return the power of regulating firearms to state and local governments, Stevens adds five words to the Second Amendment: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms when serving in the Militia, shall not be infringed.

[VScott]

3. A much better, shorter and simplified reading

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

[Hoyt]

6. I understand that is how gun promoters interpret the Constitution, but that is not what is says.

Stevens' draft makes it easier for gun folks to understand, particularly folks like this --








Stevens' other admendment proposals are also important.

[TimeToEvolve]

8. thode are disturbing images

[friendly_iconoclast]

10. He has many, and posts them at every opportunity

He likes to collect and show off pictures of people who like to collect and show off guns...

[Hoyt]

13. And you don't want folks to see the ugliness of gunners' bad habit.

[NutmegYankee]

15. You post them as an Association fallacy.

You want to imply that all RKBA supporters are right wing slobs. Guilt by association has been a fallacy since Aristotle walked the earth.

[Hoyt]

18. Nope. I want to show what we get coddling those who love gunz,even

if they claim to be liberal.

[NutmegYankee]

19. In other words, Association fallacy...

[Hoyt]

20. In other words: To keep you in gunz, this is the price we pay.

I won't post photos of dead kids, etc. But that's the ultimate price we pay. Enjoy your gunz.

[NutmegYankee]

21. Followed up with an Appeal to Emotion.

The ever classic For The Children™. Thanks for playing Hoyt!

[Hoyt]

22. Enjoy hugging your gunz.

[NutmegYankee]

23. I'll cuddle with the cat just for you.

[friendly_iconoclast]

25. It is a classic example of "Lovejoy's Law"

as described at:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Think_of_the_children

In an article published in the Georgia State University Law Review, Michigan State University College of Law professor Charles J. Ten Brink wrote that Helen Lovejoy's signature phrase was a most adept and effective form of parody.[10] The Canberra Times criticized use of the phrase to support Internet censorship by the Department of Communications of the Government of Australia in 2009, commenting that it was evocative of Helen Lovejoy.[16] Writing for The Toronto Star, journalist Edward Keenan referred to use of the phrase as: "Lovejoy's Law".[12] Keenan defined "Lovejoy's Law" as a warning that when an individual in a debate uses the phrase, it is likely a diversion from a weak logical stance.[12] He advised that true empathy toward children involved rational argumentation rather than usage of the phrase as a form of manipulation of the debate.[12] In an article for Ireland's Sunday Independent, Carol Hunt referred to the tactic of usage of the phrase during political debate as the "Helen Lovejoy defence", and noted it had also been called the "Helen Lovejoy Syndrome".[18] She wrote that it was often invoked in reference to hypothetical children and not children actually impacted by a problem.[18]

and demonstrated here:

[NutmegYankee]

30. I associate the use most often with homophobia.

10-15 years ago, For The Children™ was routinely used by the religious right to pass gay marriage bans and kill anti-discrimination legislation.

[tblue]

27. If it were up to me

[Hoyt]

29. Great song. Thanks.

[tblue]

26. The bane of our existence.

[Scuba]

4. Good ideas, although I still thank that leaving campaign finance limits up to Congress is a fail.

[HappyMe]

9. I agree.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

5. With those amendments the constitution would get back to protecting the people.

[n2doc]

7. They all are reasonable

I would say some of the limits (such as defining what 'compact' means in redistricting) could be improved. And the gun fetishists would go nuts at the added words of the 2nd amendment. But even as is they would be a vast improvement. Unfortunately none have a hope in hell of being passed.

[friendly_iconoclast]

11. His first proposal would force state and local cops to enforce Federal drug laws

[Vattel]

12. Meh. I think he overlooks some real work that needs to be done

to fix our criminal justice system. Because of bad rulings on the fourth and eighth amendments, these amendments need to be altered to protect the citizen from unjustified detentions and invasions of privacy by the government, unsafe prisons, cruelties such as solitary confinement, and excessive prison and jail sentences.

[The Stranger]

16. Would that he had stayed on the bench instead, and save us from Harry Reid's ushering in

the justices who created most of this insanity.

If he's doing this, he could still be on the bench instead.

[Nye Bevan]

17. He was replaced on the bench by Elana Kagan.

Don't you think she has mostly been a good justice?

[merrily]

28. I miss him so MUCH! Glad to see his name.

Among the best Justices in SCOTUS history, IMO, are Warren and Stevens, both nominated by Republican Presidents.

Ike cited nominating Warren as the biggest regret of his 8 years as President.

I'm sure that had nothing to do with Brown v. Bd. of Education :sarcasm;

However, and I add this with great trepidation, unless we amend the Constitution to make the Constitution easier to amend, I don't know that we will see another amendment that is even mildly controverial pass Congress and get ratified by the required number of states. While we're at it, we should make it so that a federal ballot referendum amends the constitution by popular vote. Enough of having unoccupied acreage decide our fates.