America's Abandonment of Natural Law
The Declaration of Independence forthrightly states "We hold these truths to be self evident: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." The origin of these Rights is "...the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God..." (Declaration of Independence). The Founders used the principle of Natural Law as the basis for the Declaration of Independence as well as the Constitution. This makes the concept of Natural Rights extraordinarily important when examining the foundations of our government. However, despite this, the Natural Law argument seems to have become lost
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To understand the difference, conventional laws are created by man and can therefore be destroyed. Natural Law derives itself from nature, a force beyond man's control; therefore, it is unalterable. I believe that misunderstandings about these two types of law, and the connection between the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, are one reason for the loss of the Natural Law argument.
The Constitution is the Supreme Law of the United States; however, it has its philosophical roots in the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution is the Supreme Law, one designed to enforce the principles in the Declaration of Independence. I assert that the Founders intended the Constitution to be the means by which to execute the principles in the Declaration of Independence. President Abraham Lincoln wrote, in his article Fragment on the Constitution and the Union, that the Declaration of Independence was an 'apple of gold' whereas the Constitution was the "picture of silver" framed around it. The frame would be worthless without the center picture, and the center could not be upheld without the frame.
Confusion about rights has also arisen due to the addition of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution. Many of the Founders were opposed to the Bill of Rights because they believed the Constitution and the Declaration of
In September 1787, a well written document called the U.S. Constitution was being created by our founding fathers, like George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson and others, and was ratified on 1791 in Philadelphia at the Constitutional Convention. The Constitution to was established because our founding fathers wanted to “establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity”, which says the Preamble, for everyone. The Preamble is a statement that is the introduction to the Constitution and was written to explain the purpose of the Constitution. The seven principles of the
The constitution is a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is acknowledged to be governed (Oxford Dictionaries). The Constitution was written the same place the Declaration of Independence was signed. The constitution was written during the Philadelphia Convention, which is now known as the Constitutional Convention. The constitution was signed on September 17, 1787 presided by George Washington (Standards,B.). There were several failed attempts to create a government and that is why the convention was called. Under America’s first governing document, the Articles of Confederation, that national government was very weak and the states operated like independent countries (The U.S. Constitution, 2016).Without the constitution each states government would not have any type of structure or anything to go by. The Constitution is broken into three branches: Legislative, Executive, and the Judicial Branch (Holzer, Schwester, 1977). In the
A constitution is the fundamental principles of government in a nation, either implied in its laws, institutions, and customs, or embodied in one fundamental document. The U.S. Constitution was completed on September 17, 1789 and has served as a model for the constitutions of many other nations. The constitution of the United States of America is the oldest written national constitution in use and consists of twenty-seven amendments.
In his Second Treatise on Government Locke focus’ on liberalism & capitalism, defending the claim that men are by nature free and equal against the idea that God had made all people subject to a king. He argued that people have ‘natural rights’, such as the right to life, liberty, and property, that hold the foundation for the major laws of a society. He says, “…we must consider, what state all men are naturally in, and that is, a state of perfect freedom to order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons as they think fit.” (2nd Treatise, Chapter 2, sec 4). John Locke used this claim, that all men were naturally free and equal, for understanding the idea of a government as a result of a social contract. This is where people in the state of nature transfer some of their rights to the government in order to better guarantee the steady and comfortable enjoyment of their lives, liberty, and property.
When people gather together for form a society, they will automatically need a fundamental law (constitution) that will be above everything and everyone. Constitution is what actually regulates a country. It provides rights and set up obligations for everyone. The United States constitution is one of the greatest documents ever written. It provides liberty, prosperity, equality, more importantly huge freedom. However, the ratification of the U.S. constitution was not an easy task. The farmers had trouble to agree on several issues such as the representation and distribution of political powers; how to prevent excessive democracy; and the protection of individual liberties, etc.
The US Constitution, written in Philadephia in 1787 by the Founding Fathers was the product of the revolutionary war of independence, with it’s foundations strongly influenced by the works of political theorists such as Montesquieu and Locke. The Founding Fathers favoured a government that prevented any individual or particular group becoming tyrannical. Furthermore, they strongly opposed the notion of excessive government power, seen as the potential threat to individual freedom, wanting to protect minorities as well as the population as a whole, from arbitrary or unjust rule. Consequently, the Founding Fathers outlined main provisions within the US constitution in order to avoid tyranny: the separation of powers, a federal structure of
The constitution is the document that has framed and shaped the United States from inception. It is the document that is defended by all new presidents and also the document which affords the citizens of the United States freedoms and rights that cannot be removed. In its drafting it shaped the formation of a new country and a new style of governance. It is a ‘bottom up’ as opposed to established ways of government which are ‘top down’. However for all its virtues the Constitution is somewhat ambiguous and there is some debate of the intent of the drafters, did they intend to
After the United States gained Independence on July 4th 1776, there was a need for a new rule on law and basic rights. The foundation of our country needed an official document to be established and written for future generations and for concrete reference. The original idea regarding the document, was thought necessary to be drafted from the Articles of Confederation, but later this idea was deterred. The Constitution was created on new precedent and adopted on September 17th, 1787. Our Constitution was written to be the backbone of our established government “for the people by the people”. According to the Independence Hall Association’s
Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are three rights that everyone seems to know right away. Every American is indoctrinated with these truths which also are the basis to the founding of the United States of America. The framers of the Declaration of Independence believed in natural law and nature’s God. The founders excelled in reason and paid attention to science but they worshiped neither. The recent progressive movement in America tries to undermine Natural Law and substitute it with a relative sense of truth and morality. Natural Law permeates through all our founding ideals while progressivism (which is becoming more and more prominent with every generation) perverts the founding of our rights and reason with
Initially, the Articles of Confederation was the first form of written constitution the United States had established. However, the Articles of Confederation had many flaws, one of the major flaws was it was establishing a weak government. Therefore, many important delegates through a committee decided to construct a new form of law that will inculcate a strong government. The result was the ratification of the Constitution (1788); the supreme law of the land. The constitution is broken down in three branches the legislative, executive, and the judicial branch all for the purpose for tyranny doesn’t surpass. Likewise, the constitution is constructs first with the preamble starting with the famous words” We the People of the United States,”
The Constitution is the fundamental text in the United States of America. It is the principle of life and the root of all laws and it greatly affects our daily lives. The Constitution is the foundation for all of the basic laws that are in place today. In Living Originalism, Jack Balkin states that the Constitution is the foundation of politics and spans many generations. Balkin also argues that the task of Americans is to interpret the Constitutional text and derive implications from the text that apply to the basic laws in our lives that change throughout time. He states that Americans can conduct these tasks through “building political institutions, passing legislations, and creating precedents that are both judicial and non-judicial.” The structure of the Constitution helps people to understand its meaning and apply it to their lives.
The definition of constitution is the act or process of composing, setting up or establishing (Websters Dictionary online). When I think of constitution I think of our “founding father’s”, the ones who established our governemnt and function. I am reminded of why they came over here. I think of the Constitution as the mission statement for the American government. America’s set of standards. It gaurantees that we cannot stray from the vision of what we stand for. The constitution to me stands basically, for freedom of rights for all. All men are created equal.
On September 17, 1787, our founding fathers decided to sign their name to a document that would forever be the foundation of a nation unlike any other. A document that would “establish America 's national government and fundamental laws, and guarantee certain basic rights for its citizens…[as well as] a plan for a stronger federal government with three branches–executive, legislative and judicial–along with a system of checks and balances to ensure no single branch would have too much power” (History Staff). In order for this government to be established, political parties were founded to help represent the ideals and differing views of all of the citizens. Throughout America’s history, the Democratic and Republican parties have grown to become the two major parties in American government. These parties are important to the electoral system as each party represents the “embodiment of shared principles, goals, and policy positions among a certain subset of citizens” (Gripp). With the election coming up on November 8th, 2016, the Democratic party has chosen Hillary Clinton as their candidate while the Republican party has selected Donald Trump to represent their views. These two candidates differ greatly on global trends issues such as globalization, immigration, and the influence of Islam and terrorism on the United States.
The U.S. Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787 and serves as the supreme law of the United States of America. It was created with the intent to establish America’s national government and fundamental laws. It also guarantees the freedom and power of U.S. citizens and provides a framework of how the country should function. The Constitution consists of several fundamental principles, including a limited government, an establishment of a republic, federalism, separation of powers, and checks and balances, and each play an important role in the American political system today. The Constitution guides America and ensures that it runs as smoothly as possible, and is considered by many U.S. citizens as the cornerstone of democracy.
The Making of the Constitution The Constitution of the United States, the fundamental law of the United States of America. Drafted by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pa., between May 25 and Sept. 17, 1787, it is the world's oldest written constitution still in effect. The document presents a set of general principles out of which implementing statutes and codes have emerged. As such, it embodies the essence of constitutionality--that government must be confined by the rule of law.