This week, we will look at the Bill of Rights. Your assignment is simple, yet complicated. Look at the Bill of Rights, and decide if we were only to be able to keep one, which one do you want it to be? Then explain what makes this particular amendment more important than all the others? In your explaination, discuss specifically why you didn't want to pick those specific amendments. (I didn't choose the 2nd Amendment because...)
Word Count: 250+ words
Due Monday @ 7am.
Posts
If I had to choose to keep just 1 amendment from the bill of rights it would most definitely be the first amendment: the freedom of speech. Though the other amendments are very important and getting rid of any of them (with the exception of the 2nd possibly) would mess things up a lot for this country. But the first amendment is the most important because it allows people to speak their minds without worrying about what they say, for the most part. It also allows the press to keep the public fully informed of things that are going on in the country as well as the world. With this, it allows people to remain knowledgeable and cultured so they can make informed decisions about voting, amongst other things. It allows people to choose their own religion without having to be worried about being forced to believe certain things. It also allows people to get together and discuss ideas about the government and things they can do to fix it, change it or however they see fit. And without this specific purpose then the government would never evolve and it could be stuck in a bad form and the people would be unhappy and the government and effectively the nation would ultimately fail. Without the freedom of speech, our governemtn and our nation is no longer what it was originally intended to be, it would not be an effective government or a democracy at all in reality.
ReplyDeleteTo me the most important amendment is by far the 1st Amendment and this for many reasons. First of all, the 1st Amendment contains six distinctive rights that are the fundamental to the backbone of our free American society. The first amendment gives the right speech. This gives everyone a voice and an opinion, an idea that was foreign at the time. Free speech leads to the ability for every citizen to feel that they have a voice and also gives equality to everyone. At no time does a rich person have more of a right to say something than a poor person. Another important part of the 1st Amendment is the freedom of religion, another radical and fundamental part of our American culture. Without this part of the first amendment, the immigration flood of the nineteenth and twentieth century’s would not have happened, which would lead to the dismantling of American prevalence in the world theatre. The third most important part of the first amendment is the freedom of the press. This allows for the freedom of the people to spread their ideas and thus furthering the American identity. Now, I’m not saying that the other amendments aren’t important, because they are most of them anyway. Actually now that I think about it, some of the amendments don’t make any sense at all. Like seriously, when is a soldier going to storm into my house and demand my crop or women? It’s not going to happen. But, I digress. The other amendments are important to the American identity, but not as important as the 1st.
ReplyDeleteI chose the first amendment, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”, because it freedom of speech, and religion is an inalienable right for all people. Our freedom of speech allows us to think and voice our opinions. If there is a law we don’t like or if there should be a new law we can use our freedom of speech to fight for it. Of course the down side of this freedom is the ability for some people to manipulate the masses with a few clever words and lies. This freedom has to be respected and not exploited.
ReplyDeleteI did not choose the second amendment because I don’t think everyone needs a gun. In fact I believe no one needs a gun except for law enforcement and the military. We can hunt with bows and arrows like we have for thousands of years. When the founding fathers wrote this law they did not have to think about handguns or AK-47’s. people who did own guns used them only for hunting and those people were usually rich because muskets were pretty expensive.
The third amendment is kind of useless because quartering is obsolete in modern day military tactics.
The fourth amendment is nice because it secures people’s privacy. No one has to worry about a cop breaking in their door to look around for no reason.
The rest of amendments are really cool, but nothing beats the first, because the first amendment can be used to make and change laws.
If I could only keep one of the ammendments, I would choose Ammendment 1. I think one of the most important rights we have is freedom of speech, because being able to say what you want is vital. Also, because I don't associate with any religion (I'm atheist) I like that it states religion can not be forced upon someone.
ReplyDeleteI didn't choose the 2nd Ammendment because I don't believe that military and war is necessary. I actually oppose it.
I didn't choose the 4th Ammendment because I don't think law enforcement should have to wait for a warrent if they believe it is necessary to search.
The other nine ammendments are important to our country and losing them would not be very good, but they don't compare to the First Ammendment. We use the rights given to us in the First Ammendment in our everyday lives. All of the other ammendments have valid rights, but we don't use those rights nearly as often as we use the rights given to us in the First Ammendment. WORDS: 176. Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Religion are by far two of the most important parts of our lives. If we weren't allowed to talk for ourselves, we wouldn't be able to think for ourselves. If we weren't allowed to choose our own choice of religion, we wouldn't be able to think for ourselves. We would be told what we could and couldn't believe in and that's not what our country is all about. Our country is about freedom, and that's what the First Ammendment is giving us.
If I had to delete 9 of the first 10 ammendments, I would keep the first amendment. This is the amendment that I feel affects me the most. My religion is important to me and is protected by the first amendment. I appreciate the rights of free speech and press, although I generally don’t exercise these rights. However, the amendment makes it possible for me to read an interesting news story that may be dissaproved of by the government. I feel the second amendment does not affect me, as I feel I have no need to carry a weapon. I don’t feel my safety is every threatened and would not use a weapon. I feel the third amendment is less necessary than the first because I would be supportin american soldiers by allowing them to stay in my home and I would feel as though I was repaying the soldiers for protecting the country. I would remove the fourth ammendment because I have nothing to hide. If the government searched my home without reason, they would find nothing wrong. The next few involve trial of imprisonment which don’t affect me because I’m not planning on committing a serious crime. By process of elimination the first amendment is the most important and influential in my every day life.
ReplyDeleteI i had to choose and keep one amendment i would keep the first amendment because i believe it is the basic idea of our nation. Being freedom. Freedom of speech and religion are why many people come to America in the first place. And because of these rights, many of the other laws and rights that we have today follow. It also gives people the right to peacefully assemble, and to petition against the government in a peaceful way. The second amendment is not as important becuase having the right to bear arms may help with self defense and protecting yourself and your family, but i believe it does more bad than good overall. We could certainly live without the third amendment, which only matters in a time of war of with the concent of the law for a soldier to be in a civilians home. Amentment four also would not change the way we live as much as the first amendment because not many people need to have their homes searched at all, so even if the government didn’t need permission this would not change our lives too much. Amendment five, about how the government may not trial a person more than once, has been let some people who were guilty the first time but got proven innocent, be free from their crime and has let the government able to do nothing about it. The right to a speedy and public trial is also not as important as the first amendment because although it does help the court system, it isnt as important as the first amendment. None of the other amendments matter as much as the first amendment either, although without them things would be different. Without it we wouldn’t have many of the rights that we wouldn’t be able to live without every day.
ReplyDeleteThe First Amendment would have to be the one I would keep. Without freedom of speech, religion, or assembly, there would be no way to protest the injustices of the government. Without this, the people would be unable to change anything around them, including things which are mentioned in the other amendments.
ReplyDeleteIf we did not have the right to free speech, the ninth amendment would be worthless. There would be no say in what was and was not a personal right because we would not be allowed to speak our minds. We could not argue against unfair rulings or punishments (Amendment 8). Nor would man be able to stop the police from storming into his home and seizing his property, or searching the entire premise when there was no cause or reasonable suspicion. A speedy trial would mean nothing because the accused could be forbidden to speak. There would only be one side to every story, and that is the government’s side. You don’t want soldiers living in your home during times of peace? Too bad. You aren’t allowed to argue against.
The first amendment is the cornerstone for the rest of the rights we pertain as human beings. The rest of the Bill of Rights could be pushed in our faces while every other amendment was ignored because man could say nothing to stop it. So, the first amendment is the golden rule among the Bill of Rights and would have to be the one to keep.
If I had to choose one amendment to keep out of the ten amendments it would have to be the first amendment. The freedom of speech is probably the amendment that has the greatest influence in my life. My religion is very important to me and it is protected by the first amendment so I wouldn’t want that to change. Religious freedom is one of the main reasons many people come to America and I feel like our country is strongly based upon the first amendment. America would have a very different way of life if there wasn’t the first amendment. I didn’t choose the second amendment, the right to bear arms, because I do not believe in weapons and I would never carry one. Amendment number seven I think is important because everyone deserves the right to a fair trial but I hope this is something I don’t have to encounter in my life so I don’t think it plays as big of part in my life as the first one does. I also didn’t choose the fourth amendment because I don’t feel like I have anything to hide from the government so it wouldn’t bother me if I got searched. It is important for the government to have boundaries about searching people but it doesn’t affect my life very much. My choice of the first amendment I feel is the best choice for myself personally but also for the values of our country as a whole.
ReplyDeleteOf course I would choose to keep the first amendment above all the rest. The first secures basic freedoms the people in America basically stand for. The right to free speech, free assembly, freedom of religion and so forth are, in my opinion, the most important of rights. Just thinking about life without the ability to voice my opinions or practice my own set of beliefs makes me frightened. Life would nearly not be worth living without these essential freedoms. It is possible to go on without certain other rights, life wouldn’t quite be the same, but life could go on. Not so much without your right to express your opinions and beliefs.
ReplyDeleteIn comparison to the fourth amendment, the first comes out on top because although it is good to protect against privacy violations and the like, the basic freedoms in the first amendment matter more. You could live with less privacy, not with less freedom of speech. The second amendment, the right to bear arms and to a milita, while important could be gotten rid of. A military and weaponry are luxuries and are not nearly as important as the first amendment. It is a little difficult to choose between the first amendment and the sixth, right to a fair trial, because that is so important to keep our government just. But again, I believe that the freedoms granted in the first superceede the need to fair trial.
I personally believe that every aspect to the constitution are important to making this country what it is. But if I were only able to keep one Amendment in the Bill of Rights I would keep the First Amendment. The First Amendment states that, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances” (Wikipedia). The freedom of speech sets the stage for a lot of the other amendments and our freedoms are what define America. I didn’t choose to keep the second amendment because with all of the new gun control laws, it has been stripped down and extremely restricted. I find the Fifth Amendment kind of redundant because you could just choose not to talk and not to answer their questions anyway. I did not choose to keep the third amendment because if a soldier was in need of a place to stay I would be more than happy to let him/her stay with me for his/her services to our country.
ReplyDeleteWith consideration of what ammendment is of most importance and significance toward the American people, and their rights there are some very close pieces of information that need to be taken under question. First, which of the ammendments are seen to be most powerful/ serve a strong impact, whereas some ammendments allow citizens to have more liberties than others. With an overall perspective upon these terms, the first ammendment is easily of most meaning to the American people (and myself personally). It establishes freedomes in a wide variety of aspects, and prevents restraints upon personal opinion, and decisions (which is the key reason America is seen as such a wonderful country). When people once said that they were going to move to America to be “free”, this ammendment was what they had in mind; the rights to think whatever they want to, belive whatever they want to, and to disagree under any circumstances with the leading officials. The second ammendment is of some importance, but has very little range in liberties, as it is only addressing people who fear their own saftey. The fifth ammendment does have some important aspects as well, allowing people to keep information to themselves if they truly want to; and is a part of our own personalities, but rather just protects them whereas the first ammendment establishes them. Then ammendments seven and eight both protect people’s legal rights and safety to not be “injured” in either economic or physical punishment, and abuse which does keep some of the rights, but again the first ammendment establishes those rights in the first place.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, if I were to keep one amendment and discard the others, I would choose the first amendment. If you think about it, the first amendment is the most important one, no question about it. Being freedom of speech, the first amendment is the foundation for the other amendments. Without freedom of speech you can't really expand on anything else. America is known for being free and expressing everyone’s personal cultures and religions. People wouldn’t exactly be here without Freedom of Speech. We look at America being the land of the free, what would it be without the first amendment? It also affects my life personally because I wouldn’t be able to be a Christian without it. The second amendment has nothing to do with me because I do not possess any weapons nor is it necessary in my life. The third amendment would be less necessary to keep because if a soldier needs help I will provide them help with the hospitality of my home. The fourth amendment would never apply to me because I have nothing to hide. Although it is my personal space, they can search me for whatever they want. The fifth amendment does not apply to me either because I have never been accused of an illegal crime. Along with the sixth, seventh, and eighth amendments, they don’t seem as necessary as the first amendment. All in all, I believe that the first amendment mostly affects my life, and everybody else’s life more than the other 9 amendments. Without freedom of speech and religion, our country wouldn’t be the country it lives up to be. My life wouldn’t be the same either.
ReplyDeleteIf I were to keep an amendment and delete the rest, I would keep the first amendment. I would choose this because this amendment is what makes our country unique compared others—which is freedom. Many people come to the United States for freedom of speech, religion and even press. Because of these amendments, I am able to read about things going on in our nation. This can include opinionated articles about celebrities, prestigious leaders and events going on. Without this amendment, we would be very limited in expressing our speech and religion. In many countries, they are forced to live a certain way, whether that be religiously or limited on what they say. It’s a very cool thing that we can make fun of our president, and it would still be okay. If this was done in other countries like China, I’m sure there would be hard consequences. Although the other amendments like the 3rd and 2nd amendments are important, I think the world would be somewhat a better place without war. The 6th amendment does not pertain to me as much as the 1st amendment, so I think I can live without it. Without the first amendment, our country wouldn’t be as unique as it is today.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if the first amendment is the most significant to keep. The freedom of speech is what our country is based upon: the ability to speak up for what you think is right. People come to this nation for these freedoms that aren't exposed to their country. We all have the right to petition and speak out against the government if we want to, in a peaceful way of course. In my opinion, the second amendment is not appealed to me as being important because not everyone in the country carries a weapon on them at all times. Even if they did, it would be a very violent and unneccesary way to protect yourself. The third amendment has been proven to be a good amendment from the early American colony stages. However, I wouldn't mind offering my home as a shelter to our troops. I feel the need to support them in any way that I can. The fourth amendment is not important to me because most of the people in the country have nothing to hide. But it does provide privacy for every individual in the country. Your rights are also protected under this amendment but it’s not as important and life changing as the first amendment in my opinion. I don’t feel as if the other amendments play a big a role as the first amendment does in our lives everyday. Opportunities are open to us to speak up for what we believe is right and that’s the one thing government can’t control.
ReplyDeleteThere’s no surprise that if having to make a choice, I would choose to keep the first amendment to the Bill of Rights. This being, the first amendment is what differentiated America from many other countries in its early stages. The principles of freedom of speech, press, and religion are essential to being an American and are rights that should be protected under law. Taking away the first amendment would be like taking away America’s foundation and what this country was founded upon, freedom to all. Though the other nine amendments to the Constitution are essential and play an active role in the American government, I didn’t choose the Second Amendment because it is not crucial to acknowledge an active militia and giving Americans the right to bear arms. I personally believe that citizens should not have rights to possess any type of firearm. Though we do need the military to protect our country, America would be a safer place if having firearm was illegal. No one would need firearms to protect themselves because they would not be threatened by someone with a firearm because it would be illegal to have one. Also, I chose not to keep the Third amendment because it is not that essential. It is important in a certain situation to keep citizens safe. However, troops are supposed to secure the country so they should not intentionally mistreat others while in their homes. It may have been an issue back in the day during the American Revolution, but there are other laws that protect the privacy and rights of citizens that it is not so heavily essential that if it was removed, it would affect the government. Another Amendment I chose not to keep was the Fifth Amendment. Yes, I believe everyone has the right to protect themselves but the law is the law. If someone did something and they plead the 5th just so they would not incriminate themselves, clearly they are guilty and criminal activity should always be persecuted. The law is the law regardless if you put yourself behind bars or not. Therefore, the first amendment is the most essential in the Bill of Rights because it protects the most important right we should have as US citizens, even immigrants in his country.
ReplyDeletei think that the most important ammendment would have to be the first. i say this because allthough the other ammendments are important this is by far the most important. The first ammendment has a couple of key elements that make it much better than any of the rest. The first as we all know is the obvious freedom of speech. If we all were not able to voice our oppinion we would not be able to stand up for what we believe in or just make any type of argument. right now there are no limitations to what you can say. that is of course under certatin circumstances you cannot like if your in school you cant swear or just little things like that but for the most part you are able to voice your oppinion all the time. another key elemnt to the first ammendment is religion. nowadays religion is a big part of many peoples lives and if there was a law outlawing religion there could be another civil war within the country. it is good to let people make there own decisions with there religous beliefs. The other ammendments have alot of good and very true points but i dont think that they can compare to the first in terms of how important as a country they are.
ReplyDeleteI believe that if we were only able to keep one right the most important would be the first one. I would pick the first one (freedom of speech and religion) because that one is a very general one for alot of the other ones. Without the right to be able to express ourselfs freely we truely wouldnt be a independent nation. A couple of the other amendements that i had up for consideration would be amendment IV, VI, and IX. In Amendment IV they discuss how we have the right to not have any of our personal property serached unless they have a court ordered warrent. This is important because it really just protects us and our personal belongings from being tossed through. In VI this amendment gives us the right to a full trial with a public random jury. This one i would say would be the second most important behind Amendment 1 because this gives us alot of freedom and leeway, but the first one gives out more. The final amendment IX is the last one i had in the running for most important, this amendment basically just says that no one cant take away our rights from us. This would be really important but if we could only pick one our rights being protected wouldnt mean much if we had no rights.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the first amendment is the the most important of the bill of rights. It is the most used and practiced amendment in our society and pertains to all aspects of living. People are aloud to speak their minds and practice their religion without being foreced to believe certain things. This amendment separates us from other countries in the world who are ruled by a dictator in which they are taught to think and act one way. They are not allowed to speak out against the government and cannot practice the religion of their choice. This amendment also allows us the freedom of press. This gives Americans the chance to express themselves without being punished. Without this amendment, I believe we would not be the democratice society we are today. While the other amendments are important, the freedom of religion, speech, and press is one thing that all americans partake in.
ReplyDeleteAmendments like the 3rd and 5th pertain back to the 1st amendment. By voicing the fact you do not want to house a soldier you are practicing the first amendment as well as the 3rd. And by being given the right to a trial when being accused of a crime exersizes that individual's right to free speech. So both the 1st and the 5th amendment come into play here.
THe first amendment is the one most used in our lives and it is the foundation that our democratic society was built on. It defines America and what we stand for. It is basically the building block for the governmental system that we have today.
If I had to choose to keep just one of the Amendments in the Bill of Rights it would be the first one. The right to have your own religion, speak your mind, publish whatever you want, peacefully assemble, and petition the Government are rights that lead to a successful government. The first part of the Amendment allows for government and religion to be separated, which is important for success in a country where there are so many cultures. The last four parts of this amendment are all variations of freedom of speech, which is a very important right in our constitution. The freedom to petition the government is a good way to make sure that our constitution stays relevant to present day. People will not follow a government that doesn't adapt to new technologies and new ways of life. And a government cannot adapt to these changes if the people it governs does not petition to have it changed. Without the first Amendment the rest of the Amendments would either be less important or eventually irrelevant completely.
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ReplyDeleteIf I had to choose just one amendment to keep out of the bill of rights it would be the first amendment. I think that this is the most important amendment because without it every other amendment would be almost useless because we still need freedom of speech to do anything really.
ReplyDeleteI decided not to choose the second amendment because I thought that guns and wars were much less important than freedom.
I believe that the third amendment is kind of worthless because quartering is outdated in modern day military tactics.
I do believe that all of the amendments are important in their own ways; however the first amendment is an amendment that we use daily. Whether it be by choosing to attend church or temple on Sunday or choosing what to say to one another, the first amendment affects all of us in our own way. If we weren't allowed freedom of speech, we wouldn’t be able to voice our own opinions on the lives we are living. If we weren't allowed the freedom to choose our own religion, we wouldn't be able to enjoy our lives as individuals. To be told what to say, what to write, what to worship is not the morals that our government was built upon. We were built on freedom and in order to give up the freedom that has been so tirelessly fought for would be a disgrace and it is for that reason that I choose the first amendment to stay in the Bill of Rights.
If I were only able to keep one amendment out of the 10 Bill of Rights, I would choose to save the first amendment. I believe that this amendment, above all others, has become the most beneficial and influential toward the citizens of the United States. This Amendment grants the Freedom of Speech, Press, Religion, Assembly, and Petition. These freedoms have become the foundation of our country, in that America is associated with the idea of pursuing the “American Dream” of being free and having the ability to speak for oneself.
ReplyDeleteThe freedom of speech has allowed people to have their voice heard, create their own opinions, and contribute in the creation of new laws or rules. It enables communication between the government and the people by news stations and the radio. The Freedom of Religion allows individuals to express their faith in any way they choose, and The Freedom of Press provides the ability to share stories, world news, upcoming events, etc. that helps to raise awareness throughout the community.
I did not choose to keep the 2nd amendment because I do not think it is necessary for an individual to own a gun, if they do so at all. Even if guns are kept strictly for hunting or self-defense, there are other ways to protect ones self and other tools available for hunting other than guns. I did not choose the 3rd amendment because although I would not want to place my family in danger by taking in a soldier, I believe that if a man is hiding from the outside world, afraid to defend his own country, than he should not have become a soldier in the first place. The 4th amendment would only benefit those who have something they should not, but even then, if the police are suspicious, they can get a warrant to search your home or whatever the case may be. The Government and Police do not have time to parade around searching everyone’s home. Typically, the only time a home is searched is because an individual is suspected to have been involved in a crime, or of possessing an illegal substance. So regardless of whether or not it is a law, one can’t entirely prevent the Government from searching their home, for there is always a way around it. Although all of the amendments within the Bill of Rights are important, the 1st amendment seemed to have the greatest impact on our lives. The rest of the amendments I didn’t feel had as much importance and could be lived without.
I think the most important amendment is the first amendment. It is so important to have freedom. Being able to believe in what you want helps people to be different and be their own individual. Having the freedom to say what you want helps provide happiness to those who have their own opinions on certain situations. If no one was allowed to voice their opinion, and we all were forced to believe in one thing, there would be no diversity. I don’t think it is too important to have the right to bear arms. If they decided to take that away, it wouldn’t be too bad because people would be safer I guess. The 3rd amendment about soldiers being quartered is would be beneficial for soldiers but I think freedom of speech is more important. I do think that the 4th amendment is important but having the right to privacy is less important than having all your freedoms. Having a speedy trial when charged with a crime would not be the amendment I would save. It is not that beneficial to most people because a lot of people never have to go to trial. This amendment only affects a select few people, where the first amendment affects everyone.
ReplyDeleteI would keep Amendment II because I believe that people should have the right to bear arms if they so choose. I believe that firearms were created for one sole purpose, which was to defend oneself and their country. The gun and other weapons have been misused for years and I do not believe this is the fault of said weapons. I am a strong believer that guns do not kill people, people kill people. I also agree with Amendment I, which I think goes along with Amendment II because it is about freedoms. Freedom of speech, freedom of press, and freedom to bear arms are all important aspects to America. I would not keep Amendment V because I believe that if someone is tries as innocent but then more evidence comes against them and one can prove that he is guilty, that that person should be put in jail. I believe that people who commit crimes that are very terrible, should not be aloud bail, as said in Amendment VIII. If someone is in jail for killing someone or for something else that is horrible, they should not be allowed to be freed until they are proven innocent.
ReplyDeleteIf I had the choice to keep only one of the first ten amendments from the bill of rights, it would most definitely have to be the first amendment. The first amendment basically states the freedom of speech and religion. These factors that lye within the first is the staple to all the rest of the amendments in my opinion. Freedom of speech and press is really what makes our country what it is today. I feel that many people come to America for the reason that we are able to voice our opinion, to an extent, without being punished for it. The first amendment is really what makes our country different from the rest. Without this, how would we be able to speak out, how would anybody know really know what’s going on in society. If the press didn’t have the right to have a voice, nobody would know what was going on. Also the fact that if we didn’t have the right to voice our opinions then we wouldn’t be able to stand up for what we believe in. Religion is a huge factor in this amendment too. People should have the right to choose which religion that they want to believe in. If I were to choose an amendment to get rid of, it would have to be the second. Although I believe this, I do think that all of the amendments have a great purpose and reason for being created. The only reason that I choose the second is because I don’t think that anybody needs to own a gun or weapon.
ReplyDeleteIf there was only one ammenedment that I would choose to keep, it would be ammendment one, freedom of speech. I believe that without that ammendment, our country wouldn't be what it is today. For example, during the civil rights movement, there was a lot of rallying and protesting which helped the cause. If the first ammendment wasn't here, then most of that wouldn't have gone on and helped changed the laws of segregation. The first ammendment allows people to speak their minds and talk freely without fear of punishment. I truly believe that is the most important ammendment. If there was one ammendment I wouldn't keep, it would be ammendment number three because it talks about soldiers not being able to live in someones home without their consent during a time of peace. I don't think that it's much of an issue now than it was before. I know during the Civil War soldiers were living in civilian homes, but that was during the war. In my opinion, I just feel as if the third ammendment serves no purpose because the military is diffrent now and soldiers are no longer just staying in civilian homes.
ReplyDeleteI suppose if I had to choose one out of the ten amendments to keep, it would end up being the first one: freedom of speech. That's because, basically, if we retain that amendment, people can speak out against whatever they might find unjust in this government. We could then speak out against how we had to keep only one out of the ten amendments, and then speak of how we should have the rights to a speedy trial, and how we should be given the powers not already retained by the government. This amendment is the starting line for all the other amendments, so if we held onto that one, we could simply start all over, and over time, retain all the amendments once again.
ReplyDeleteThat is also the main reason behind leaving out the other amendments, but theres also another thing; the amendments are all great, but with only those ones, there is a lot left out rule-wise, leaving the US at a fault. Having a speedy and public trial is great (6th amendment), but how effective would it really be if there was no freedom of speech? Trials would then be rigged, wouldn't they? Granted power to the states on whatever the government doesn't currently have direct control over would be great (10th amendment), but without any ensured rights beyond that, states would fall apart. I feel as though where every other amendment defends, it leaves a huge gap for curruption in society by taking advantage of the amendments not being enforced. The freedom of speech is a counter, i feel, for that type of corruption; it gives us a way to speak against what we feel is wrong. And even if trials are rigged, we can still speak against it, rouse up enough anger over it, and get things changed. That's why I think the first amendment should stay.
If we were only able to keep one amendment in the Bill of Rights, I’d choose to keep the first one. The first one makes sure that no law can be made that would infringe on someone’s freedoms. This is the most important because without our freedoms, we wouldn’t be able to do much, say much, speak our minds, and live the lives we wish. Without this first amendment, laws can be made that would take away our freedoms and completely ruin the whole “American Dream” idea.
ReplyDeleteI didn’t choose the second amendment because I feel like it’s more important to be free than to be able to have a gun for our own protection. Millions of Americans live their lives quite peacefully without a gun every day. Therefore, taking away this amendment wouldn’t affect a vast amount of people. I didn’t choose the third one or fourth one because I feel like neither of those would be very common events. People usually don’t just go around taking people hostage and usually the police have a legit reason to search someone’s house. Granted, both happen, but not frequently enough that they would be more important than our protection of freedom. I didn’t choose the fifth or sixth amendments because, in all honesty, something like the fifth and sixth amendments don’t affect me or the common citizen. The people who are affected by those are the people who are getting into trouble. Although it may be selfish, I feel like the common folk shouldn’t be stripped of their protection of freedom over legal matters that only affect people who are up to no good. I feel the same sort of way about the seventh amendment. I feel like it’s important to a certain extent, but it wouldn’t exactly pertain to me because I won’t be going out and committing big crimes that would cause that amendment to affect me. As a result, I feel the first amendment is still more important. I didn’t choose the eighth amendment simply because I feel freedoms are more important, just like I feel with all the other amendments, but it is one of the most important, I feel, because torture is never a way to handle any situation, nor is making someone pay ridiculous amounts of money. I was very close to picking the ninth amendment because it makes sure that no one is denied their constitutional rights. I didn’t choose it, however, because I feel that the first amendment makes sure that no one will make laws to ruin the freedoms of citizens, whereas the ninth states that no one should be denied their rights. It’s a toss up, but I just feel the first amendment is still more important. The tenth just states that anything not stated in the Constitution can be established by the state. Again, this isn’t as important as the protection of one’s freedoms.
Although I think all of the amendments are important, I’d have to say that the fourth amendment is one of the most important. It was hard to choose between the first and fourth, but I believe having security to your house, your belongings, and security to yourself for that matter, is something that’s worth great value. I could only imagine having the police being able to search my house and go through my belongings without needing any reason. You’d have no security and no personal space. None of your papers would be private. Meaning, all your mail, bank statements, and or any personal files can be read by anyone who pleases. Without this amendment someone could go into my home and look through my belongings, anything they want, and I could not file a report because it wouldn’t be against the law. I don’t think we realize how much we rely on security to keep us and our property safe. In the Bill of Rights, the fifth, sixth, and seventh amendment, all regard the court system and freedoms given to the criminals and how the court system must be run. But without the fourth amendment, the other fifth, sixth, and seventh wouldn’t be as significant. Think about all the criminals convicted due to invading private property, robbery, identity theft, and searching without a warrant. There wouldn’t be nearly as many court cases and arrests, making all the amendments regarding the court not as necessary as they are today. I think we all live in a much safer world having this amendment, and feel incredibly more secure. It’s definitely a much needed amendment.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to choose one amendment to keep and discard the rest, I would definitely choose the First Amendment. In my opinion, it is without a doubt the most important amendment on the Constitution. It has such a great impact on everyone, and has made our country what it is today. The freedom of speech and religion is what our nation is based upon, and the reason why so many different people choose to start new lives in the United States. Change, progress, and diversity are all things that our country is about; that would not be true without The First Amendment. In my opinion, these are essential rights that everyone should have. No one should be forced to believe in something that they don’t agree with. The Second Amendment isn’t that important to me because it does not apply to my lifestyle. I believe that most people in this country live in an environment where they can live just fine without having to carry arms. I would also discard the Third Amendment because I don’t think it’s relevant to the times we live in today. I don’t think that the Fourth Amendment is relevant to my life, or to the life of others either. I would not feel threatened if the government were to search my home because I have nothing to hide. It is difficult to choose between the First and Sixth Amendments because they are both very important in different ways. We should all be given fair trials, but I think that our essentials freedoms are more important overall.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to choose one amendment to keep I would keep the first amendment because this amendment helps protect us as Americans from having the government take away our rights to be ourselves. This is what makes us America, the ability to express what we want and to choose what we want to believe in. Now why rule out the other amendments? The fourth amendment protects us from having our own things be gone through but that is a very limited amendment while the first covers more in terms of rights. The Fifth Amendment only protects us from having to talk against our own will but I would rather be able to talk freely and say what I want then to be able to just be quiet in front of officials. The sixth amendment gives us a fair jury but just as the fifth I would rather be able to choose what I say and how I live my life then a fair jury. The sixth amendment basically means that no matter what you have the right to a jury which doesn’t really matter because I feel that if I knew that I committed a crime I would deserve the jail time. Some of the amendments are just silly where a militia must always be present and how you can bear arms. Also preventing people from being forced to have soldiers in their home is just another not as important amendment. Basically I would rather have choice in who I am and how I get there then having my things gone through or reserving the right to remain silent.
ReplyDeleteI would definitely want to keep the First Amendment just because i believe that the freedom of speech is such an imporant and percious thing, and if we lost that right we would lose the freedom to express what we believe and in my mind, that would be a horrible thing. Although some Americans might disagree I wouldnt keep Amendment Two because i truly dont believe it is a huge deal if we are able to carry around a gun or not. Many Americans live life without having a gun near them 24/7, so therefore if we took away this amendment it wouldnt be that big of a deal. And although it is an invastion of privacy, i believe that if the authorities think it is right or necessary to search a persons belongings or house, they should be able to do so without leagl papers, so that is the reason I wouldnt keep Amendment Four. The reason I would not keep The Fifth Amendment is because I belive that a person should be able to speak their mind, and tell what happened even when your not in the presents of a jury. I dont think that this amendment is necissary just for the fact that Americans should have the freedom of speach at any time, no matter what, but this amendment sort of resricts tht right. So in the end i would definitely vote to keep the First Amenemdet, in order to protect the right most people take for granted.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to only pick one of the 10 Bill of Rights amendments to keep, I would have to choose the first amendment because it’s the amendment that affects me the most. It lets me say what I want, it lets me believe what I want, I can write and publish what I want, I can gather peacefully if I want, and I can petition the government if they are doing something I don’t like. I think they are important freedoms. I would not choose to keep the second amendment because I don’t think each state should be able to have its own army and I personally don’t like guns so I would rather that only the army and police have them. I would not choose to keep the fourth amendment because I think that the government should be able to search and take what ever they want because if a person isn’t doing anything wrong then it really doesn’t matter if they search through a persons things. I would not choose to keep the Fifth Amendment because often everyone knows who did what and who is guilty, but they waste time and money on a jury just because the law says they have to. Also if evidence in a case changes or there is new evidence, even after the case has been tried, it should be tried again to get a truly fair verdict. I would not choose to keep the seventh amendment because it is out dated. I would not choose to keep the eighth amendment because if a person commits a crime and their bail is set very high or the fine is a lot of money and they can’t pay it or don’t won’t to then they probably shouldn’t have committed the crime. Also if a person does a crime then they should deal with the punishment.
ReplyDeleteIf I could only keep one amendment from the Bill of Rights, I would definitely pick the First Amendment. I believe the First Amendment contains the most important American values. Without it, we wouldn’t have protection over our basic freedoms. It is vital to be able to have the freedom of speech, freedom of press and the freedom of religion. Without these, America wouldn’t be the accepting and diverse nation that it is. I wouldn’t keep the Second Amendment because I feel like it doesn’t apply to me, as I have no reason to carry a weapon with me. I understand it allows people to feel a sense of security but I feel like it causes more controversy more than good. I wouldn’t keep the Third Amendment because I feel it is outdated and not necessary in these modern times where we don’t have this issue anymore. I also feel like the rest of the amendments generally fall under the First Amendment and therefore just seem to restate certain rights. I feel like without the First Amendment, we would not have as successful of a country as we do today. It allows people to voice opinions which enable the best ideas and thoughts to be put into effect. I also feel like the freedom of religion rightfully gives America the title as the melting pot and enables us to be more tolerant of others. I think the First Amendment truly identifies us as a nation.
ReplyDeleteIf I needed to pick just one of the 10 amendments that is the Bill of Rights to keep, I would choose to keep the first amendment. The first amendment provides citizens the rights of freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. Individually, each of these rights is no more important than the next, but together they combine to protect the freedoms that Americans hold most dear. The first freedom mentioned in this amendment is the freedom of religion. This freedom is put above all others because freedom from religious persecution was one of the man reasons that America was populated. Next, the amendment provides the freedoms of speech and press. These are among the most treasured of American freedoms because they allow us to speak our minds no matter what others may think of our opinions. Finally the first amendment provided Americans the right to assemble and petition. Both these freedoms are important to Americans because they grant Americans the right to disagree with the government and gives them the power to change what they disagree with. Individually, each of these freedoms is very important, but together, they become exponentially more important than the other amendments because the first amendment is the only amendment to grant freedoms. The first amendment is needed above all the rest of the amendments, but specifically the third amendment. The third amendment prevents the government from quartering soldiers in citizen’s homes. This amendment is outdated and unnecessary in modern day America. Another semi-outdated amendment is the second amendment. The second amendment allows American citizens the right to bear arms. This amendment is not only of lesser importance than the first, but it should be removed from the constitution because unlike in the times when the constitution was written, the possession of guns is no longer necessary to life. In modern times, American citizens do not need to own guns to live and in fact, guns have become a detriment to American life because there are too many gun related accidents.
ReplyDeleteIf i had to choose to keep one amendment i would choose the first one. I would keep this one because it is the most well known and it is used the most everyday by everybody. One example is what Martin Luther King Jr. he spoke out on the civil rights movement and he wanted everyone to be equal no matter what race or color you are. After he spoke out about the civil rights the newspaper explained how his actions were unacceptable and were not right. Also Rosa Parks boycotted on a bus and did not give up her seat to a white man because she had the right to peaceably assemble. That is for her individual rights. If people didn’t have the right to speak out or have individual rights everybody would beat everyone up because they would all think everyone who speaks out is wrong. People also would have the right to belive in whatever thet want, that’s the freedom of religion. People can and would belive anything they want to beilive and not just in one thing only. In our society you don’t have to confom and follow everybody else because you have a mind of your own. And in the last part the establishment of a religion is for that one religion is better than another and does not prohibit the government's entry into religious domain to make accommodations in order to achieve the purposes of the Free Exercise Clause. This amendement is best to keep over the others because people use this in everyday life and to make life better as it goes on.
ReplyDeleteIf the United States government could only keep one Amendment of the Bill of Rights, I believe that amendment should be the first. This amendment protects the freedom of speech, press, religion, the right to assemble, and the right to petition government. All of the statements in this amendment are exactly what the government of the United States was originally founded on and so it would make the most sense to preserve these rights. The second Amendment gives citizens the right to bear arms which is important when it comes to times of war but is not immediately important for every-day life and leaves much room for misinterpretation. Granted the amendment allows firearms for safety and during a national emergency but many Americans still misinterpret this for the United States Government allowing violence. The Fourth Amendment is also important because it protects the property of American citizens from being searched or confiscated without reasonable suspicion and a warrant. Another important part of the Bill of Rights is the Fifth Amendment which protects citizens from having to testify against themselves. These and many other Amendments are greatly important and in no way would I suggest ever getting rid of them but if I had to keep just one then the First Amendment is a no-brainer choice. Our government was founded on the freedoms of which this amendment protects and we would no longer be the United States of America if we didn’t preserve these freedoms. Also, if we didn’t have these simple freedoms then many of the other Amendments would be deemed ineffective.
ReplyDeleteI think that the most important amendment is the first amendment. It protects our freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of press, our right to peaceably assemble, and out right to petition against things. These things are very important to me. I think that if they took away that first amendment, the United States would lose its identity. The most significant thing about our country is that we have the freedom to choose what we think or believe or do within reason and that we can change the things that we don’t like by petition. We founded this county in order to have a country that was free. If they took it away it would not be the same country. Also, we live by that first amendment every day. Most of the other amendments have to do with the court of law or with criminals, other than the one about us having the right to own a gun, which is also important, but if they took the gun right away, our country would probably stay about the same, except getting things like venison and bear would be really hard. Also, if they took away all the other rights, it would still stay about the same for me. I’ve never been searched, we are not fighting a war here, so there is no reason for me to let a soldier randomly stay in my house, and I’ve never been arrested so most of the others do not apply either. 9 has to do with not taking away the constitutional rights, so that would be infringed if all other amendments were taken away, so it doesn’t really matter. And the tenth is just that laws not in the constitution are up to the people. That just doesn’t matter to me. That’s why I think the first is the most important.
ReplyDeleteIf i had to choose just one of the many great amendments to choose from, i would most defintely choose the 8th amnedment. I feel it is the most important to me personally because I feel that it is important that people are not subjected to really unfair punishments. The punishment that someone recieves should fit the crime that they commited, and if the crimes could be unusual then it could be like if someone jay-walked you might have to walk around for three miles with a donkey on your back, and if you do something petty you might have to post a bail that is out of this world and you would never be bale to pay unless you wer friends with bill gates. So I feel that it is most important because it makes sure that we as americans get fair punishments for either crimes that we accidently commit, or just petty offenses.
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