OPPapers.com

The Bill Of Rights

How many rights do you have? You should
check, because it might not be as many today as it was a
few years ago, or even a few months ago. Some people I
talk to are not concerned that police will execute a search
warrant without knocking or that they set up roadblocks and
stop and interrogate innocent citizens. They do not regard
these as great infringements on their rights. But when you put
current events together, there is information that may be
surprising to people who have not yet been concerned: The
amount of the Bill of Rights that is under attack is alarming.
Let's take a look at the Bill of Rights and see which aspects
are being pushed on or threatened. The point here is not the
degree of each attack or its rightness or wrongness, but the
sheer number of rights that are under attack. Amendment I
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. ESTABLISHING
RELIGION: While campaigning for his first term, George
Bush said "I don't know that atheists should be considered
as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots." Bush has
not retracted, commented on, or clarified this statement, in
spite of requests to do so. According to Bush, this is one
nation under God. And apparently if you are not within
Bush's religious beliefs, you are not a citizen. Federal, state,
and local governments also promote a particular religion (or,
occasionally, religions) by spending public money on
religious displays. FREE EXERCISE OF RELIGION:
Robert Newmeyer and Glenn Braunstein were jailed in 1988
for refusing to stand in respect for a judge. Braunstein says
the tradition of rising in court started decades ago when
judges entered carrying Bibles. Since judges no longer carry
Bibles, Braunstein says there is no reason to...