Wednesday, July 27, 2022

The Constitution of the United States, updated and revised

 The Constitution of the United States of America

(Revised 2024)


We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, 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, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.




Article I


Section 1: Congress


All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.



Section 2: The House of Representatives


The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every fourth Year by the People of all States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.  Each person serving in the House shall be limited to only two terms.  No person who has held the office of Representative, to which some other person was elected, for more than two years of a term shall be elected to that office of Representative more than once.  There will be a ten year limit for any person serving in the House.


No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he or she shall be chosen.


Representatives shall be apportioned among all the States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers.  The actual Enumeration shall be made within every Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.  The number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative. 


In the alignment of Congressional Districts, which may occur due to the change in population according to the Census, the alignment will be completed through an independent non-partisan districting commission with no members of the House or Senate, or their associates, involved.  The primary standard will be straight lines and right angles as each state will allow, with an equal population in each district, without regard to race, creed, color, national origin, or party affiliation.  Gerrymandering, meaning Congressional districts being drawn according to the resident’s political beliefs, race, creed, color, or religion, will not be permitted.


When vacancies occur in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.


The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other Officers;  and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.



Section 3:  The Senate


The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures.


The number of terms each Senator can serve will be limited to two terms.  No person who has held the office of Senator, to which some other person was elected for more more than three years of a term, shall be elected to that office more than once.  There will be a 15 year limit to which a Senator will be able to serve in that office.


When vacancies happen in the representation of any State in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, That the legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.


No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he or she shall be chosen.


The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided.


The Senate shall choose their other Officers, and also a President pro tempore, in the Absence of the Vice President, or when he/she shall exercise the Office of President of the United States.


The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.


Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.



Section 4: Elections


The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of choosing Senators.


No person under criminal investigation or prosecution shall be qualified to run for either Senator or Representative, nor shall any person shall be a candidate to avoid criminal investigation or prosecution.  Any Senator or Representative found guilty of a crime shall be removed from office, with loss of pension and all benefits for life, upon sentencing.  No ex-official serving time in prison for past crimes shall be qualified to be a candidate for Senator or Representative, and shall remain disqualified for such offices for life.


The terms of Senators and Representatives shall end at noon on the 3d day of January; and the terms of their successors shall then begin.


The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.



Section 5: Powers and Duties of Congress


Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business; but a smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and under such Penalties as each House may provide.


Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behavior, and with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member.


Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the Journal.


Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.


Section 6: Rights and Disabilities of Members


The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States.They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.


No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he/she was elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time; and no Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a Member of either House during his or her Continuance in Office.


No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of representatives shall have intervened.


Section 7: Legislative Process


All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with Amendments as on other Bills.


Any and every Bill that reaches the Senate must immediate pass through the Senate for approval or disapproval.  It may not be cast aside to be neglected or ignored by the President pro tempore or any other official. 

Any legal proceeding such as an impeachment must immediately pass and may not be delayed for any reason. 

Neither the President pro tempore nor any other member of the Senate or the House may adjourn during times of impeachment for the benefit of the defendant being tried.


Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President of the United States; If he/she approves, he/she shall sign it, but if not, he/she shall return it, with his or her Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by Yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If any Bill shall not be returned by the President within ten Working Days after it shall have been presented to him or her, the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he/she had signed it, unless the Congress by their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case it shall not be a Law.

Every Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the Concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a question of Adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the United States; and before the Same shall take Effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him or her, shall be passed by two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the Rules and Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill.


Any bill appropriating revenue for any cause, project, or public service shall go through the House and the Senate in its original form.  No additions, or earmarks may be attached to this bill.  Should any Senator or Representative request funds for any other cause, project, or service, it must be submitted separately and independently of any other bill passing through Congress.


Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators or Representatives, and Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States.



Section 8: Powers of Congress


The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;


To lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.


To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;


To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States;


To establish a uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;


To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;


To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;


To establish Post Offices and post Roads;


To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;


To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;


To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offenses against the Law of Nations;


To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;


To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;


To provide and maintain a Navy, a Coast Guard, an Air Force, and a Space Force;


To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land, air, naval and space Forces;


To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;


To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;


To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards and other needful Buildings;-And


To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.



Section 9: Powers Denied Congress


The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.


No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.


No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State.


No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one State over those of another: nor shall Vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in another.


No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.


No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any Monarch or foreign State.


No law shall be made 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.


No filibusters of any kind, for any reason are permitted.


Neither Senators nor Representatives may become lobbyists for ANY entity during or after their terms of office.


No contributions of any kind for any reason from major corporations, or any other entity with the expectation of “controlling” any senator or representative, for the purpose of gifts, special favors, or money from the federal budget that would benefit these entities shall be permitted.  


No involvement in any commission to form a Congressional district for the benefit of any Representative, for any reason.


In any given vote, each vote from any Senator or Representative shall be his or her own, and shall not by force, blackmail, bribery, intimidation, coercion, or any other means made to vote by any other Senator, Representative, or any other entity to vote any other way than what that individual Senator or Representative decides. 

No Senator or Representative shall be threatened by or suffer any retaliation by any other Senator or Representative, or outside entity, should he or she vote against their interests. 

No vote shall be bought by any business interest, party or other entities, and no Senator or Representative shall accept any bribe on how that Senator or Representative shall vote.  

This law shall be strictly enforced by a court of law, and any violation shall be subject to a fine, jail sentence, and removal from office.


No Senator or Representative or any other government official, may use his or her office for any form of personal gain, nor can he or she use their office to profit from any business interest, or any other entity or individual regardless of their previous involvement in that business or entity or of their past position in it.  No Senator or Representative or any other government official shall accept any salary or gift from any other business or individual, public or private, except that of the office he or she presently occupies.  This law shall be strictly enforced by a court of law, and any violation shall be subject to a fine, jail sentence, and removal from office.


No Senator or Representative shall deny a Congressional hearing for any candidate nominated for Supreme Court, Cabinet member, or any other Federal Office by the President of the United States.



Section 10: Powers Denied to the States


No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility.


No State shall, without the Consent of the Congress, lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing it's inspection Laws: and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the Revision and Control of the Congress.



No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.




Article II


Section 1


The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.


He or She shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows:


The qualifications to run for President and Vice-President shall be: a full security clearance, the release of all tax returns, and a full psychiatric and medical evaluation done by non-partisan professionals in their respective fields.

No person under criminal investigation or prosecution shall be qualified to run for either the President or Vice-President. 

Nor shall any person shall be a candidate for President of Vice-President to avoid criminal investigation or prosecution.



The President, and the Vice-President shall be elected on the same ballot by the popular vote, meaning that each citizen of the United States shall have one vote, and shall cast his or her vote for their candidate for President of choice, throughout the United States.  The person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the President.  He or she shall then be sworn in as President on the twentieth day of January following. 


In the event of multiple parties being on the ballot for President, voters will rank one to up to five choices for President, U.S. Senator, and U.S. Representative, in order of the voter’s preference, depending on the number of candidates running for each office.  A candidate who receives a majority of over half the votes of the population in that district, state, or the United States, will be elected.  If no candidate receives a majority of votes of one half or over, the candidate with the fewest first choice votes is defeated.  Then the remaining candidates will receive the next choice votes of voters, whose first choice candidate on that ballot was defeated.  This process continues until one candidate receives a majority of the combined votes.  In a primary election, a voter may only rank candidates within one party.


There will be no voter suppression of any kind.  No denying, hindering, or preventing any U.S. citizen from voting due to threats, intimidation, or lack of accessibility to polls.  All polls shall be placed in individual districts with 3000 people maximum, or in rural areas, every ten square kilometers maximum, with easy transportation provided.  The hours for voting shall serve as a convenience for any and all citizens who vote.


There will be no passing of laws denying any citizen the right to vote who presently holds this right, except as a punishment of a crime thereof.  Should the convicted regain his or her voting rights, they shall not be denied that voter unless another felony is committed.  


The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary and election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay poll tax or other tax.


The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of race, creed, color, national origin, or sex.


The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.


Once a citizen is registered to vote, that name may not be taken off that list unless in the event of death, or when that voter registers in another location.


In a national election, there shall be a centralized and independent election management system, responsible for designing the ballots and tabulating the votes accurately and securely, without interference from any political party or entity.  The designing and printing of ballots shall follow a standard procedure which shall be used in all parts of the United States, where they will then be tabulated, without any confusion of any kind.  

Automatic voter registration shall be available to anyone not yet registered, and can be performed while interacting with the Department of Motor Vehicles or any other federal and state department to which an American citizen conducts business.

If necessary many forms of voter identification shall be available to anyone qualified to vote, including a voter ID one may receive upon registration.

Each polling place reserves the right whether or not to require a voter ID upon voting.


The politicized removal of election officials shall not be permitted. 


Congress may determine the Time of choosing the Electors, and the Day on which they shall give their Votes; which Day shall be the same throughout the United States.

Election Day shall be declared a federal holiday in order to give every qualified voter the chance to vote.

Early voting shall be performed throughout the United States, for the convenience of the voter.  National standards shall be set for early voting, including voting by mail, and there shall be many and easily accessible ballot boxes for every American citizen, regardless of where he or she may reside, to collect these ballots.  Early voting shall commence no later than 15 days before Election Day.


In case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President before the twentieth day of January next following, then the Vice-President shall act as President.— 


But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.


No Person except a natural born Citizen shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.


If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.

The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them.


No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of President more than once.


In case of the removal of the President from office or of his or her death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.


Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.


Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his or her written declaration that he/she is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his or her office, and until he/she transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.

Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his/her office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

     

Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he/she shall resume the powers and duties of his/her office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his/her office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his/her office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his/her office.


If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his/her term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.


The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them.


The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his/her Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them.

No President may use his or her office for any form of personal gain, nor can he or she use their office to profit from any business interest, or any other entity or individual regardless of their previous involvement in that business or entity or of their past position in it.  No President shall accept any salary from any other business or individual, public or private, except that of the office he or she presently occupies.  This law shall be strictly enforced by a court of law, and any violation shall be subject to a fine, jail sentence, and removal from office.



Before he/she enter on the Execution of his Office, he/she shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:--"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."



Section 2


The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he/she may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he/she shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.


He/She shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he/she shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.


The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session.



Section 3


He/She shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he/she shall judge necessary and expedient; he/she may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, he/she may adjourn them to such Time as he/she shall think proper; he/she shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he/she shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United States.



Section 4


The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.



Article III


Section 1


The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behavior, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.


Each Justice of the Supreme Court shall serve a maximum of twelve years.


Upon the death, removal, or expiration of tenure of the Supreme Court Justice, the President shall nominate a candidate for the vacant position, to which hearings shall begin no later than 30 days of the nomination.  This is not to be postponed or cancelled by the President pro tempore nor any other official, under any circumstances.

Upon termination of the hearing, the Senate will decide, by majority vote, whether or not the candidate will hold a seat on the Supreme Court. 



Section 2


The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;--to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls;--to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction;--to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party.


The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State.


In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.


The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment; shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed.



Section 3


Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.


The Congress shall have Power to declare the Punishment of Treason, but no Attainder of Treason shall work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life of the Person attainted.




Article IV


Section 1


Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may, by general Laws, prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof.


Section 2


The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in any and all other States.


A Person charged in any State with Treason, Felony, or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice, and be found in another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority of the State from which he/she fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having Jurisdiction of the Crime.



Section 3


New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.

The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular State.



Section 4


The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.



Article V


The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress.



Article VI


All Debts contracted and Engagements entered into, before the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under this Constitution, as under the Confederation.

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 in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.

The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.


Any Senator or Representative who refuses to exercise their duties according to the Constitution shall be subjected to impeachment and removal from office.

Any Senator or Representative who delays due process of the law for the benefit of their party, the person being tried, and/or for their own personal benefit shall also be subjected to impeachment and removal from office.


Article VII


The Ratification of the Conventions of thirty-four States, shall be sufficient for the Establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying the Same.





First Amendment


Section 1


Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.


Section 2


No person authorized to act as an officer or representative of the United States or its territories, or the American people in the capacity of a government agency, whether federal, state, county or municipal, or within the U.S. military establishment, shall enact any law or policy, or establish any rule restricting or prohibiting a woman’s or pregnant person’s right to an abortion, or to choose natal care in the consultation with the health or medical professionals of their choosing.



Section 3


The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.



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, shall not be infringed.


Third Amendment


No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.


Fourth Amendment


The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.


Fifth Amendment


No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself or herself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.


Sixth Amendment


In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense.


Seventh Amendment


In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed two thousand dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.


Eighth Amendment


Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.



Ninth Amendment


The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.


10th Amendment


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.


11th Amendment


Section 1

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.


Section 2

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.


12th Amendment


Section 1


All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.


Section 2


Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the inhabitants of such State, being eighteen years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such citizens shall bear to the whole number of citizens eighteen years of age in such State.


Section 3


No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.


Section 4


The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States;  but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.


Section 5


The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.


13th Amendment


Section 1


In the event of a war, police action, intervention, should an inhabitant of that country or region render aid of any kind to U.S. forces or agencies, that inhabitant, if desired, along with his or her family, will be granted permanent asylum in the United States for protection from any hostile entity that poses a threat to that individual or his or her family.


Section 2


Any non-citizen of the United States who serves in the armed forces of the United States shall automatically have permanent residency in the United States and shall be eligible for United States citizenship. 


Section 3


The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.


 

14th Amendment


The District of Columbia shall have three Representatives, each to be elected by the people they represent, to serve in the House, with the rights, privileges, and responsibilities equal to that of any other Representative serving in Congress. 


15th Amendment


Section 1


The rights protected by the Constitution of the United States are the rights of natural persons and do not extend to for-profit corporations, limited liability companies, or other private entities established for business purposes or to promote business interests under the laws of any state, the United States, or any foreign state.


Section 2


Such corporate and other private entities established under law are subject to regulation by the people through the legislative process so long as such regulations are consistent with the powers of Congress and the States and do not limit the freedom of the press.


Section 3


Such corporate and other private entities shall be prohibited from making contributions or expenditures in any election of any candidate for public office or the vote upon any ballot measure submitted to the people.



Section 4


Congress and the States shall have the power to regulate and set limits on all election contributions and expenditures, including a candidate’s own spending, and to authorize the establishment of political committees to receive, spend, and publicly disclose the sources of those contributions and expenditures.



16th Amendment


In an election campaign for President, United States Senator, or United States Representative, each candidate, confirmed by their state or federal government, shall each be allotted a fixed and equal amount of money in two installments, the first during the primary and the second after a candidate is nominated for their party, to be used solely for campaign purposes during these respective periods.

This funding shall originate from their state government, if running for Senator or Representative, or the federal government if running for President.  The state and federal government may accept from individuals or business entities in the form of campaign contributions for the election year.  Any individual or entity contributing to this fund shall do so with the knowledge that the donation shall be allotted equally among all candidates, regardless of political affiliation.

No candidate shall receive any donations from any individual, business, corporation, or any other entity.

The acceptance of any campaign contribution in all forms, from any and all entities, are no longer permitted.

Monday, June 6, 2022

We Have to Have Gun Control! By Alastair Browne

As I write this, there has been a shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where a deranged 18 year-old with an AR-15 Assault Rifle went into an elementary school and killed 19 children, ages eight to 10, and two teachers.  The killer was shot to death by police.  

Just the week before that, another hate filled 18 year old white supremacist traveled 200 miles from Conklin to Buffalo, New York.  Driving to a Tops supermarket in a predominantly Black neighborhood, carrying a modified Bushmaster XM-15 semi-automatic rifle, he opens fire in the parking lot and in the supermarket, yelling racial slurs, and kills 11 people, all Black.  This was racially motivated.  The killer is still alive and is waiting to be tried. 

And now, as I write this, another shooting has occurred at a hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  An outpatient shot his doctor, along with another doctor, another patient, and a receptionist, again, using an AR-15 rifle.  The shooter purchased it  a few hours prior to the shooting.

If that isn’t enough, as I am typing out the final draft of this essay, on June 6, 2022, over the weekend, there were two more reported mass shootings, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Chattanooga, Tennessee, with a total of 12 dead, five other mass shootings, and who knows how many unreported ones.   


This isn’t another paper about the “why” or “what made the killer do such a thing,”  or even the mistakes the police made, and there were many, especially in Texas.  

We’ve all been over this time and time again.  

There are many killers from many categories of people:  those being under the influence of drugs, mainly street drugs, those who are ostracized, life-failing types who could not hold down jobs, flunk out of school, fail at sports, fail at romance, and people in hate groups targeting certain ethnic groups, as well as the mentally deranged.  Hate does kill!

All this has to be dealt with, and in the category of Mental Health, treatment must be expanded, and financed.  Extremist hate groups also have to be dealt with, but I don’t know how, and that is not the main point of this essay, but it does bear mentioning. 


All I can say about all this is that it happened before and it will happen again, especially in the United States.  This is what American society has become, a gun crazed society.  Strange that this rare happens in other free societies (war zones excluded), just in the U.S.


No, here I’ll talk about the bills that have been passed on gun control in Congress, and why they never pass.  This leaves us with no new gun laws, especially with assault rifles and automatic weapons, that continue to fall into the hands of hate-filled and mentally deranged people, and racists, and once again, a shooting occurs, killing masses of people, and again, nothing ever gets done.

Why?  It is the NRA (National Rifle Association) and the politicians they support.  The NRA pays them off in the form of endorsing them when their re-election comes up.  This is especially true with Republican politicians.  The NRA contributes literally millions of dollars to endorse these candidates, and in return,  they vote against any bill restricting the sale of guns, no matter what kind, to anyone, no matter who they are.  The gun lobby then continues to make millions of dollars.  The bottom line is MONEY!


The politicians that vote against these bills advocating guns always have excuses.  Among them are: 

“Passing background checks on individuals won’t do any good.”

“Restricting gun use won’t help.”

“Gun laws won’t help.” 

“Guns are not the problem.  People are the problem.”

“Guns don’t kill people.  People kill people,” and so on.  We’ve heard it all, and it’s all nonsense.


There have been cases where gun laws do work.  In 1974, Massachusetts passed a gun law were any gun an individual owns must be registered in the state  and have a license.  In order to get that license, one must take a course on handling guns, and then storing.  Possessing an unregistered gun resulted in a mandatory one year jail sentence.    Road signs all along the state borderline, from interstate highways to back roads were posted, saying, “Massachusetts state gun law - Mandatory one year jail sentence.”  They also went on an advertising blitz in magazine about it.

The law worked.  Killings went way down.


In 1994, under President Bill Clinton, there was a nation wide ban on nine categories of semi-automatic weapons, including the AK-47.  Killings went way down.  When the ban expired in 2004, Congress refused to renew the ban, so when it expired, mass killings tripled.


To repeat, GUN LAWS WORK!  It is a proven fact!


The motive behind the NRA is the constitutional right of every American to keep and bear arms.  Carrying a gun is a right.  It’s true, it is.

The Second Amendment clearly states:


“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”


This made sense when this amendment was ratified, back in 1791.  America back then was a pre-industrial society, a nation of farmers.

Americans, especially living on farms and the frontier, kept a musket rifle in their homes, back in the corner of their log cabins, to be used only when a threatening force such as invaders, as in the War of 1812, Indians, or outlaws invaded their homestead.

In situations like these, especially during the War of 1812, militia’s were formed, everyone banded together with their guns, fought the enemy, whoever they may be, and when the battle was over, everyone then put their guns away and resumed their normal lives.

To paraphrase Conservative Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger, “The purpose of the Second Amendment was to ensure that the state armies (the equivalent to today’s National Guard), meaning the militia, as it was written in 1791, would be maintained for the defense of the state.

“I was not intended to guarantee every citizen to an unfettered right to any kind of weapon he or she desires.”


Since then, the nation, its citizens, and the guns themselves have changed.

Today, there are “militias” nationwide, with collections of literally hundreds of automatic rifles and high-powered assault weapons.  

The are stubbornly against these “Liberals” and “Democrats,” note the quotation marks, in which the militias believe that these left wingers want to take away ALL their guns.

This is not true.

It is true that the anti-gun lobby wants guns controlled, first by making assault weapons, used only in war, not be available to the general public, as are tanks, hand grenades, and other weapons of war.  Tanks are not sold to the public, and neither are cannons, nor certain types of bombs, nor chemical weapons.  Why should machine guns be available?

Of what use are weapons of war to the general public; not for hunting or even protection.

I have been in Maine, where hunting is a way of life.  Hunters, both men and women, teach their children how to hunt.  Guns, mostly hunting rifles, are handled in a professional manner.  After a day of hunting, the rifles are locked into a case.  

Children handle these guns only under adult supervision.  I have talked to these hunters, so I know.


I can also understand having a gun for protection against intruders.  When someone breaks into someone’s home, threatening that person and their family, it would be good to grab a hold of a gun and fend off the intruder or intruders, and if necessary, kill them.  In this case, one would have to have a gun license, and a permit, with instructions on how to use that gun.

Rhode Island, for example, do require gun permits.


Gun control advocates only want each gun owned by anyone to be registered and the gun owners licensed, like one needs a license to drive a vehicle.

We do need a waiting period before one is able to buy a gun, to investigate his or her background to search for any signs of instability, before deciding to sell the guns.  Any signs of mental illness, or being in hate groups of similar groups, would not permit that individual to buy a gun, and my gun dealer caught doing so would risk a stiff fine and a jail sentence.

We also cannot permit assault weapons to be sold to the general public, for risk of the user turning on the general public, as it is happening now.

Assault weapons are to be used in war, and war only.  They are not needed for hunting and they are not needed to protect against intruders.  Using an assault rifle in this situation may kill the intruders, but there is also a chance of killing one’s own family.

Usually, in homes, the gun owner carelessly leaves a gun lying around, and someone else, usually a child, picks it up, and pulls the trigger, sometimes killing another member of the family, and the cry is always, “I didn’t know the gun was loaded.”

Any owner of any type of gun must always learn how to use it, and store it safely away from children.


I favor the Second Amendment of the Constitution, but I also favor gun control.  Guns have changed, greatly, since the 18th century, and laws to protect the general public must change along with them.  What happened at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas; Tops Supermarket in Buffalo, New York; and at the Natalie Medical Building in Tulsa, Oklahoma were not the first such incidents, nor will they be the last.

Mass shooting occurred for over 25 years, and most of them never made national headlines, and they have been happening in schools, churches, supermarkets, restaurants, and public gatherings, including political rallies and rock concerts.


When a mass shooting occurs, be it killing young children or a congregation in church, bills on gun control are proposed in Congress.

Here are a few, listed in The New York Times, in an article titled “Bills Come, and Then Quietly Go (May 26, 2022;  p. A13); taken in context.  Some sections are copied word for word:


On December 14, 2012, a gunman killed 20 six and seven year-old children, and six teachers.

This was a Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.

Senator Joe Manchin III and Senator Patrick J. Toomey proposed a bill to strengthen criminal background checks on gun buyers.  Democrats expanded the measure to include expanded background checks, an assault weapons ban, and a limit on the size of gun magazines one can buy.

This bill had bi-partisan support and chances looked good that it would pass, but talks stretched on for months, and the NRA stepped in, charging that it would create a national gun registry, even though the bill outlawed a creation of one.

The Senate voted 54-46, in favor, but six votes short of the required 60 votes for the bill to pass.  Five Democrats joined the Republican majority in opposing it.

It must be noted here that many of these Senators are supported by the NRA.


Here are some other examples:


On June 17, 2015, a white gunman killed nine Black people during a Bible study at the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina.

Democrats proposed closing the “Charleston Loophole” allowing the dealer to immediately sell the gun to the buyer if the background check takes longer than three business days.

The closing of the loophole would be that the buyer would have to wait until the check was completed, regardless of how long it would take.

However, the Republicans controlled both chambers of state Congress in South Carolina, so no hearing or vote was ever held.

The bill was dead on arrival.


On February 14, 2018, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Florida, a former student killed 14 students and three adults.

Senator Marco Rubio introduced a “Red Flag Bill” seeking to give law enforcement the ability to restrict gun access to unstable and potentially violent people.

Here, the students formed protests that gained national attention, and many were interviewed on talk shows.  

With Republican control of Congress, the bill made little headway.  Mr. Rubio introduced the bill two more times, but never received a floor vote.


These are just three of the most infamous mass shootings, and the reactions by Congress.  Many others occurred, many bills were passed after each one, but either the bills never received a floor vote or they were defeated.


There was one exception to all this, and that was at Sutherland Springs, Texas, at the First Baptist Church.  There, a gunman opened fire in the congregation, killing 26 people.  The gunman was able to purchase his weapon despite a domestic violence conviction.

U.S. Congress proposed the Fix NICS Act, a rare, bipartisan piece of legislation backed by the NRA, making modest (emphasis mine) improvements to the background checks system, requiring states and federal agencies to do a better job reporting legal and mental health records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

The measure, which gun safety advocates describe as important but extremely modest, passed as part of a giant 2018 catchall spending bill.

The bill passed the House by a vote of 256 to 167 and the Senate by 65 to 32.

President Trump signed it into law.

It was better than nothing, but only slightly.  These laws were already in effect, this bill just “improved” them by strengthen what they already had.


Other shootings occurred, more innocent people were killed, more bills were proposed, and they all went nowhere.

The excuse is always the same.

“This isn’t a good time to discuss gun control laws.”  

This is coming from the NRA.  To them, there is never a good time to discuss gun control, and when a bill is proposed, they vote it down, so nothing ever gets done.


Will anything get done now, after the latest (so far) school shooting in Texas?  Probably not.

The weekend after the shooting, the NRA held a convention in Houston, Texas, with guest politicians such as Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, and Governor Abbott of Texas.  The irony is that the convention was held in the same state 300 miles from the shooting.


Here is a list of gun reform proposals that should/must be passed into law:

Ban ALL assault weapons.  They are military weapons only, and they are to remain in the hands of the military.  Illegal possession of any assault weapon will result in a stiff and mandatory jail sentence.

Machine guns has been federally regulated for 90 years, and the U.S. is still a free country, and we still have our Second Amendment rights.

Ban the sale of high capacity gun magazines.


It must be noted here that the Second Amendment in NOT absolute, nor unlimited.  It never has been.


All legal guns must be registered and each owner must have a license to use one.  This is just common sense for a responsible gun owner.

Once a person owns a gun, they are totally responsible for it.  It that gun falls into the hands of a killer or any type of criminal, that owner must account for it.

Any individual or gun supplier that provides weapons to criminals and others unfit to use them shall be subjects to stiff penalties, including fines and mandatory jail sentences.


Before anyone buys a gun, there must be a strong background check, with no loopholes, exceptions, or favors.  Any signs of instability or any history or presently being a member of an extremist hate group shall be denied.  Any felon, fugitive, and an individual under a restraining order shall be denied.

Red Flag laws are required.  A parent, teacher, or counselor can notify the law and courts is the child is exhibiting violent tendencies, including suicide.

Also, remove guns from people in crisis.


Safe gun storage laws are required.  People who fail to secure guns from children and criminals shall be subjected to punishment by stiff fines and/or jail sentence.


Raise the legal age of buying a gun to 21.


Mental health resources must be available to gun sellers and investigators.


Gun manufacturers will have no immunity in the event that one of their guns be used in a mass shooting.  Gun manufacturers will be subjected to lawsuits should one occur.


All guns, whether purchased in gun shops or on the internet, or any other source, shall be held to the same laws, and each individual wanting to buy a gun shall be subject to the background checks previously mentioned.  Any gun to be given to another person must register the transfer to the courts, as one registers an automobile when it is sold.


Once a gun is manufactured, it shall have a serial number.

Ban ghost guns;  that is, any gun that does not have a serial number that can’t be traced.


Initiate gun buyback programs.  They do work!


The above mentioned proposals will not be popular with the NRA.


Even if these laws are passed, one single package of gun laws will not solve the problem.  This is what the Republican Party and the NRA are counting on to continue to vote against them.  There will be potential mass murderers who will find a loophole and take advantage of it, so there will be more killings.  It will be less then before, but they will still occur.  

Pass gun control laws to eradicate the plague of killings will have to be an ongoing thing, a matter of trial and error.  The way to deal with this is that when another does occur, examine the way it happened and take the necessary precautions on how to prevent it from happening again, and they may range from more security to passing more gun control laws.  

The killings will decrease, but it will take a while, and the passing of laws before we can perfect the prevention of mass killings completely.  This will take years, but it is possible.


All this is NOT a violation of the Second Amendment.  The right to keep and bear arms needs to apply to those who have the knowledge and responsibility of handling them.  It does not mean one has the right to keep, to quote the military, “weapons of mass destruction,” and that is exactly what assault rifles are.


The NRA will no doubt object to this because this will result in them losing both their wealth and power.  The loss will be in the millions of dollars.

Politicians who depend on the NRA for support, and being re-elected time and time again will lose a valuable source of income.

This is WHY nothing ever gets done after a massacre.  Any politician support by the NRA has a chance of losing money and their office.  Instead, they cry crocodile tears, extend their “thoughts and prayers,” and then comes up with an excuse on why they can’t support any bills proposing new gun control laws.  They simply don’t want to lose their money or their livelihood.


There were 45,222 gun deaths in the United States in 2020.  More children are killed by guns than by any other cause.  More children are killed by guns than American soldiers in recent wars.  This means nothing to the NRA, or their supporters.


The killer at Robb Elementary School purchased two assault rifles on his 18th birthday, days before he committed this atrocity.


Last, notice that the rest of the world has guns, but not as many gun deaths (except in war zones, but that is a different story).

Why is that?

The U.S. is the only country in the world where the number of guns owned by civilians is greater than the entire population of that country.

There are 120 guns for every 100 Americans, according to the Switzerland based Small Arms survey.


First, this is how Canada requires each individual on purchasing a firearm (from CNN).

Obtain a Firearm License (Mandatory 28 day waiting period).

Submit a photo and signature of photo guarantor.

Complete a Multi-day Gun Safety Course and pass written and practical tests.

Complete background check that considers criminal record, mental health history, domestic violence history, and whether applicant poses risk of harm to anyone.

Provide two references.

Provide signature of conjugal partners with the last two years.


Because of this, mass shootings are an extreme rarity.  One did occur at the University of Toronto in 1989, and another in 2020 in Nova Scotia.  These explain the requirements just listed.

These requirements are stricter than the United States, but looser than most other countries.  

Homicides still occur in Canada.


In response to the mass shooting in Buffalo, Uvalde, and now Tulsa, the Canadian government imposed new regulations requiring owners of military style weapons to turn in these weapons in a new “buy back” program starting in December 2022.

The Canadian government are also considering banning handguns, forbidding their sale, purchase, importation, and transfer from one owner to another.

Owners of 1500 models of semi-automatic weapons, originally to be banned, were allowed to keep them but not use them.  

Prime Minister Trudeau, in 2020, did impose a list of military style rifles to be banned, and the RCMPs (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) continues to evaluate any new rifle that comes on the market to decide whether or not to put it on the banned list.  (Austen, Ian and Vjosa Isai;  “Canada Might Force Buyback of Assault Guns,” The New York Times, May 31, 2022, p. A7.)

Note that there have been gun buybacks in the U.S., and they worked.  Many, in the thousands, have responded to it.


In Britain, in 1987 in what is known as the Hungerford massacre, a 27 year old local man used two semi-automatic rifles and a handgun, which he legally owned, to kill 16 people.  Britain responded by banning all semi-automatic weapons.  There were no more mass shooting until 1997, where a school shooting in Scotland by a local man occurred killing 15 students and a teacher.  Most handguns were then banned.  It worked.  Britain now has one of the lowest gun-related deaths in the developed world.


In Australia, in 1996, in the town of Port Arthur, a gunman killed 35 people.  Sweeping new restrictions were imposed.  Would-be gun buyers now face a 28 day waiting period and a licensing process in which the gun buyer has to give a valid reason why he wants to own a gun.

There was also a mandatory gun buyback program, and from it, one million guns were melted into slag.


Norway has banned semi-automatic weapons and requires mandatory gun safety classes and an involved licensing process.


Germany and New Zealand have both tightened their restrictions after a mass shooting, also.  (Fisher, Max;  “After Mass Shootings, Other Countries Acted to Change Direction;”  The New York Times, May 26, 2022, p. A15.


Even though mass shootings have occurred world-wide, they are an American phenomenon because of their frequency.  

The reason for this is that in other countries, action is taken after one occurs.  Laws are passed restricting the sale of firearms, automatic weapons are outright banned, background checks are intense, the buyer has to obtain a license, and attend classes on how to handle a gun.  As a result, killings go way down, and this includes murders, suicides, and accidental killings.

Problem here in America is that many similar bills have been proposed in Congress, but those who vote against them alway come up with the same excuses and justifications.

“We don’t want to take away the rights of law-abiding citizens.”

“Nothing will change.”

“Background bill seems a little out of place based on what happened in Uvalde.”

“Expanding background checks would not be acceptable for the state of Wyoming.”

“I’m a Second Amendment person, period.”

“Guns are not the problem.  People are the problem.”

“We cannot violate one’s Constitutional rights.”


I am leaving out the names of those who made these quotes.  ALL of these quotes have been disproven, from what I have written in this essay.

The truth is, these politicians receive money from the NRA, and they don’t want this source to end, regardless of how many mass killings there are, regardless of how many people die.

They just don’t care!


Passing strict gun laws, without violating the Second Amendment, can be done.  Also, as previously explained, the Second Amendment isn’t what the NRA or most gun owners think it is.  It doesn’t apply to weapons of war, nor does it apply to those who have the potential to commit mass murder with them.  Many of these people who support the Second Amendment have never even read it.  Yes, this is a proven fact.


In gun control, there is a fine line between having a gun for protection and possessing high powered automatic weapons that could fall in to the hands of potential killers.  We must recognize both sides of the story, and we have to know the difference.


It is all right to keep a gun to protect one’s family or business.  It does not mean risking the lives of the American public, and that is the point of this essay.


Alastair Browne

Saturday, May 14, 2022

BACKLASH By Alastair Browne

Preface:

Note:  The following essay is a continuation of my previous essays:

  1. The Republican Party is the Greatest Threat to American Democracy Today
  2. What are Republicans for?  An Answer and a Rebuttal
  3. The New Era of Prohibition:  A New Abortion Cartel


Many references will be made to these three essays.  Read them first.

You can access them on:  www.foundationandstate.blogspot.com



In my last essay, I have written about the rise, or reemergence, of the criminal element stepping in and acquiring a new market, this time in abortions.  

I have described the consequences of organized crime taking over back alley abortions, of which women with unwanted pregnancies will no doubt go.


Senator Mitch McConnell recently stated that if Roe v. Wade gets overturned by the Court, he will work to have a nationwide ban on abortion, even in cases of rape and incest.


In this case, not only will the criminal element step in, but riots and demonstrations, many times worse than what is happening now (May 2022), and will break out nationwide.  Stricter laws imposing on other people’s rights will be passed.  For example, interracial and same sex marriages will be banned.


It is the thoughtlessness of Republican politicians and conservative judges on the Supreme Court nominated by these politicians that will be the cause of whatever horrific activities will result.


It will not end there, and organized crime will be but one element.  There will be many other adverse reactions from many other bans, of different categories, that will result.

There will no doubt be many more bans on our rights that we as Americans that we have worked decades, even centuries to achieve.  


It is feared that once abortion is outlawed, Radical Neoconservatives will turn to voter suppression, making it difficult for women and minorities to vote.  Other rights will be denied them (note: the Texas legislation wants to make it illegal for women to leave the state.  This is REAL) and both women and minorities will once again be reduced to second class citizens.

Any member of the Republican Party charged with a crime, any crime, will be pardoned.  Investigations into the rioting at the capitol on January 6, 2021 will be terminated, with the guilty parties getting off scot free.

Republicans will attempt to deny any Democrat, along with members of other parties, an office, even if they win it.  They will simply overturn the election and put in any Republican they like.  Laws like this ARE being proposed in Tennessee and other states.

The Republican Party will attempt to become the single ruling party in the U.S., being able to disregard the U.S. Constitution for their own ends, denying anyone, any ethic group, and any and all women their rights.  They will be able to do anything they want to whomever they want.

This Party, at the present moment, are passing laws based on the own religious beliefs, usually centered around evangelical Christians.  The walls between Church and State will come down, propelling the U.S. into a theocracy.

The Constitution will be abolished, and the United States will become a tyranny.

This is not an exaggeration, nor a made up story from a wild imagination.  If you read the newspapers, you will see that we are heading in this direction right now.  


How will the American people react?  Note the title of this essay, BACKLASH, and there WILL be a backlash!


With all these rights taken away from the majority of the American people, rights they have become accustomed to, especially their right to vote, do you think the majority of Americans will tolerate this?

Referring back to Roe v. Wade, which started all this, CNN news polled that 69% of the American people want Roe v. Wade to remain as is, the law of the land.  Only 30% of Americans want it banned, yet the 30% minority seem to want to rule the country, regardless of what everyone else thinks.


Again, how will the American people react?


It will get ugly.  First, rioting will break out, from pro-choice to minorities.  All Americans affected by these new laws will demand their rights to be restored, from protection from domestic violence (we are not doing a good job of this even now, but it will get worse) to police brutality.  There will be protests for gay rights, which will no doubt be taken away because of church doctrine.  The right to same-sex and interracial marriages with be protested.  Everyone will protest for the right to vote in free and fair elections, with easy access to the polls and short waiting times, where every vote counts.


The reason why voter suppression is on the rise is that in 2020, Joe Biden won the presidency over Donald Trump, in a FREE AND FAIR election.  

Donald Trump, being the sore loser and spoiled child that he is, says he was cheated, but only because he lost.  Trump had multiple recounts, but he still lost, and has been screaming about it ever since. 

What’s really amazing is that many Republicans believe him.

So they’re making it so that the Republican will never lose another election, and can overturn any election where they do lose and replace the winning candidate with someone of their own choosing.


This is tyranny, and the American people will not stand for it.


After the riots begin, is will continue to demonstrators picketing at the homes of these officials.  It is happening right now in front of the homes of Supreme Court judges protesting the end of Roe v. Wade, but it will get worse.  Both elected officials and court judges who condone these new and oppressing laws, of all categories, will be targeted in very violent ways.  Their homes will be vandalized and possibly burned down.  

In the extreme, where Americans will be driven, it is possible that many of these officials will be assassinated, killed even in front of their home.

Whole neighborhoods will be targeted and set on fire.


Remember when Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated.  There were riots all over the country.

How about Rodney King, when his police assailants were found not guilty and freed?  There were riots, and looting, all over Los Angeles.

Many African-Americans are being killed by policemen today, the many of these police are getting of scot free; and riots are resulting.


There is the saying, “No Justice, No Peace.”

Injustice breeds anger, and ANY person, no matter who they are, will be angry when they experience it.

I know, I’ve suffered it myself.  So have you, the reader of this essay, I’m sure.

No justice really means, “we don’t care about you!”


The worst thing that can happen is that the U.S. can erupt into a new civil war, with much of the South and Midwest fighting the East and West coasts and the Great Lakes Regions.  These would be Republican fighting Democratic strongholds, respectively.  

What would happen then?  What would the military do?  Whose side would they choose?

What would become of the U.S.?  Would it break apart into two or three separate countries?  Would one of these countries be a theocracy?

Where will be our standing in the world then?  What will happen to the rest of the world?  

Will anybody care?


In my previous essays, along with this one, it all sounds Orwellian, with me preaching impending doom.


I don’t want it to be this way!


The purposes of my writings is to prevent any of this from happening.  Is this possible?  Can we save ourselves?  

The answer, believe it or not, is a resounding YES!


The first thing we need to do is to get rid of Donald Trump and his followers one and for all.  Americans have to realize that Trump and his cronies don’t care about anyone who follows them, at all.  They only care about themselves.  Trump is using them, for his own ends.  They are simply telling them what they want to hear and running with it.  

Second, get rid of the radical Neoconservatives who want to change voting laws and take away ALL your rights just so they can stay in office, and they will lie, cheat, and steal to do this.  

Third, the U.S Constitution must be observed, to the letter.

Officials must not ignore the Constitution if other officials of their own party commit crimes.

Richard Nixon, a Republican, has been forced out of office by Republicans (when Republicans still had morals) as well as Democrats, and rightfully so.  Nixon broke the law and had to be punished.

A sense of decency must be restored.

We must never tolerate a man like Mitch McConnell saying, “I know it’s written in the Constitution, but I don’t care!  Make me!”  This was when he refused to hold hearings for a Supreme Court nominee by President Obama.

Okay, make him!  Try him for treason, both Republicans and Democrats.  This is one attitude that should NEVER be tolerated.

Fourth, go back to working across the aisle.  Once an election has ended and the proper officials have been instated, leave the election behind and work together to govern the country.  Everyone’s input is needed, and the government has no place for hate.


We were like this once, up to very recent times.  We need to go back to this again.  It is possible, but will take a lot of hard work, from everybody.

Friday, May 6, 2022

The New Era of Prohibition: A New Abortion Cartel (or Mafia) By Alastair Browne


This is not a debate on whether or not abortion should be outlawed, nor is this a debate on the moral implications of it.  The genie is out of the bottle, and the medical technology to perform this procedure will continue to exist…forever.

No, this is an essay on what will happen if and when abortion is outlawed, and it looks like 26 states will either outlaw it completely, or ban it after six to 15 weeks of pregnancy, depending on where you live.

Senator Mitch McConnell vowed that if Roe v. Wade is overturned, he will try and have abortion outlawed nationally.

I once asked a young woman, a devout Catholic, how she felt about abortion,  to which she was opposed, but then she stated “…but I don’t think it should be outlawed because they (pregnant women seeking abortions) will go to the back alleys.


There’s the rub.

Whether or not you favor abortion, that is exactly what will happen, and there WILL be back alley abortion providers, just like there are drug dealers now.

Texas has passed abortion laws so strict that they will not only punish those who provide them, but will encourage people to inform on anyone seeking an abortion - and as a result, Texas will become a very violent place, equalling the drug cartels in Mexico.  


Before going any further on this, I would like to give two examples.  

Remember Prohibition back in the 1930s?  They outlawed liquor nationwide, even adding an amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

It didn’t work.  The Mafia stepped in and smuggled liquor in from Canada.  They also sponsored speakeasies, private clubs in cities where one can go, in secret, and drink.  There were busts, but the criminal element fought back.  Al Capone, Mafia kingpin from Chicago, was one such example, killing any cop and informer that got in his way.  (Al Capone was eventually brought down by Eliot Ness on tax evasion charges.)

Eventually, it got to be too much and Prohibition was lifted.


Today’s example is the drug cartel in Mexico.  Drug smuggling rings and rival gangs are striking fear not only in Mexican citizens but also officials.  If one cartel is struck down, another will take its place;  and the drug wars continue.


In Greek mythology, there was a nine headed snake named Hydra, where each head had lethal venom.  If one head was cut off, two more would sprout in its place.

This is the way of the drug cartel, and that’s just how it will be with the new abortion cartel, should it be outlawed.  This is my prediction, and it will apply to any and every state where it is illegal.

First, abortion will no doubt return to the back allies.  This will happen everywhere, no matter how strict or stringent these laws will be.

This will only be the beginning.

Even if there are not enough doctors, there will be plenty of “technicians” professing to use the abortion apparatus to perform the procedure.  Some women will die, but to them, it won’t matter.

There will be raids by law enforcement, and people will go to jail, but this will not stop those in the back alleys.  Like the snake Hydra, more back alley clinics will replace them, and those running them will become a lot smarter.


There is where the criminal element will come in;  a new “Abortion Mafia” or “Abortion Cartel.”

There will be protection rackets.  Even in a state as strict as Texas, police officers and government officials will be paid to look the other way.  Those who resist will be killed.

As for informers, they will be sought out and executed.

This will instill enough fear for people to keep quiet and mind their own business.  People like that will not be harmed.


Does the public want to crack down and “take back their neighborhood?”  This will not be as easy as driving out drug dealers.  They can call the F.B.I., shut down an illegal abortion clinic, but two more will come and take its place.  (This is in comparison to the snake Hydra.)


Would there be big money in abortion if the clients are poor?  Aside from being paid for the procedure, the providers could also use the aborted fetuses, or parts such as stem cells, and sell them to hospitals and research laboratories on the black market.

Abortion pills, where a patient can take during the first 10 weeks of pregnancy and have the fetus aborted, already exist, but they will be the next on the list to be outlawed.  

There will be smuggling rings formed, possibly from states where they are legal, if not from other countries.  Again, it will be like interstate smuggling by criminal gangs, and it will be a lot easier.


You might think that the contents of this essay came from the wild imagination of a child, but this is exactly what will happen should abortion be outlawed.  It will not be a case where “A wrong has been righted and society will be blessed by God.”  Far from it.

These activities will occur in every state that outlaws abortion, no matter how righteous its citizens claim to be.  

There will always be corruption, and it’s happening right now with other outlawed activities.  It will not be any different with abortion.


If all this sounds like a horror story you don’t want to see happen, there is one way to prevent it.

Leave Roe v. Wade alone.  It was passed by the Supreme Court back in 1973, and it has worked ever since.  Leave it be.


I believe it is a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion, and what she does with her body is nobody’s business but her own.  To put it bluntly, mind your own business.


If you are against abortion, don’t have one, but don’t prevent other women from getting one if they so choose.