Whats the point of the Constitution?

Answer 1

quit cutting class and you would know! =P

then again, i don't know either. i just know it brought about 2 things i care for:

2nd amendment - the right for me to own a gun
5th amendment - i ain't saying sh-t that might incriminate me!
although my emails to you might already do that itself =P

Answer 2

Actually, this is a very good question. It is one that our Founders spent much time pondering. Here is what it is about. The USA is not the first democratic country in the word. There were others before but all failed. Our Founders realized that any "true democracy" was fatally flawed due to something they described as the "tyranny of the majority". Any system of self-determining government by the governed, would require protection of the rights of the minority. So, they decided to establish a system that is not a true democracy but a democratically elected representative republic. Before the Constitution, there were actually 13 separate States or in essence, 13 separate small countries. They were only loosely associated by the "Articles of Confederation" a weak and truly flawed document. Thus, once they the States decided to establish a Federal Government, they decided to scrap the Articles of Confederation and draw up a Constitution. This task was given to representatives from the 13 States at the Constitutional Convention. Remember, at the time, the highest public elected officials were the Governors of the States. The States had a great suspicion of any Centralized Government usurping their authority. So, the real purpose of the Constitution is not to describe or grant anyone rights, but rather to define the duties of a Federal Government and specifically what the limits of that Government would be. I don't see why you consider "flexibility" in governance to be beneficial. What makes societies function, what makes people willing to make investments in time and money is certainty. Would you be willing play a poker game if you were not sure that the rules were going to change after the game started? The United States Constitution is designed to be the perfect document. It limits only the Federal Government by defining what it can do and stating that if it does not say they can do it, they cannot do it. It also clearly reserves all powers not granted to the Federal Government to the States and People respectively. It is also equipped with a mechanism for amendment. If something should be included that was not, the States need only follow the prescribed requirements and amend it. But that is not to be done lightly or frivolously. Remember, the Constitution is the Law of the Land. Any change must be clearly defined and specifically ratified by a Super Majority of Representatives in both Washington and the individual States and People. If enough people agree, it will become part of the Constitution. Democracy can be a very scary word. Without the accompanying protection for the minority, it could be hell. Here is an analogy. You are having dinner in a fine restaurant. Suddenly, one person stands up and states that you should have to pay for everyone else dinner. A show of hands shows a clear majority decided you should pay. That is pure democracy. Now in our American model, no such vote could be taken unless everyone involved first agreed to abide by the outcome. So, yeah, unbridled democracy can be scary. *

Answer 3

Throughout the centuries, govenments have taken many forms, but most were kingdoms, dictatorships, oligarchies, and there were even some attempts at democracy. Even city republics like Rome and Venice had a ruling class or caste that made and enforced the rules that the commoners had to obey, with little or no input as to how those laws were created or enforced.

The US Constitution sets up a real reprsentative Federal Republic that recognizes NO rule by a hereditary king, clan, oligopolic monopoly, by inherited wealth or station, or by one ruling clan. It legitimizes our goverment as a constitutional republic, defines and attempts to balance the powers of the Central government with those of the collective political entities within it (States), separate the Federal government itself into three Branches to balance each other -- the legislative, judicial, and executive functions. When one branch of government attempts to gain total power, the other branches have methods called "Checks and Balances" to keep the infighting to a dull roar, instead of having a Civil War every time a Chief Executive (President) decides he's accumulated enough power to become a King.

Unlike phony "constitutions" of the past that were scraps of paper given by monarchs so that the little people could play at government, the U.S. Constitution is the instrument that actually legitimizes, and somewhat regulates what each branch can do LEGITIMATELY! If the President gets a wild hair up his rear and declares that the Constitution is null and void, then tries to dismiss Congress, or the Supreme Court, then he has no legitimate authority at all! ** S/He is null and void! ** Military officers swear an Oath to Defend the Constitution, NOT to obey the President in all things!!!

The Congress sets up the lower courts, the Supreme Court declares rogue laws created by the Congress and signed by the Executive to be Unconstitutional - UNENFORCEABLE! Each Branch has Constitutional authority it can use to block the others.

The States decided that that alone wasn't enough - that the People themselves could be severely oppressed without some guarantees that past abuses by the King of England wouldn't repeat themselves in a domestic version. So, the Constitution was made amendable, and the first 10 Amendments set down the minimum demands for a free people, and further amendments change how the Federal Government operates....

Answer 4

America's BRILLIANT Founding Fathers gave us a Constitution and a Bill of Rights that carefully and effectively places a SEVERE limitation on the POWER of the central government.
Why did they do that?
The knew that power corrupts. The more power a group or individual has the more corrupt he becomes. Total power begets total corruption.
The founding Fathers designed a framework for a government that has the ability to organize, direct, and keep life civil, but gave the POWER to the citizen. They spread the power as far and wide as possible so no single group could become dominant.
IMMEDIATELY after that, corrupt politicians and lawyers with specious arguments went to work trying to convince the citizens to give their power back to a potentially tyrannical centralized government.
So far, they have had WAY too much success.
Americans have forgotten the lessons their founders learned from simple observation of life around the world.
Americans have also forgotten that with freedom comes RESPONSIBILITY.
Without exercising responsibility, freedom itself becomes a corrupting factor. Then the Government has a good excuse to fill the gap by taking away freedom to re-establish civility.
The more power they have, the more corrupt they will become.
History PROVES that fact.
Money is power. NEVER vote for anyone who wants to raise your taxes. That person is a tyrant.

Answer 5

If there was no Constitution the government would have run out of things to change a long time ago. It really isn't worth much anymore. It was worth a lot when a majority believed in what it read.

Answer 6

The Constitution defines what America is. It, for all intents and purposes, is America.

That's why soldiers and politicians pledge to protect and defend the Constitution, not the land, not the people and not the government.

Answer 7

It's a charter of government designed to ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty to all Americans and their posterity.

Answer 8

It is the foundation, and guidelines for U.S. Democracy and the Country as we know it. It outlines the Ideas of our founding fathers in breaking from England and Why we were doing it. (We were basically committing treason against the British Government and we wanted it documented why we felt we were justified in doing so. It also Puts in writing the basic rights afforded to citizens of this newly formed country.

Answer 9

It sets the foundations and principles of the country. It sets general laws so that the country can derive solutions to the problems without deviating from teh foundation of the nation and it aportions powers to respective groups

Answer 10

It provides freedom for the majority while protecting the rights of minorities.