Homeland Security / Constitutional Issues
Civil Liberties: These are fundamental freedoms interpreted by policymakers and courts over the years or assured by the Constitutional Bill of Rights (Pearcy, 2003-2016).
Bill of Rights: This is an official statement of American citizens' fundamental rights, integrated into the U.S. Constitution in the form of ten Amendments, as well as into the constitutions of all states (Bill of rights, n.d.).
Thought Police: This denotes a cluster of individuals holding totalitarian views regarding a particular subject, and who continuously keep an eye on others for noting any deviations from the way of thinking approved (Thought Police, n.d.).
Thought Crime: This refers to a case of controversial or unconventional thinking, which is regarded as socially unacceptable or as a crime (Oxford Dictionaries, 2016).
Big Brother: A 'big brother' is an ever-present, apparently benevolent personage who represents the tyrannical control over the lives of individuals as exerted by a government of an authoritarian nature (Tuna, 2006).
6) DHS: The U.S. homeland security department was a cabinet-level office established in the year 2003 by George Bush's government. One among the costliest and most poorly effected reorganizations in American history, the venture basically wasted several hundred billion dollars of government funds on meaningless, irrelevant government initiatives aimed at rewarding Congressional members who took the President's side (Pares, 2010).
7) Federalist Papers: These were a popular series of a total of 85 essays penned by James Madison, John Jay, and Alexander Hamilton during the latter part of the 1780s, for persuading New York voters to implement the Constitution. These essays are regarded as a timeless defense of America's governance system, in addition to a definitive practical implementation of political doctrines (The Federalist Papers, n.d.).
8) Writ of Habeas Corpus: Literally, the term 'habeas corpus' implies producing the body. Habeas corpus writs represent court orders, to prison wardens (or other authorized individuals) or the prison institutions (or any other agencies) that hold a person in custody, for delivering the incarcerated person to whichever court issues the order. The American (federal) Constitution and a number of state constitutions have provisions for this writ, expressly forbidding governmental authorities against the suspension of writ proceedings, save for in war or other such extraordinary circumstances (Nolo, 2016).
9) The First Red Scare: This represented a time in the early part of last century when the U.S. was plagued by an extensive fear of anarchism and Bolshevism, because of imagined as well as real events. The latter events included the publicly proclaimed objective of a global communist revolution and the 1917-1918 Russian Revolution. At its peak in 1919-20, anxieties regarding the impacts of revolutionary political agitation within U.S. society, together with the alleged growth of anarchism and communism in the U.S. labor movement broadly promoted paranoia in the nation (Wikipedia, 2016).
10) The Smith Act: Earlier termed as the 1940 Alien Registration Act, this federal law enacted in 1940 made advocacy of forceful takeovers of the nation's government or organization or membership in any society or group dedicated to this sort of advocacy of crime (Smith Act, 2015).
Essays:
1) Why is it correct to say the Bill of Rights was the result of political compromise? Be specific.
The U.S. Bill of Rights has grown into a key component of the nation's values through the years. The compromise which led to its creation has also delineated what American citizens would end up cherishing above nearly everything else. Along with the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, this Bill of Rights facilitates a description of the U.S. political system as well as the relationship of the government to citizens.
Federalism constitutes a compromise that intends to do away with the disadvantages linked to both systems. Power within federal systems is divided between state and national governments. The U.S. Constitution has assigned some powers as the central (federal) government's domain, while other powers are reserved exclusively for the states.
One ought to mull over the fact that one doesn't require a passport when traveling from state to state, but surely does require a new driving license. Also to be considered are the matters of why all states have a common currency, but different speed limits, and why citizens are required to pay state as well as federal taxes.
The labyrinth of state and national regulations is a result of federalism -- the Founders' decision to divide power between the federal government and the states. As explained by James Madison in the famous "Federalist Papers," the American government can neither be regarded as entirely federal nor entirely...
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