The Bill
of Rights became a part of the United States Constitution 223 years ago this
month (December 15, 1791). The first 10
amendments were ratified by the original colonies-turned-states with great
debate. Only 17 amendments have been
added since then – and none since 1992.
Oddly, that amendment was submitted by Congress to the states for
ratification in 1789 - before The Bill of Rights – and took over 202 years to
get ratified by enough states, setting a record. The amendment prohibits any law that
increases or decreases the salary of members of Congress from taking effect
until the start of the next set of terms for the House of Representatives.
Over the
years, 33 amendments have been adopted by Congress and sent to the states for
ratification. Only six never made
it. However, over 11,500 proposals to
amend the Constitution have been introduced in Congress since 1789.
It is
quite difficult to get an amendment passed.
First, you need a good idea that will get millions of dollars of
support. Second, you need a good PR
campaign. Gee, it sounds like book
publishing. But what you’ll really need
is this:
A
two-thirds majority of both the Senate and the House of Representatives to pass
it OR two-thirds (34) of the states voting to have a national convention. Once either thing takes place – no easy feat
– you need ¾ of the state legislatures (38) to ratify it OR you must hold state-ratifying conventions in ¾ of the states.
Originally,
17 amendments were approved by the House for The Bill of Rights, but only 12 were approved bythe Senate. Of the dozen, two were not approved by the
states.
Most
people, despite years of American history in school, can’t name most of the
rights listed in The Bill of Rights.
These days the Second Amendment comes up for debate because of the
rampant gun violence plaguing America.
The Third Amendment seems irrelevant – about housing soldiers. The fourth pops up, as it covers unlawful
searches and seizures. The Fifth
Amendment is about double jeopardy and eminent domain. The Sixth covers speedy trials. The Seventh says you have the right to a
trial jury. The Eighth says no to
unusual punishment by the government. The Ninth is never
talked about and the Tenth says the states can take on powers not delegated to
the US by the constitution. But the
biggest amendment – and my favorite – is the First Amendment. Let’s read it together:
“Congress
shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or
the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government
for a redress of grievances.”
Our
prized content, from movies and blogs to newspapers, television and radio, is
protected free speech. So are
books. We all have the right to speak
our views – and many feel we have an obligation to do so.
We must
keep testing the limits of these rights and to push the envelope of our civic
duties. We are to be good citizens of
the world and it begins with the sharing of ideas, news, opinions, and dreams
of all sizes and shapes. Be glad there
are opposing viewpoints and ignorant statements swimming around the Internet
and traditional media. It means the
First Amendment is alive and well.
Happy
Birthday, First Amendment.
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Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog
are his alone and not that of his employer, Media Connect, the nation’s largest
book promoter. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him
at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the
third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog © 2014
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