536 versus 9

Before a law is passed, it undergoes the scrutiny of 536 people, right? 435 in the House, 100 in the Senate and the President who signs the legislation into law. So why is it that the judgment of the nine individuals on the Supreme Court hold more clout than 536 people? The answer is Marbury v. Madison.

I will admit up front that I am openly skeptical about the ruling of Marbury v. Madison. In other words, I have made a snap judgment that I don't agree with the ruling, but I realize I haven't done much research on the topic and could be swayed by a solid, factually backed argument.

Despite my open-minded approach, I do feel that the decision delivered with Justice Marshall as spokesman was dead wrong. Not only do I think the decision was wrong, but also Thomas Jefferson claimed that if this view of judicial power became accepted, it would be "placing us under the despotism of an oligarchy.

The grand question is whether the judicial branch of our government is to interpret the laws or to actually judge whether the law was legal to pass or not. Yes, I understand the system of checks and balances that exists within our government, but the problem is that if the courts in our country can judge the constitutionality of the laws passed, no one has a say after the ruling of the Supreme Court. Where is the check on that action?

The inherent issue that would chaff the conservative populous is that the judges are in a position to legislate from the bench through their rulings. The classic example currently is that of Roe v. Wade. The laws passed by the states and federal governments are irrelevant now when it comes to abortion because of the Supreme Courts ruling.

The Supreme Court ruled that the laws governing abortion passed in Texas were not in upholding with the constitution. Therefore, the Supreme Court ruled that, up until a certain point in the pregnancy, it was the woman's choice whether to have an abortion or not.

Now in my humble opinion, abortion has nothing to do with the 14th amendment--the foundation for the judgment--and instead everything to do with the 10th amendment. There was no federal law passed regarding abortion previous to this case, and therefore any state that had passed a law should have precedence according to the 10th amendment.

This is an example of how Marbury v. Madison allows the judges to legislate from the bench. In essence, a federal law has now been passed allowing abortion. Whether you are pro-choice or pro-life, the more pending issue is the fact that the Supreme Court can pass a law unchecked by the other branches of government. In other words, the voice of 9 men in black robes supercedes the decision of not only the 536 mentioned previously, but also all state and local governments, officials and laws.

I don't want to be President, I want to be a Supreme Court Justice!

Artisan Landscape Outdoor Living

I know this is a break from the norm, but I am a capitalist and want to mention my website and my design philosophy. Click here to learn more about Outdoor Living Spaces.

The 7 Wonders of the Modern World

My friends, the beautiful concept of capitalism is slowly strangling amidst the silly little quirks of our social environment! Perhaps it is time to embrace the standard of socialism and leave capitalism to that portion of your mind where your dreams of better times and situations reside.

Allow me to explain. When America was founded, the people who had come here were, for the most part, escaping oppression. Each person who came here was taking a huge risk on the future. They came with their knowledge in some trade and the willingness to persevere the most difficult of trials in order to be free. These people put everything on the line for this freedom and it was, at best, a calculated risk, perhaps more like a gamble.

Risk is one thing everyone that came to the colonies shared. I would assume that most were very talented in their trade of choice and very confident in the ability to succeed, given acceptable circumstances. That is were the risk came in to play. There existed an element of uncertainty which required reliance upon Providence to succeed. The farmer might have been very skilled, but would the climate be acceptable for his crops of choice? Would the soil compliment his crops? Would there be enough water for his crops? Regardless of his level of skill as a farmer, God was in control, and nothing the farmer could do would change that truth.

And so they came, and they struggled through the challenges they were faced with. Sometimes heaven smiled down on their endeavors and they had great success. Other times they suffered and lost--lost crops, physical possessions, and lives. But they continued to fight for that freedom they had sought and worked so hard to realize. No wonder they were able to beat the British, against all odds, in the revolution they staged. They craved that freedom and did everything they could for that freedom, and, most importantly, God intervened in their behalf.

So we have a new country, established by people who love freedom and we begin to thrive and prosper. New inventions begin to pop up that make life easier and luxurious. Unfortunately, those innovators can not produce these luxuries by themselves like the farmer, the blacksmith and the cobbler. They need help.

These innovators appeal to others for help and all too soon, the majority of Americans have sold out the God they chose to rely on for the safety and security offered by another man. The people that so loved their freedom pursue employment to avoid the next crop failure. Instead, now they rely on the whims and expertise of men and corporations. Men and corporations driven sometimes by excitement and innovation, and other times by greed, indifference and laziness.

How secure are you really when tomorrow your boss can decide that he wants to sell the business, or down size and head another direction? But the people are now trapped and enslaved because they have no other options. Gone are the skills of their ancestors that allowed them to be free. These have been traded for a brawny back and endurance. And so, as once before with their ancestors that first came to this great country, the masses are stuck as slaves of the economy and the corporations.

However, what marvellous and wonderful things have been produced! The television, the car, the computer! But all on the backs of the masses who rely on men and corporations! The seven wonders of the ancient world were built in like fashion. The children of Israel were so very comfortable working as slaves for the Egyptians. They received food, lived as families, had houses and possessions. Everything but freedom.

And freedom was available. The slaves could save their wages and live in a smaller house and have fewer possessions and work harder for years and save up the money to buy back the freedom of the family, but very few did. Freedom scared them. What would they do? They had no skills to use as a free person. Is it any wonder that no sooner had the children of Israel escaped the bondage of the Egyptians, than they began begging to return to bondage? Is it any wonder that the Israelites were made to wander the wilderness for forty years? Those with memories of Egypt and the cozy life of bondage had to pass on so that the next generation, those who knew nothing but freedom, could inherit the promised land.

And so the great pyramids were established upon the backs of slaves, as were all of the other wonders of the world. The wonders live in the memory of modern day society, not only as edifices celebrating the grandeur of individuals and cultures past, but also in grand chorus to the power of socialism.

Socialism, the economic situation where everything is equal for all people--well at least for those unwilling to take the risk, rely upon God instead of a man or corporation, and become one to whom a wonder honors. And so we stand today, building our modern marvels of skyscrapers, computers and rocket ships, each honoring the Donald Trumps, Bill Gates, and NASAs of our modern society, trapped as slaves of our economy and bosses.

We can not change our whole culture now without spending those forty years in the wilderness, so will you buy your freedom and embrace our socialist regime, or will you bend your back to the whip and trudge along building an edifice to someone else's willingness to take those risks you will not take? All I can say if you choose the latter is learn to get comfortable with your slavery! The rich will get richer because too many people enable them, and they deserve the wealth they achieve because they take the plunge and choose to rely upon God instead of man to work out the unknown variables in life.