10th Amendment Video

The video above expresses the 10th Amendment in a different light. It talks about some of the issues that are occurring in reference to the 10th amendment. It starts out with the first issue relevant to the 10th Amendment which the REAL ID act. This act takes power from the states by having control over state issued IDs. "It imposes certain security, authentication, and issuance procedure standards.." Our constitution is slowly becoming less of a power that controls the federal government, and states are usurped of it's constitutional rights to govern within it's respective borders. We are seeing laws implemented by "Big Brother" such as the GIVE Act, the REAL ID Act, and other legislation which undermine not only our state's sovereignty, but our own personal liberties as well.

In the words of a founding father, Alexander Hamilton states the 4 principal reasons why our federal government was formed:

"(1) The common defense (national security); (2) The preservation of public peace, as well against internal convulsions as external attacks; (3) The regulation of commerce with other nations and between states; (4) The superintendent of our intercourse, political and commercial, with foreign countries (foreign affairs)."

I really enjoyed this video because it shed some light on issues that I never was aware of. Videos like this make me want to be more aware of what is going on in our country.

10th Amendment Artwork

"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."

- 10th Amendment of the United States Constitution

What I take from the 10th Amendment is that the powers not temporarily granted to the federal government by the Constitution and/or the Bill of Rights, are the property of individual states within the this nation or, in the case of those powers that were prohibited by the Constitution to the states, those powers were still the property of the people of this nation

The "powers" that this Amendment speaks of deals with things that you can do due to the temporary assignment of your Rights to someone else.

Police powers are one of the more visible powers that everyone has naturally and that have been temporarily assigned to the federal government, state governments, and local governments.

This is because you have the right to protect your own property. If you had to do it yourself, you would have to stand guard 24 hours a day on your property. So, in order to make a living, you wisely decide to temporarily assign the right to protect your property to the local, state, and national governments. They create police departments to do this work. Note also that this does not remove those rights from you. You still have the right to protect your own property, despite your decision to temporarily assign those rights to the government.

All of the Amendments are important but this one is very significant in determining the rights that you have as an individual that are not listed in the Constitution.

This is also a piece of art from the collection I have been using, it simply gets the meaning of the tenth amendment across in a artistic fashion. The artwork says "Amendment X Freedom of State to Determine Rights" with a picture of the flag slightly shifted in the background. This is the last piece of Tony Zupancic's art collection, he just did the Bill of Rights (Amendments one through ten). I liked them so much that I felt the need to make sure that they were published which I did so in this blog.

9th Amendment Video

Simply put, OTHER RIGHTS DO EXIST, THE BILL OF RIGHTS ARE NOT ALL INCLUSIVE. This video done by lawwebtv.com does an awesome job of explaining that clear and thoroughly with a couple of simple lines. This video strays away from the more humorous videos that I usually use but I find this Amendment to be important because most people are confused by it. While watching this video make sure to check the cartoon in the beginning haha. Enjoy.

9th Amendment Artwork

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

-9th Amendment of the United States Constitution

The ninth amendment provides that  the naming of certain rights in the Constitution does not take away from the people rights that are not named. Yet neither the language nor the history of the Ninth Amendment offers any hints as to the nature of the rights it was designed to protect. The standing effect of this is that the Bill of Rights does not out weigh any other laws because it is written.

The above piece of artwork comes from a collection that I have been using by Tony Zupancic. He illustrates the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments, through black and white art. The art that appears above states Right to Life and Liberty. Along with the Constitution, people will still have certain rights that will lead to enforce. freedom and justice.

8th Amendment Video

The following video follows the story of A Day in the Life where the 8th Amendment does not exist. It starts with a police officer who pulls over a speeding civilian. Once the civilian is pulled over and the cop returns to his car, the civilian tries to run away. The next scene is of a chase where the cop is able to stop the civilian and imposes a fine of 30,000 and other ridiculous things. I enjoyed this video because it took the 8th Amendment from a creative perspective. I give props to the creators of it, I knew the 8th Amendment was important but it does a great job at visually showing you how important the Amendment is.

8th Amendment Artwork

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

- 8th Amendment of the Constitution

Bail is the amount of money, property, or bond that a defendant must pledge to the court as security for his or her appearance at trial. When bail is determined the extent of the crime, the weight of the evidence, and the accused ability's to pay a given amount are all things taken into account. In order to make a just bail these things need to be looked over. Excessive fines will not be put on anyone to, they follow the same system of bails. Lastly, torture will not be used as a means of punishment or any other cruel actions. This Amendment means a lot to me because I know that I will have to make a just amount of bail dependent on the crime I commit or even to know that I will not be tortured is good. 

The following artwork is from the artist Tony Zupancic, who has created other art for the Amendments which I have used in my blog. This piece has the phrase, "Amendment VIII Freedom from Unusual Punishment." Behind that phrase is an image of a man with his arms chained up. I enjoy this artwork because it is very simple (black and white), which helps to get the meaning and importance of the Amendment to the audience more easily.

7th Amendment Video

The following video explains the history and meaning of the 7th Amendment. That sounds dull doesn't it? However it isn't because this video explains the history and meaning of the 7th Amendment in ONE MINUTE. Yes that is one minute. This is also a student creation for a Political Science class, specifically Law and Civics. The video starts with the early history of the 7th Amendment and ends with how it was changed to its current states in New York by Judge Williams. Hopefully you will enjoy the humor and personalization of the video of the creator of the video as I did. 

7th Amendment Artwork

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

- 7th Amendment of the United States Constitution

The Seventh Amendment extends the right to a jury trial to federal civil cases such as car accidents, disputes between corporations for breach of contract, or most discrimination or employment disputes. If the damage or dispute amounts over $20, then the case can been taken to court. In civil cases, the person bringing the lawsuit (the plaintiff) seeks money damages or a court order preventing the person being sued (the defendant) from engaging in certain conduct. To win, the plaintiff must prove his or her case by “a preponderance of the evidence,” that is by over fifty percent of the proof.  I think that this Amendment is very important and keeps civil disputes under control, and keeps pitiful disputes (those that do not exceed an amount of $20) out of courts which saves time and money. 

Above is the piece of Artwork I have chosen, I found it to be very witty. It states Amendment VII "Right to Trial by Jury" with a $20 bill in the background. This makes sense because you have a right to trial by jury if the dispute is over money damages that exceed $20.

6th Amendment Video

The following video uses the 6th Amendment is a skit. It was a project done for a American Government class. There is a case, Bico V. Duffy, where Duffy is hit by Bico while he is driving. According to the 6th Amendment the person accused of the crime is able to be tried at court without any delay and an impartial jury. So the two parties of the case, Bico and Duffy go to court. I found the video to be very different and creative. It expressed the aspect of an impartial jury and a speedy trial very well.

6th Amendment Artwork

"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 where in 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."

- 6th Amendment of the United States Constitution

The Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees a criminal defendant a right to an impartial jury of peers, have a speedy public trial, confront witnesses, be informed about pending charges, and be represented by counsel. However, the rights listed are not absolute, which can be a problem and a good thing, depending on the situation. he right to a jury trial isn't guaranteed in all cases, such as for a petty offense punishable by less than six months. Defendants may choose to represent themselves in court, but the court may deny this choice if they consider that the defendant is incompetent to waive the right to counsel. Lastly a counsel, is a public defender, someone hired by the government to represent someone who is unable to find their own lawyer. I find this to be a very important aspect because everyone cannot afford a Lawyer. 

Below I have posted a piece of artwork that represents this Amendment. It states "Public Defender, I AM a Real Lawyer!" I find this this to be true because as a Public Defender you are assigned cases, you don't choose them. Sometimes you have defend ridiculous cases, but you do so as a Public Defender.

Made by Public Defender Wear

Courtesy of CafePress