Constitution Day, 17 Sept 1787

Posted: Monday, September 20, 2010 by Travis Cody in
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Last Friday was Constitution Day, which celebrates the ratification of the governing document of the United States on 17 September 1787.  

Remember School House Rock?  Remember the little song that helped you memorize the preamble to the Constitution?  It helped me memorize the words, but it took a lot longer for me to understand the meaning of those words.

The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America

We the people of the United States, in order to
  • form a more perfect union,
  • establish justice,
  • ensure domestic tranquility,
  • provide for the common defense,
  • promote the general welfare, and
  • secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity,
do ordain and establish this constitution for the United States of America.

That's just the first sentence.  The Constitution goes on to spell out our rights and responsibilities.  It describes the way we elect the people who will represent our voices in the chambers of government.  It establishes what those chambers will be called, how they will be organized, and what the duties of those chambers are.

And because our society grows and evolves over time, our Constitution has been amended 27 times to clarify certain rights, freedoms, and responsibilities.

If you've never read the document, I encourage you to do so.  We should all confirm that what we believe we know about our rights and responsibilities, and the way our government works, is accurate.  You can find it easily on line.  Or you can click here.  These are the contents:


Article I outlines the Legislative Branch
Article II outlines the Presidency
Article III outlines the Judiciary
Article IV deals with States rights
Article V describes the amendment process
Article VI spells out the legal status of the Constitution
Article VII explains ratification of the document
The Bill of Rights includes the first 10 amendments
Amendments 11 through 27

5 comments:

  1. Anonymous says:
    20 September, 2010 03:47

    and an important day... let's celebrate with CAKE!

  1. Akelamalu says:
    20 September, 2010 05:21

    Is Constitution Day a national holiday there?

  1. Noe Noe Girl...A Queen of all Trades. says:
    20 September, 2010 10:39

    Yeah some one else remembered!
    <><

  1. Durward Discussion says:
    20 September, 2010 17:40

    Be interesting to have your take on Bristol's strip tease: From Comcast

    "When ABC’s ‘Dancing With The Stars‘ kicks off its 11th season Monday at 8/7c, not only will we likely have the privilege of watching conservative Sarah Palin squirm in her seat as her teenage daughter writhes onstage, but we can’t wait to see the look on the ex-governor’s face when her darling Bristol sheds some clothes!
    That’s right, folks – Bristol Palin “will rip off some ‘tear-away’ clothes’ while Sarah Palin sits in the audience” during tonight’s premiere, TMZ reports. “The 19-year-old unwed mother will be Cha Cha-ing with partner Mark Ballas to, get this, Three Dog Night’s “Mama Told Me (Not to Come),” adds the gossip site. (There’s a very crass joke we could make with that song title, but we won’t go there.)"

  1. Durward Discussion says:
    20 September, 2010 19:15

    Will depend on you for a full review tomorrow as I'll read it before watching the tape. I'm in Jennifer Grey's corner so be kind as long as you can. :-)

    http://www.imnotobsessed.com/2010/09/20/jennifer-grey-shares-her-reason-for-finally-accepting-spot-on-dancing-with-the-stars/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+imnotobsessed%2Fobsessed+%28I%27m+Not+Obsessed%21%29&utm_content=Twitter

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