Burlington High School
Burlington, Kansas
Teacher: Mrs. Devra Parker
The United States Government and Constitution
Nolan Strawder
12th Grade
Dating back to early organized civilization, people have been governed. Many systems have worked successfully throughout time, but several have also crumbled. In many ways, I have been affected by this country’s rule of the land. I believe that the United States has provided a great system of government, including the making of the Constitution and its policies.
In a centralized government, all of the powers held by the government belong to a single, central agency. It creates local units of government for its own convenience, allowing only certain powers to each local government. The Parliament, or single central government, holds all of the powers. Some local governments exist solely to relieve the Parliament of burdens it could perform only with difficulty and inconvenience. Many world powers, such as Great Britain, have long upheld their traditions by upholding their centralized government.
There are many pros why a strong centralized government can affect the community. A general form of a centralized government is communism. This government has equal control of decision-making power and the power of control of the economy. Along with these, they are in command of social, intellectual and religious life. The main power is evened out between the people and in some cases, communism could be a plus for a society. With a run-down country that needs to become unified, a centralized government can help out.
Along with these goods, there are also cons that go along with obtaining a centralized government. It takes away individual freedom in order to leave the social equality. Taking away choice of religion and other personal rights can displease the population. If the centralized government becomes too strong and over-powering, the community will rise up and consider taking over the rule.
A Government needs to share balances of power throughout the country. By the combined powers of the federal government and each individual state government, the states could adjust their laws accordingly for their citizens, while the federal makes sure that the states follow the general laws set forth by the Constitution. I believe that no part of the government should have direct rule over another. An example of this is the three branches of government that are set up in the United States. Neither of the three has power over the other, and each of them checks and balances the other.
In order for the government to rule the citizens properly, I believe that it needs to recognize the people. The United States has performed well in allowing the citizens their individual freedoms, which include the addition of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution that has given free will while still upholding rule. In the Bill of Rights, people earn the freedom such as choice of religion, right to bear arms and many laws and the benefit of restrictions that involve the judicial system.
Along with individual freedoms, the government needs to provide national and international protection. When a threat becomes present, such as the Taliban in Afghanistan, we need to stop their offensive capabilities in order to protect. Have the President must do all that is necessary in shielding the country from disaster. President Ronald Reagan spent much of his presidency protecting the nation against the Soviet Union during the Cold War. He took initiative to defeat a common enemy and protect this great nation. In order to provide a safeguard in the world, a great military is required. The U.S. government has done a great job in supplying the largest and most powerful Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines in the world.
Along with all of the examples of what a government should do for the people, it needs to provide a strong set of laws for the people. The United State came up with the Constitution which is the longest running Constitution in the world. Many people look at the Constitution in many ways and sometimes try and manipulate it to get their way with the court system. They try to justify their cause be interpreting it in different ways that would give the person a specific advantage. This important document should be interpreted precisely by high officials and needs to hold strong on every case. If an action breaks the laws set forth, the person should be tried and punished accordingly under law.
The great country of the United States has provided me with many fundamental parts of government and a great Constitution. Our forefathers constructed and set forth the laws of the land and established the most powerful country in the world. The backbone of this country should remain the same, with few minor changes accordingly to the present day. The U.S. does a good job pleasing its citizens. I’m glad to be an American.
Answers To Questions Re: The Required Reading
George Will
Q1- State the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and give two reasons it was disregarded in the case of Wickard v. Filburn, 1942.
The Tenth Amendment gives the implied rights of the Constitution to the States and/or the people. In the case, the implied powers went to the Federal Government because the court’s composition changed and the judge decided that the Constitution could be interpreted in many different ways.
Q2- What was the rationale that the Court used in the Filburn case?
They used the thought that even a small and minor economic activity could have a large affect on the interstate commerce, so even if some of the wheat never goes to the market , the production quotas set by the Congress stand strong.
Q3- What has happened in the past nine years to reverse the trend towards decentralizing government in the United States?
The creation of the first microprocessor led to the development of personal computers and many other technologies. The technological age, along with the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the centralization of government that it symbolized, has pushed to reverse the centralization of the government.
Wick Allison
Q4- What evidence does the Wick Allison offer to show that the United States is drifting closer to socialism?
He uses the example of the rent-control laws of New York City to show how America is closer to becoming a socialist country than ever before.
William Peterson
Q5- Use one paragraph to tell us some facts about Ludwig von Mises. Use the internet for research.
Mises was a significant economist that worked throughout his life to influence the Libertarian movement. He devotedly believed that the government should not be powerful. His teachings started in Austria until the Nazi Regime came and then he eventually found himself teaching at New York University.
Q6- Take one paragraph to describe Keynesian Economics. Use the Internet for research.
Keynesian economics is a theory of total spending in the economy and of its effects on output and inflation. The problem is that there is no strong automatic tendency for output and employment to move toward full employment levels. The theory isn’t used very often in present days if any.
Q7- According to Bettina Bien Greaves, what does Mises claim is necessary to reverse the worldwide trend towards larger and more centralized government?
He claims that the government now has the power to change any issue that they believe is going wrong and therefore can control more people, leading to his idea of men becoming more open with ideas to prevent the large governments of the world from gaining total control.
Congressional Quarterly
Q8- Define a “burden Hour.”
A burden hour is the period of time it takes to fill out forms, such as Federal forms, surveys and reports. It also includes the time taken to collect data.
Q9- Graham is a proponent of “risk analysis.” How is risk analysis defined on page 992 of the May, 5 2001 issue of Congressional Quarterly Weekely?
It is described as calculating the likelihood of a hazard against the costs and benefits of preventing it.
Q10- Who was the first president to order federal agencies to weigh potential costs and benefits when writing a rule?
President Jimmy Carter began the Federal agencies which have weighed potential costs and benefits when writing the rules.
CQ Almanac
Q11- How much would compliance with OSHA’s regulations to limit injuries or disabilities from performing repetitive tasks cost according to an estimate by business groups as reported in the 2000 CQ Almanac? What was the response of OSHA and Labor Department officials?
The regulations would set it up so that 27 million workers would have less repetitive motion injuries from such occupations as airport cargo handlers, and textile mill weavers. This regulation would affect 1.6 million employers. They responded to negative feedback by employers adding in that the rule was made to be flexible and was not going to be required by most companies to take any action.
CQ May 19,2001
Q12- On the average, how long does it take to build an airport? A highway?
On average, it takes 15 years to build an airport and 12 years for a highway.
Wall Street Journal June 18, 1993
Q13- Discuss the pros and cons of licensing requirements.
They can be a very good thing in the situations in which they protect customers from under experienced professionals. It could save a life in the case of a doctor being licensed. However, in the case of Monique Landers, the requirements have gone terribly wrong. Monique just wanted to braid hair and make some money on the side, but instead she got in trouble by doing this as a business. How is America going to raise productive youth if they can’t pursue their own business ventures while growing up?