How important is the US Constitution to you?

[kentuck]

Or perhaps we should ask, how valuable is the US Constitution to you?

Do we take our freedoms for granted?

What responsibility do we have, personally, to protect the Constitution?

Someone once said that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance.

Where are the true patriots?

[Kid Berwyn]

1. Totally.

US Constitution is worth swearing allegiance to, and, if needed, my life and property to support and defend.

Felt that way since age 4.

[Victor_c3]

2. I sort of took an oath to support and defend the thing when I joined the army

At the time I was 17 and the words mostly didn’t mean that much to me, but as I’ve gotten older the oath has meant more and more to me.

I would consider myself to be absolutely patriotic, way more so than the fake patriots on the other side of the political spectrum who wave the flag proudly yet hate everything that makes our country great.

[marie999]

20. I also took the oath and believe it does not end as long as I am alive.

[The Magistrate]

3. Less Than Formerly, Sir

The system it prescribes is not wholly workable. I can't imagine anyone starting from scratch today designing the sort of political structure we have. As recent events have shown, it depends for its function on good will, good sportsmanship, and good sense in both officials and populace. It is, on present lines, incapable of self-defense when threatened by a radical mob led by elected officials.

[harumph]

5. To this I would add

without the willingness by the judiciary to enforce our laws equitably, irrespective of class and influence,
which appears to the situation we're facing, its reach is shown to exceed its grasp in a most embarrassing way.
"We are a government of laws, not men." Sure we are.

[Mister Ed]

8. Seems all laws depend upon the people's willingness to uphold them.

...and without that widespread will, are void and meaningless.

I guess that's what the OP is getting at.

[2naSalit]

4. Extremely.

I have taken the oath to defend it many times in various positions as well as administer the oath to others.

I take my freedoms seriously as some of them only became codified during my lifetime and made a significant difference in my ability to live with less fear and more self-determination.

[AntivaxHunters]

6. I think it should be redone

Let's be honest, the Constitution is severely outdated.
It was written by white landowning men who owned people as property that are complacent in the mass genocide of First Nations people.
They were misogynists' who believed women shouldn't have basic human rights.

"Freedoms & rights" were aimed exclusively at their fellow white men & not as those of us who are POC. Healthcare is a human right. Education is a human right. Living wages are a human right. Shelter (housing) is a human right. And none of that is in there.
I know some will scream "amendments!" but again, let's be honest. it's been roughly 80 years since FDR came out with his 2nd Bill of Rights. And yet here we are. How many millions of died because we don't have the basics of other first world countries.

"Patriotism" is Nationalism. There's absolutely nothing to be proud of anymore when we have over 1 million deaths from Covid, more empty houses than homeless people yet because of Capitalism we can't shelter them, and the highest incarceration rate in the world. There's tribal communities who still don't even have running water. And there's cities like Flint who's water is tainted just like Milwaukee (which nobody is talking about BTW).

Every single founder with a red dot owned slaves. Every one. And we're worshiping a document written by people who racist a-holes.
No.

[Doodley]

12. 100% The constitution is also whatever you want it to be. For many Republicans it's not

about rights, it's about taking rights away.

[Demsrule86]

14. No absolutely not...there are ways to change it and this has been done...but redo it never.

[Emile]

7. Obviously it's very important, that's why I hate Republicans

and their attempts to replace it with fascism.

[Doodley]

9. Having lived in the UK for much of my life, I do not see what rights I have here in USA that I

didn't have in UK that has no constitution. Am I safer? Do I have more freedom? Am I protected better from discrimination? No.

[kentuck]

10. Do you think that people in Russia feel the same way?

Are people mostly the same around the world?

[Doodley]

13. I don't understand your questions. I talked of my experience of living in UK and USA.

[kentuck]

22. It was not a trick question?

I was curious to how you may think the Russians feel about their country?

[Demsrule86]

15. Free speech for one thing.

[Doodley]

17. I had free speech in the UK.

[Demsrule86]

25. No you didn't. People can be punished their speech...it is ultimately Parliament who decides.

in fact, at the moment they are attempting to pass internet laws that will limit free speech in the UK Censorship in the United Kingdom has a history with variously stringent and lax laws in place at different times. Free speech was put into the constitution because of England's various infringements over the centuries.

'British citizens have a negative right to freedom of expression under the common law.[1] In 1998, the United Kingdom incorporated the European Convention into its domestic law under the Human Rights Act. However, there is a broad sweep of exceptions including threatening or abusive words or behaviour intending or likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress or cause a breach of the peace (which has been used to prohibit racist speech targeted at individuals),[2][3][4] sending another any article which is indecent or grossly offensive with an intent to cause distress or anxiety (which has been used to prohibit speech of a racist or anti-religious nature),[5][6][7] incitement,[8] incitement to racial hatred,[9] incitement to religious hatred, incitement to terrorism including encouragement of terrorism and dissemination of terrorist publications,[8][10][11] glorifying terrorism,[12][13] collection or possession of a document or record containing information likely to be of use to a terrorist,[14][15] treason,[16][17][18][19][20] sedition,[17] obscenity,[21] indecency including corruption of public morals and outraging public decency,[22] defamation,[23] prior restraint, restrictions on court reporting including names of victims and evidence and prejudicing or interfering with court proceedings,[24][25] prohibition of post-trial interviews with jurors,[25] time, manner, and place restrictions,[26] harassment, privileged communications, trade secrets, classified material, copyright, patents, military conduct, and limitations on commercial speech such as advertising. even more.'

There is no existing double jeopardy law either. The UK can try you repeatedly until they get the verdict they desire.No country has more protection under the law than we do.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censorship_in_the_United_Kingdom#:~:text=British%20citizens%20have%20a%20negative,under%20the%20Human%20Rights%20Act.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/4810356/double-jeopardy-meaning-uk-stephen-lawrence/#:~:text=DOUBLE%20jeopardy%20laws%20in%20the,book%20for%20over%20800%20years.

[bottomofthehill]

11. Vitally important.

It is the glue that holds us together. Are there changes that could be made to make it better in my opinion, yes but they take a lot of work within the framework. My own opinion is not what matters. The opinion of the whole matters.

[Hortensis]

27. Same here. It worked so well for nearly 250 years that it inspired

people around the planet to model their governments on it. It definitely needs to be improved after 2-1/2 centuries of amazing evolution of society, but respect for what we have is vital to its preservation.

The Republicans would leap to hold a constitutional convention to "rewrite" it the first possible day.

[bottomofthehill]

28. Took the oath to Protect and Defend for the first of many times in 1985

Over 35 years later, still Protecting and still Defending.

[Hortensis]

30. !

[ForgedCrank]

16. I hold the document

in the highest regard and consider it the foundation of everything in which our freedoms and laws should revolve.
It is the single set of rules and declarations that serves as a firewall between free individual citizens and their government.
I find that we have foolishly ignored it in far too many instances, and we are creating exceptions that have become a pile of hodgepodge laws that are slowly diluting it's once absolute power to handcuff government and protect our freedoms and individual status.
We are treading on thin ice at this point, and I do not know how much longer it can survive as the supreme governor of law.

What to do? Well, that is getting really foggy. The national divide and hate have relegated adherence to the rules of civility to the back seat. We look more toward national politicians to force compliance of our values rather than local leaders who should be doing that heavy lifting, whether we like the outcome or not. That may be an unpopular position, but I firmly disagree with self-serving goals that run contrary to The Constitution, even if doing so hurts me personally in some way. I believe in freedom for all, equally, and without question.
The honor system is dead, and that is a real problem in my eyes.

[NewHendoLib]

18. It's somewhat obsolete. Nothing can work when half of the country is a cult

[Doodley]

21. Correct. It is still possible that Trump could steal the next election and become our

dictator-in-chief. How will the constitution save us if that happens?

[Mr.Bill]

29. The current problem in that area

is not the constitution itself so much as the people who currently have the power to interpret it.

[Peacetrain]

19. We are a country bound together by words not race, nationality, culture.. words

It is important to me, because we can change those words to make us a more perfect union.. we did not start that way. we are not that way now.. but we keep working on it.. because that is what binds us..

[kentuck]

23. I think we could agree...

That the Constitution is stronger now than when first enacted? I think we should be very cautious about what we are willing to throw away or to change? It's not like something we pick off a grocery shelf.

[HoosierDebbie]

24. I have pocket copies of the Constitution and Declaration of Independence

I offer pocket size copies of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence for a nominal fee in my antique and collectibles mall booth. They can be found on the front end of a double sided bookcase that houses books about US Presidents, founding fathers, historic women and US War History. It is the foremost spot in my booth on the aisle. Over time I have sold a little over 100 copies.

[Hortensis]

26. Wonderful! My first copy of the Constitution was purchased

for very little long ago from someone like you. A nice but surprising find by the cash register of a convenience store. Hope that person's had a great life.