Unit 1 Nicole, Artavia, Emily P., Emily C.

1. According to the Founders, what are the basic purposes of government?

According to the founders, everyone has natural rights. These rights are life liberty and property. Thomas Jefferson, thought of the phrase, “the pursuit of happiness” in the Declaration of Independence. Life means to live without the fear of dying or being injured. Liberty is the right to be free. Property, some might argue is like the Pursuit of Happiness, means you have the right to own things. Your work, or what you choose to do for a living, is also your property. Protecting these rights are the basic purposes of government. The government does many things to protect our right to life. For example, if terrorists get nuclear weapons people could die.

Recently, the president took part in a summit focusing on nuclear terrorism and nuclear waste. The President ant others are concerned that Iran has decided to start building nuclear weapons. That’s one of the reasons President Obama attended a Nuclear Summit- the largest gathering of international leaders dealing on this topic for more than sixty years.

President Barrack Obama hopes that other countries will acknowledge this threat and begin an effort to lock down all HEU (highly enriched uranium) stocks within four years. By doing this, the president is trying to protect Americans’ rights to living peacefully without the fear of death or injury caused by nuclear weapons. Unit 1 Nicole, Artavia, Emily P., Emily C.

2. Why did the Framers think a constitution was necessary to achieve these purposes?

A Constitution is put into action so that the people’s rights can be protected. The Framers knew that some people might try to take away others’ rights. The Framers also knew that a too strong national government could turn into a dictatorship. Without a Constitution or any type of government, the colonies might turn into a state of nature. A state of nature is when there is no government, no rules, or no rulers. Imagine what that would be like. Somalia is an example of a country which is close to being a state of nature. In 1969 Mohamed SIAD Barre became the dictator of Somalia. The rules and laws of the country were made by Barre. However, in 1991 there was a coup which overthrew him. According to the CIA World Factbook there is no “permanent national government.” The country is basically controlled by religious “Sharia law” and local customs. The people that live in Somalia have no guaranteed rights to life, liberty, and property. Even though they do have a constitution, it’s not followed and not valued. Unit 1 Nicole, Artavia, Emily P., Emily C.

3. Which did the Founders think was more important: the common good or individual rights?

We’re not sure if the Framers thought the common good or individual rights were equally important. We do know, however, the framers thought both were important. By protecting individual rights, the government is caring for everyone no matter what they believe. By promoting the common good, the government is trying to help everybody and not just one person or group. Sometimes doing both of these is difficult. At times, the government has favored the common good over individual rights. For example, the Transportation Security Administration currently has full- body scanners being tested in 19 airports across the United States. Currently, the TSA is adding 11 more scanners to other airports. The government is trying to protect individuals’ right to life by searching every person that travels on an airplane. However, promoting safety, they’re violating a person’s right to privacy. The common good in this case is being favored over an individual’s privacy. At times, the government has favored individual rights over the common good. In the case of Texas v. Johnson (1989), Gregory Lee Johnson burned a U.S. flag outside the 1984 Republican National Convention as part of a political demonstration. The Court said Johnson could do this even though it was “offensive or disagreeable.” Unit 1 Nicole, Artavia, Emily P., Emily C.

4. Does our government still serve the purposes that the Framers intended?

Government does serve purposes that the Framers intended. They still have the basic rights to life, liberty, and property. We still have to follow laws. We still get punished if we break the law. And we still go to court and follow Habeus Corpus.