Today is the Bill of Rights Day in the US. This phrase simply denotes the first ten amendments to the US Constitution. They were written to establish a fundamental baseline of freedoms of which that the government could not deprive the people, or so the authors thought. In reality, not so much. At the time of this writing I think that there are no governmental "time, place, and manner" restrictions applicable to this forum and/or what I intend to write.That could change overnight, of course as could the content based prohibitions that our government is so fond of, but here we go --

I couldn't decide between ten sub-rants and one gargantuan rant so finally decided on a single small rant. I'm pretty much just going to post the bill of rights in its entirety for everybody to re-familiarize themselves with and hopefully study, contemplate and consider. Among other things one should consider is what we nearly had and what we have lost and are further losing, daily, and perhaps what we can do about it singly and/or collectively. These rights, as enumerated and enunciated have been steadily evaporating a bit at a time through the creation of exceptions and interpretations.

Exceptions are things like freedom of speech not extending to "obscene" speech, even though those supportive of such a stupid restriction couldn't define "obscene" (because it is a garbage concept with a heavy stench of underlying religious dogma and no other reasonable basis). Interpretations are things like the infamous "Terry Stop" and the line of cases following from it that have completely eliminated the need for probable cause or any other objective basis for rousting people, rendering the fourth amendment largely inapplicable with respects to people afoot, motorists and their passengers, and, generally, anybody not inside their own domicile.

First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Second Amendment: A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

Third Amendment: No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

Fourth Amendment: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Fifth Amendment: No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

Sixth Amendment: 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 wherein 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.

Seventh Amendment: 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 reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

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

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

Tenth Amendment: 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.

The First, Second, Fourth and Eighth amendments allegedly apply at the state level. The third and seventh do not apply at the state level. The fifth allegedly applies at the state level except for the right to an indictment by a grand jury. The sixth allegedly applies at the state level except for the right to have a jury from the district where the crime was committed. It has also been alleged that the bill of rights applies to the executive branch, but you can judge for yourself whether or not this is even remotely true in fact, as opposed to in theory.

It is perhaps relevant to note that the US has ratified but three of the nine core UN human rights treaties and only somewhere around five of the eighteen major international human rights instruments. Oh yes, we've also never ratified the Equal Rights Amendment. Just sayin'

On this day in history:

1256 – Mongol forces under Hulagu entered and dismantled the Nizari Ismaili (Assassin) stronghold at Alamut Castle

1270 – The Nizari Ismaili garrison of Gerdkuh surrendered to the Mongols. after 17 years

1791 – The United States Bill of Rights became law
.

1836 – The U.S. Patent Office building burned almost to the ground, destroying all 9,957 patents issued by the federal government to that date, as well as 7,000 related patent models.

1890 – Hunkpapa Lakota leader Sitting Bull was killed on Standing Rock Indian Reservation

1893 – Symphony No. 9 by Antonín Dvořák premiered in a public afternoon rehearsal

1903 – Italo Marchiony received a U.S. patent for a machine that made ice cream cones.

1905 – The Pushkin House was established in Saint Petersburg, Russia

1917 – An armistice between Russia and the Central Powers was signed.

1941 – German troops and Ukranian auxilliaries killed over 15,000 Jews at Drobytsky Yar

1944 – An airplane carrying USAAF Major Glenn Miller was lost over the English Channel.

1945 – General Douglas MacArthur ordered that Shinto be abolished as the state religion of Japan.

1960 – Richard Pavlick was arrested for plotting to assassinate U.S. President-Elect John F. Kennedy.

1965 – Project Gemini: Gemini 6A was launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida.

1970 – Soviet spacecraft Venera 7 successfully landed on Venus

1973 – The American Psychiatric Association voted to remove homosexuality from its official list of psychiatric disorders

1978 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter announced that the United States will recognize the People's Republic of China and sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

1989 – The Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights relating the abolition of capital punishment was adopted.

2000 – The third reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant was shut down.

Some people who were born on this day:

“The public has a distorted view of science because children are taught in school that science is a collection of firmly established truths. In fact, science is not a collection of truths. It is a continuing exploration of mysteries.

~~ Freeman Dyson

1567 – Christoph Demantius, composer, poet, and theorist
1610 – David Teniers the Younger, painter
1657 – Michel Richard Delalande, organist and composer
1686 – Jean-Joseph Fiocco, violinist and composer
1710 – Francesco Zahra, painter
1832 – Gustave Eiffel, architect and engineer, co-designed the Eiffel Tower
1852 – Henri Becquerel, physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
1859 – L. L. Zamenhof, linguist and ophthalmologist, created Esperanto
1860 – Niels Ryberg Finsen, physician and educator, Nobel Prize laureate
1861 – Charles Duryea, engineer and businessman, co-founded the Duryea Motor Wagon Company
1886 – Florence Jepperson Madsen, contralto singer and professor of music
1891 – A.P. Carter, country singer, songwriter and musician (More Carter Family)
1894 – Vibert Douglas, astrophysicist and astronomer
1896 – Betty Smith, author and playwright
1907 – Oscar Niemeyer, architect, designed the United Nations Headquarters and the Cathedral of Brasília
1910 – John Hammond, record producer and critic
1911 – Stan Kenton, pianist and composer
1913 – Muriel Rukeyser, poet, academic, and activist
1916 – Buddy Cole, pianist, organist, and conductor
1916 – Maurice Wilkins, physicist and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate
1919 – Max Yasgur, dairy farmer and host of the Woodstock Music & Art Fair
1921 – Alan Freed, radio host
1923 – Freeman Dyson, physicist and mathematician
1928 – Ernest Ashworth, singer and songwriter
1928 – Ida Haendel, violinist and educator
1932 – Jesse Belvin, singer, songwriter, and pianist
1939 – Cindy Birdsong, singer and songwriter
1939 – Dave Clark, musician and songwriter
1945 – Heather Booth, civil rights activist, feminist, and political strategist
1946 – Carmine Appice, drummer and songwriter
1950 – Sylvester James Gates, theoretical physicist and professor
1952 – Rudi Protrudi, singer, songwriter, and producer
1955 – Paul Simonon, singer, songwriter, and bass player
1957 – Tim Reynolds, singer, songwriter, and guitarist
1958 – Richard Kastle, classical pianist
1960 – Walter Werzowa, composer and producer
1962 – Tim Gaines, bass player
1971 – Clint Lowery, singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1978 – Ned Brower, drummer
1978 – Mark Jansen, guitarist and songwriter
1980 – Sergio Pizzorno, singer, songwriter, and guitarist
1983 – Ronnie Radke, singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1986 – Kim Junsu, singer, songwriter, and dancer
1996 – Jenifer Brening, singer

Some people who died on this day:

“You cannot lose what you never had.”

~~ Isaak Walton

What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence

~~ Christopher Hitchens (Hitchens' Razor)

1675 – Johannes Vermeer, painter and educator
1683 – Izaak Walton, author
1792 – Joseph Martin Kraus, pianist, violinist, and composer
1817 – Federigo Zuccari, astronomer,
1819 – Daniel Rutherford, chemist and physician
1855 – Jacques Charles François Sturm, mathematician and academic
1878 – Alfred Bird, chemist and businessman, invented baking powder
1890 – Sitting Bull, tribal chief
1943 – Fats Waller, singer, songwriter and pianist
1944 – Glenn Miller, bandleader and composer
1958 – Wolfgang Pauli, physicist and academic (Pauli exclusion principle)
1966 – Walt Disney, animator, director, producer, and screenwriter,
1971 – Paul Lévy, mathematician and theorist
1984 – Jan Peerce, tenor and actor
2003 – George Fisher, cartoonist
2011 – Bob Brookmeyer, trombone player and composer
2011 – Christopher Hitchens, essayist, literary critic, and journalist
2013 – Harold Camping, evangelist, author, radio host
2024 – Zakir Hussain, tabla player, musical producer, film actor and composer

Some Holidays, Holy Days, Festivals, Feast Days, Days of Recognition, and such:

Bill of Rights Day (United States)
2nd Amendment Day (South Carolina)
Cat Herders Day
National Cupcake Day
Zamenhof Day (International Esperanto Community)
World Turkic Language Family Day (UNESCO)

Today's Tunes

Christoph Demantius

Michael Richard Delalande

Jean-Joseph Fiocco

A.P. Carter

Stan Kenton

Buddy Cole

Ida Haendel

Jessie Belvin

Cindy Birdsong

Dave Clark

Carmine Appice

Paul Simonon

Fats Waller

Glenn Miller

Bob Brookmeyer

Ok, it's an open thread, so it's up to you folks now. What's on your mind?

Cross posted from http://caucus99percent.com

open thread, Bill of Rights Day, AP Carter, Fats Waller, Christopher Hitchens, Dave Clark, Glen Miller