Into the mind of a liberal

[Rebel]

LIB WRITER EZRA KLEIN ON CONSTITUTION: IT‘S ’CONFUSING‘ BECAUSE IT’S OVER 100 YEARS OLD

Posted on December 30, 2010 at 12:17pm   
 
Washington Post writer Ezra Klein was featured on MSNBC Thursday and used his time to rail against Republicans who want to read the Constitution before the start of the new Congress. That railing included an interesting side bar regarding the document, and comments seemingly suggesting it’s obsolete:

In essence, it seems Klein is saying the Constitution is too old to understand. He echoed that sentiment (and clarified it a little) on his blog on Thursday when talking about a GOP proposal that each new bill reference its authority from the founding document.

“I’m very curious to know what the GOP — or the tea partyers they’re presumably pandering to — think will happen when every piece of legislation requires “a statement from its sponsor outlining where in the Constitution Congress is empowered to enact such legislation,” Klein writes. “What’s the evidence that this will make legislation more, rather than less, constitutional, for whatever your definition of the Constitution is?”

He uses Obamacare, which referenced interstate commerce (Article I, Section 8), as an example of a recent bill that referenced the document but that failed to gain universal appeal, and reiterates the point from his MSNBC appearance:

My friends on the right don’t like to hear this, but the Constitution is not a clear document. Written 100 years ago, when America had 13 states and very different problems, it rarely speaks directly to the questions we ask it. The Second Amendment, for instance, says nothing about keeping a gun in the home if you’ve not signed up with a “well-regulated militia,” but interpreting the Second Amendment broadly has been important to those who want to bear arms. And so they’ve done it.

His conclusion? When it comes to the Constitution, liberals and conservatives “pick and choose their moments of textual fidelity.”

Klein’s comments about the document seem to be a slippery slope: If the document can be anything to anyone at anytime, and if it’s so confusing, why bother with it?

But what he’s missing is that while the document was created long ago, it was drafted to be a forever document, and even included a process to be updated. Far from dealing with “very different problems,” the United States is still tackling taxation, free speech, and religious expression. Those seem quite relevant today.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2010/12/what_the_tea_party_wants_from.html


What a f'n MORON!

[cavegal]

At some point this is going to get real ugly. They must be stopped. The left does not care about this country.  They think it is the reason for the worlds woes. They want to destroy it.

[thundley4]

It's only 4 or 6 pages long, depending on the printing of it.  My owner's manual for my phone is longer and more complicated.

[JohnnyReb]

Written 100 years ago, when America had 13 states ....Lets see here. Obama said he had been in 57 states excluding Hawaii, Alaska and one other state making for a grand total of 60 all together.....60-13=47 divided into 100 years.
...DAMN! That's a new state every 2 years...we've been busy.

[JohnnyReb]

OK...Now, the next time anyone decides to go trapsing off thru a liberal mind....be sure to wipe your feet before you come back in.

[Freeper]

Written 100 years ago, when America had 13 states ....Lets see here. Obama said he had been in 57 states excluding Hawaii, Alaska and one other state making for a grand total of 60 all together.....60-13=47 divided into 100 years.
...DAMN! That's a new state every 2 years...we've been busy.

Yep the constitution wasn't written until 1910. The founding fathers were real busy for the first 123 years and just didn't get around to it.
 

[ColonialMarine0431]

Must'nt let that dusty old document get in the way of how the country was suposed to be set up.

And who, in this day and age, names their child "Ezra"? That's a name more appropriate to some cranky old Jewish grandfather.

[compaqxp]

IT‘S ’CONFUSING‘ BECAUSE IT’S OVER 100 YEARS OLD

So is Shakespeare's work, but if you take time and read over stuff a few times you'll often understand it (IE it takes some effort). The only confusing part is that many people have their own interpretation of what it means.

[Alpha Mare]

OK...Now, the next time anyone decides to go trapsing off thru a liberal mind....be sure to wipe your feet before you come back in.

When I read the title, my first thought was "STOP! Come back!"

[NHSparky]

It's only 4 or 6 pages long, depending on the printing of it.  My owner's manual for my phone is longer and more complicated.

And in more languages.

[franksolich]

Yep the constitution wasn't written until 1910. The founding fathers were real busy for the first 134 years and just didn't get around to it.
 

I wonder why nobody's called the idiot on that.

[txradioguy]

As I said in the comments section over at NewsBusters about this article...Kliens confusion with the Constitution starts at "We the People"...gets worse at "Congress shall pass no law"...and finds him in an utterly befuddled condition by the time he gets to the final words of the 27th Amendment.

[DefiantSix]

I wonder why nobody's called the idiot on that.

Because only real, drooling mouth-breathers read what this idiot posts?

[Mike220]

So I guess that whole 1st Amendment thing is out the window now...

[Freeper]

Written more than 200 years ago, when America had 13 states

Looks like he fixed it.

Someone pointed it out to him,

Very good points, although the Constitution wasn't written in 1910.

Posted by: JeffN1 | December 30, 2010 12:08 PM | Report abuse

[JohnnyReb]

Looks like he fixed it.

Someone pointed it out to him,

Conservativecave...educating DUmmies, one idiot at a time.

[franksolich]

Conservativecave...educating DUmmies, one idiot at a time.

Well, excresence.

JohnnyReb NEVER NEVER NEVER reads his personal messages, and so I'll have to wish him and his precious others a very happy new year, with the prayer and hope that it pleases God that he flourish and prosper.

I'm very happy--delighted beyond ecstasy--that you're here, sir.

[true_blood]

Funny, when I read the title of the thread, I thought it was just going to contain a big black box of emptiness.

[Varokhâr]

Another article by a liberal that proves they have no minds at all, it would seem.

I like the remarks about the Second Amendment; God forbid it should be interpreted broadly by us right-wing gun-nuts, but God also forbid that the First Amendment isn't interpreted broadly so as to include every perversion and deviant act that cannot reasonably be considered an act of "speech" to begin with.

Nothing like leftist hypocrisy to remind you that you bet on the right horse.