Rights and Responsibilities

“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union,establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”   – Preamble to the U.S. Constitution 1787 ratified 1789

This idea to me means that in the future I look forward to economic opportunities  The Constitution guarantees that we as  the people get a lot of opportunities. For me my opportunities begin with my responsibility to get an education.  It is not easy for many of us to always meet our responsibilities.  The reasons that make it hard for some of us include outside problems from work or family or trying to meet the basic needs of life.  For some this is easier than others.  All of us put in work and effort to ” form a more perfect union” and ” to secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.”

The constitution of the United States was one of the first written constitutions in modern history. Virginia law maker, James Madison, wrote the document that formed the model for the Constitution because he was such a good note taker at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 . Since he played such an important role in the writing of the document he is often called “the father of the Constitution” and he is also our 3rd U.S. President.  The purpose of the Constitution was to limit the power of the federal government. Also another reason was to protect the natural rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as contained in the Declaration of Independence and the right to property discussed by  British philosopher John Locke.  The reason it still exists today is because it has balanced power with three branches and limited power with the amendments. It was signed on September 17, 1787, by delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia and it took a process of nearly 4 years to be fully ratified by all 13 states in the new union.