"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."
Unfortunately, most of the time everyone focuses on the latter part of this amendment, however, every word of this amendment is an absolute gem. This Amendment, if actually read and studied thoroughly would help to solve a plethora of the so called "hot" issues today.
Clause 1 - "establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" - this clause is a direct and very frank answer to the "Gay Marriage" issue. The government has no right to impose any kind of religious beliefs on anyone, yet that is exactly what is happening, the fact that there is no state religion by definition makes Gay Marriage legal because at the root, Gay Marriage is a religious issue that the government has no business dictating. The churches can pick who that want to marry meanwhile, Gays may at the very least have their civil unions because that is their legal right under this Amendment.
Clause 2 - "abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press" - I think this part of the Amendment is arguably the most spoken of. For the most part, journalist and media groups do a good job at making sure that freedom is upheld. The newest form of media that is still in legal limbo is the Wiki leaks. These, while I think are necessary in a way, also could very clearly present a direct threat to American lives.For now, I must say that I can't decide either way if I am for or against. I see virtues in both positions therefore my position is neutral.
Clause 3 - "right of the people peaceably to assemble" - Upheld quite well over the years with the most predominant exception being the Kent State incident in 1970 as well as a few others over the course of the past 200+ years. But for the most part, a pretty good track record overall.
Clause 4 - "to petition the Government for a redress of grievances"- This is probably the most frustrating of the four parts of this amendment to me. While we have the right to petition the Government, do we as individual Americans really have the opportunity to redress our grievances to the Government? My answer is no, we are circumvented as constituents by Special Interest Groups and Lobbyists in Washington D.C. The development of these groups has corrupted at least the Legislature to an almost unrecognizable branch of the modern American government. This filibustering group has never and unfortunately will most likely never be known as a speedy branch. To be sure, the Founding Fathers did intend to have filibustering to an extent, I do not believe that they EVER intended to have the legislature as corrupt as it is or as sullied with Special interest Groups or Lobbyists.
