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From: kfl%mx.lcs.mit.edu@MC.LCS.MIT.EDU
Newsgroups: mod.politics
Subject: Re: The Constitution and Citizenship
Message-ID: <12240764709.25.MCGREW@RED.RUTGERS.EDU>
Date: Sun, 21-Sep-86 15:28:48 EDT
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Posted: Sun Sep 21 15:28:48 1986
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    From: ~joe testa~ <TESTA-J%OSU-20@ohio-state.ARPA>

    > It is clear, of course, that the writers of those amendments did
    >not intend to interpret them as banning taxation.  But the courts
    >have never let the intention of the legislators stand in the way
    >of their interpretation of what the law actually SAYS, even when
    >they are still living and vehemently object to the court's
    >interpretation.

    As it should be -- you'd think that educated people could write
    what they mean.  It is not very difficult to write unambiguous
    sentences.

  The constitution is pretty unambiguous.  There is some fuzziness in
the interpretation of some of the amendments, but the official
interpretation is often well outside any reasonable interpretation of
what the amendment says.  The Second Amendment is the classic example.

    >  Another idea is to sell citizenships, for whatever price the
    >market will bear.  This would provide revenue to government in 
    >lieu of taxes from citizens.

    Does the inverse hold?  If someone cannot afford their debts to
    the government, would they be stripped of their citizenship?  That
    would be one way to get rid of criminals -- "gee, your trial cost
    $9 billion -- pay up or get out".

  Actually, that was a punishment for some crimes until the 1940s,
when the Supreme Court ruled that being stripped of citizenship was
"cruel and unusual".  Interesting that they find it a harsher
punishment than being put to death!
  Personally, I don't believe in citizenship.  A person's rights have
nothing to do with his government.  Governments often VIOLATE rights,
and some do so much more than others, but rights do not come from
governments.  Rights are intrinsic.  So the rights that a person has
have nothing to do with whether he is a US citizen or not.  Since
citizenship makes (or should make) no difference, it is (or should be)
meaningless.
                                                              ...Keith

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