Supremacy clause law Essays - Commerce Clause, Supremacy Clause

Supremacy clause law The Supremacy Clause is the name given to Article VI, Clause 2 of the United States of America Constitution, which states (wikipedia): This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary not with standing(wikipedia). Before the civil war the Supreme Court would uphold the states individual rights because of the tenth amendment. If the federal government did not hold a position then the state reserved the right to make and uphold a decision. In 1930, the federal government reversed its position and stated that the federal government is not accountable to uphold state laws, hence, the Supremacy Clause (wikipedia). The Supremacy Clause of the constitution of the United States of America means that all states must follow the federal law when there is a conflict. This clause is also known as Article VI, Clause 2 which means that if there is a conflict between a state law whether it be a court order or a court decision then the federal law is the Supreme Law of the Land (The 'Lectric Law Library's Lexicon). Under the Supremacy Clause everyone must go by the federal law and disregard the conflicting state law. The Supremacy Clause also requires that each state legislature remember critical federal policies when they are enacting state policies. Ultimately, national uniformity is the reason behind the Supremacy Clause. A perfect example of this is the National Labors Act of 1935 which preempts almost all state laws, when they are dealing with labor unions and labor related management decisions. (wikipedia). The Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution (Article 1, Section 8) is the clause that authorizes Congress the power (wikipedia), To regulate Commerce with Foreign Nations, and among the several states, and with Indian Tribes (wikipedia). The commerce clause is one of the most fundamental powers delegated to Congress by its founders. This clause is the legal foundation of the governments' regulatory power. Interstate commerce is defined as; the transportation of products and services across state line. The commerce clause has a long history that is typically divided into three distinct eras; the first 150 years, 1937-1995 period, and 1995 until now. The first period or era involved actions from the Federal Government (approximately 1400 cases) that found the court limiting state legislation for moving into an area that was a federal concern. The most classic example was in 1886involving the railroads. It denied the state the right to regulate its railways based on the fact congress's power was exclusive. Hence, the Commerce Act of 1887. For the next forty years, the Federal government applied the same restrictions on oil production, mining, fishing, farming, and even hydroelectric power. This decision was based on the fact that most of these products or the effects of them applied to other states as well as the state where they were produced meaning interstate commerce. In other words, when the business becomes interstate (not just a local process) then it is subject to Federal regulations. One example would be that of the cattle business. This also led to federal regulations involving impure drugs and food, lottery tickets, meat, prostitution across state lines and child labor laws. In 1941, the federal government went on to regulate labor standards such as wages and hours, labor relations, as well as, navigable streams (Answers.com). Justice Frank Murphy stated: The Federal commerce power is as broad as the economic needs of the nation (North American Company v. Securities and Exchange Commission) (Novelguide.com). In 1964 came the Civil Rights Act that met the social needs of the nation as well. It banned racial discrimination based on the fourteenth amendment. Next, in 1995 came the Lopez vs. the United States which made it a federal crime to possess a firearm on school property. With this decision Justice Rehnquist ruled that Congress was over stepping its bounds and exceeding its authority using the commerce clause. Chief Rehnquist also struck down the Violence against Women Act

Biological Determinism essays

Biological Determinism essays There are many ideas about human intelligence and a person's place in the world. It is interesting to look at an article about these ideas, and determine what thoughts the author is trying to convey. This article explored how the concepts of pre-determinism began as far back as the times of Socrates. It showed that while he did not feel the current generation could be swayed to his ideas, if he started influencing the younger generations, then his ideas would continue on The author pointed out that while many scientists rely on previous data as fact, few take the time to double check the numbers or results. They conduct their research on these previous findings, thus possibly continuing the cycle of misinformation. The article was found to be interesting for a number of reasons. It illustrated how entire civilizations can be persuaded to believe in biological determination by just introducing one concept and proclaiming it The author showed the two ways a persons' intelligence has been measured in the past, while also showing how current data is influenced by these past measurement methods. In the nineteenth century, a persons' skull size was an indication of their intelligence and place in society. Because women had small skulls, they were not considered to be intellectually equal to men. Scientists began to use a numerical system in which to gauge a persons' intelligence level. However, it was pointed out that these numbers were not reliable and could be influenced by various The author demonstrated how prejudges have existed for thousands of years, and were not always due to color or race. The earliest prejudges were actually due to rank among the classes of people. Citizens were brainwashed into believing they were predisposed to be in a particular ...

Philosophy Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 11

Philosophy - Assignment Example St. Thomas Aquinas stages several forms cosmological arguments which point out the existence of God (60). The first proof of God’s existence according to St. Aquinas is explained by motion. Insofar as it is, it notable that some things are constantly in motion in this world. It is also obvious that for any object to be in motion there must be a force that propels such movements. From this point of view, an object cannot be moved unless there is another object that has the actuality to do so is involved. In this sense, St. Aquinas argues that the movement is all about bringing something from it potentiality to its actuality, and the transformation cannot take place in the absence of something which is actuality in itself (Solomon, Higgins and Clancy 60). There is no way something can exist in both forms simultaneously. For instance, an object cannot be moved and it is the mover itself. In other words, something cannot move unless there is another different thing to enhance the navigation. In case an object is moved, then it is only understandable that it has been moved by yet another force and that also by another and so on. At a point, the chain of movement will get to a point that the original mover, which is not moved by any other mover, is arrived at. This original mover is understood to be God. The cause argument which is pegged from the point of view that nature has efficient cause. The argument is that there is an order for cause and there is no way that anything can be responsible for its own cause. For this to happen, the requirement is that the thing ought to have existed before itself and this is, obviously not possible. The possibility of infinity is eliminated in this case because in the order of efficient cause follow in order where the first cause is the intermediate cause and the intermediate cause is the cause of the ultimate cause irrespective of the fact that the intermediate cause