Are you excited? September 17th is approaching fast! Sometimes, September 17th is a day of repenting quickly because I forgot my wife’s birthday, which is September 18th :) But seriously, why am I excited about the 17th of September?
Recently I discovered a fact from my early days of school: “On September 17, 1787, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention met for the last time to sign the document they had created.” The day is known as Constituion Day. I have taken this day and the Constitution far too lightly for many years. This document and the process and people behind its creation is a fascinating and critical part of history.
In order to renew my understanding of the U.S. Constitution, I will be starting a new blogging series about various related topics and the document itself. I still believe this document is of great importance to humanity.
Some quotes about the Constitution:
“A constitution embodies the fundamental principles of a government. Our constitution, adopted by the sovereign power, is amendable by that power only. To the constitution all laws, executive actions, and, judicial decisions must conform, as it is the creator of the powers exercised by the departments of government.”
“As the British Constitution is the most subtle organism which has proceeded from the womb and long gestation of progressive history, so the American Constitution is, so far as I can see, the most wonderful work ever struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man.” (W. E. Gladstone’s famous remark about the Constitution)
“The term ‘rigid’ is used to describe the U.S. Constitution, in opposition to “flexible”, because the provisions are in a written document which cannot be legally changed with the same ease and in the same manner as ordinary laws. The British Constitution, which is unwritten, can, on the other hand, be changed overnight by act of Parliament.”
“The book which had the greatest influence upon the members of the Constitutional Convention was Montesquieu’s Spirit of Laws, which first appeared in 1748. The great French philosopher had, however, in turn borrowed much of his doctrine from the Englishman John Locke, with whose writings various members of the Convention were also familiar.”