In his 1996 State of the Union speech, President Bill Clinton stated, “If it means teenagers will stop killing each other over designer jackets, then our public schools should be able to require their students to wear school uniforms” The topic of whether or not school uniforms are a good idea in high schools is still a topic that is hotly debated. Some parents are happy about having a school uniform so they do not have to argue with their children about what they can or cannot wear to school. Some parents think that schools that insist on school uniforms are ...
Court Argumentative Essays Samples For Students
156 samples of this type
Over the course of studying in college, you will definitely need to compose a bunch of Argumentative Essays on Court. Lucky you if linking words together and transforming them into meaningful text comes easy to you; if it's not the case, you can save the day by finding a previously written Court Argumentative Essay example and using it as a template to follow.
This is when you will definitely find WowEssays' free samples directory extremely useful as it includes numerous skillfully written works on most various Court Argumentative Essays topics. Ideally, you should be able to find a piece that meets your criteria and use it as a template to develop your own Argumentative Essay. Alternatively, our qualified essay writers can deliver you a unique Court Argumentative Essay model crafted from scratch according to your individual instructions.
Introduction
The end of World War II has introduced an era where human rights were not only appreciated, but also considered inherited entitled. They were addressed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the U.N. General Assembly, as part of the International Bill of Human Rights, in December, 1948 (United Nations). According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 9, no person should be subjected to “arbitrary arrest, detention or exile” (United Nations). However, during wartime, the Fourth Geneva Convention is used, so to define detainees. There are many contradicting viewpoints, as to whether an ...
Claim
My position as per the application of FISA and the Fourth Amendment is that the FISA violates the fourth amendment requirement. This is in line with the fact that the Fourth Amendment Act operates on the basis of the exclusionary rule and revolves around the search and seizure whereas the FISA is seen to violate the exclusionary rule.
Background
The Fourth Amendment Act was put in place following the dissenting argument at the time of arrest by the police officers. This is pegged on the basis that the exclusionary rule which is applied where admissibility of the unlawfully acquired evidence ...
Facts
In this case, the defendant, who is black, was charged with intentional firearm killing of individuals. The prosecution filed a death penalty notice, however the defendant moved to suppress that notice, alleging that he became a victim of a selective prosecution on the grounds of his race. In his defense, the defendant presented the nationwide statistics which clearly shows that the United States charges African Americans with capital crimes twice as often as it charges white people, and that the United States is more willing to enter into plea bargain with whites than with blacks. The defendant also filed a request for the ...
Exclusionary rule was premeditated to deter the misconduct of the police. Therefore, the exclusionary rule was a rule setup to facilitate the courts to exclude the introduction of incriminating evidence during the trial upon the proof that the evidence was obtained in breach of the constitutional provisions. This rule allows the defendants to defy the acceptability of evidence by establishing a pre-trial motion to overturn the evidence. If the court accepts the evidence to be brought in during the trial and the jury accepts to convict, the defendant has the option of challenging the decorum of the decision made by the ...
Res judicata needs be openly defined in order to decide its scope and confines. First, it should be known that this principle give the impression of being firmly rooted both in the legislations of the member nations and in the Court of Justice case-law. Therefore in this respect, it must be understood that res judicata is closely linked to the principle of legal certainty. Simply put, res judicata means that an adjudicated matter cannot be re-litigated. It’s also important to note that the legal authority of a decision in principle is relative. Striking a balance between conflicting interests is the ...
Secularization from Civil War to 1930
Religious difference exists in all places worldwide. As a tool of conviction, religion is so sensitive that if it is not handled properly it can split a country causing civil unrest. It is instructive to note that the longest wars to have existed in the history of humanity were caused by religion. Due to its volatile nature, many countries including the United State (U.S) have decided to separate public life from religious practices (Andrew et al. 72). After the civil war to around 1930s, U.S has shown a continuous trend of separating State from religion in a process referred to as secularization of ...
African leaders and presidents are seriously considering pulling out en masse from the being signatories to the Rome Statute that formed the International Criminal Court (ICC) based at The Hague, Netherlands. This follows their dissatisfaction with what they allege to be a bias on the part of the court against cases touching on Africans. A case in point is where the president of Kenya, Honourable Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta and his deputy, William Samoei Ruto, both of whom face serious war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated in Kenya’s bloodiest post-election violence of 2007/2008, have been denied immunity by virtue ...
Most significant purpose of any legal system is to punish guilty and defend those who are innocent. There are two common criminal justice trial systems, inquisitional system and adversarial system, that are used to determine whether an alleged person is guilty or not. Both these legal system ensure that guilty should be punished but any innocent person should not suffer in the hands of law however different measures are applied by inquisitional system and adversarial system in this process.
Both legal systems are capable in adjudicating disputes irrespective of the fact that both systems have been developed in ...
Society is dependent upon government to maintain order. Without government, society would easily crumble into anarchy; however, there remains a question about how much governmental interference is necessary in issues of free speech in the United States. The United States Constitution stipulates that every American citizen has the right to freedom of speech and freedom of expression, but the Supreme Court has ruled that these rights are not absolute. In the same way that an individual does not have the right to falsely yell “fire” in a crowded theater, so too is that individual restricted when it comes to obscene or ...
Introduction
The main objective of any justice system is to provide justice without partiality or fear. Judicial system is the key pillars of the rule of law. All the bodies charged with the role of providing justice should be free from all forms on interferences. Legal experts have been persistently criticizing the American judicial system. The court system has been painted as on e of the most corrupt and incompetent departments in the United States of America. Juan Botero-director of rule of law index project, says that the American judicial system is similar to its health system. In many aspects ...
Today, the United Nations is an organization in a period of transition. It was an organization born from fear of the future, with lofty goals and soaring aspirations. However, from the beginning, the United Nations faced many logistical problems with fulfilling its goals and central philosophies. The United Nations (UN) was designed to replace the League of Nations, the international organizational body that was formed in the post-World-War-I era (Annan, 2000). After the League of Nations failed to stop World War II, the organization was dissolved in 1945 and the United Nations was formed (Annan, 2000).
The founding philosophy ...
Criminal justice systems in Japan
Over the past two decades, the Japanese legal system has been pictured as one of the slowest and ineffective criminal justice systems in all around the world. The system is known to discourage personal cases suing the government or massive commercial enterprises. The system is affected by outdated traditions where criminal cases are perceived as embarrassing. Therefore, most cases are handled traditionally through such methods as negotiations and cases only proceed to court if the parties were unable to reach an agreement. This method is referred to as the comparative justice system. The intent of this thesis is to ...
Drugs such as marijuana and cocaine and amphetamines and heroin together with drug-addiction are correlated to crime in a number of ways. Being a criminal offence to use, to be in possession, to produce, or to dispense these drugs, they are categorized as prohibited. The upshots of usage of drugs, including aggression, including robbery to obtain funds to acquire drugs, including aggression against competitor traffickers, affect the society every day and are criminal effects. A number of treatment alternatives are on hand to tackle inmates' requirements and conditions in the correctional system. Drug treatment programs in correctional centres most often than ...
Introduction
When the Founding Fathers set up our form of government, relatively little thought was given to the judicial branch. From early on, the Framers considered the courts to possess the least amount of authority in a democratic republican society. In The Federalist papers, Alexander Hamilton noted that the legislative power was by far the most predominant, whereas the judicial branch was by far the weakest of the three branches of government (Paulsen, 1994, p. 229). Today, however, the judicial branch has grown increasingly influential in shaping policy on a national level. Given the tremendous policy-making authority the Supreme Court ...
The federal are public of Canada has been claimed to be nation with the most extensive gay rights in the Americas. Canada has achieved this fete with several hurdles and court decisions in a bid to uphold the right of the entire group commonly referred to as LGTB (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender). Today, it can be argued that every LGBT Canadian citizen shares almost equal rights with their straight counterparts. One of the fundamental rights that Canadian gays enjoy is civil marriage. The entire nation, since the year 2005 allowed same sex marriage making Canada the fourth country in ...
Introduction
Neither constitution nor any parents can stop children from playing video games, as children will find some or other way to play video games. Law Excessive amount of violence in Video games is one of many debated topics in our society. A number of people say that it affects behaviour of children in a substantial manner. These people advocate to ban the games that cater violence on the other hands, a huge number of people do not agree with such logic. They oppose any such step and argue in favour of games even if they portray violence. Court said that “ ...
Introduction
The given assay seeks to illustrate whether young criminals should be tried and punished as adults. In particular, the paper studies a current legislative position pertaining to a judicial treatment of juveniles and a prosecution of their offenses. Typical instances of referring adolescents to adult courts will be discussed, as well as real stories requiring that a criminal be sent to an adult court.
THESIS: Juvenile offenders should be tried and punished as adults in cases where they have committed serious crimes (homicide, rape) and pose a serious threat to society.
Procedures of Transferring an Adolescent to an Adult Court and Protections Granted
Characteristically, the United States criminal system recognizes two types of criminal courts: ...
The recent Supreme Court ruling rendering gay marriages legal across the union has been received with the usual excitement and disappointingly self-righteous arguments on both sides of the fence. I do not want to pretend to know any better, and I trust Americans to make of Obergefell v. Hodges, whatever they may, except I am taken aback at how the Supreme Court forced itself into what is a basically a social issue. It strikes me that a nation of 300 million people can fail convince itself of whether some of its own have a right to choose their marriage partners. In the same ...
In the United States, members of sexual minorities began to fight for the right of marriage to each other in the 1970s, which evolved with the wave of mass movements for civil rights of racial minorities. This idea, which was originally categorically rejected by American society, gradually acquired the right to life. In 2002, after the European Court of Human Rights called for the registration of marriages of transsexuals in the United States, a new wave of debate and litigation, this time centered on the acceptance of homosexual marriages and their compliance with the Constitution of the United States. In ...
Toyosaburo Korematsu v. United States, 323 U.S. 214 (1944)
The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 caused the wholehearted participation of the USA with World War II. The experience of war turned American culture into one predominated by nationalism and paranoia. A good example of this is the Supreme Court case Toyosaburo Korematsu v. United States, 323 U.S. 214 (1944). The Supreme Court made a decision in this case that reflected the atmosphere in the country more than the intentions of the American Constitution.
Toyosaburo Korematsu was an American living in California at the time that President Roosevelt designated parts of the country ‘military areas.’ Japanese and Japanese-Americans ...
The First Amendment evinces the framer’s intent to create a “wall of separation” between church and state. The First Amendment provides that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion” (United States Constitution, amend, I). While there can be no government establishment of religion, religion and politics have long been closely enmeshed. Since the inception of the nation, prayer has played a prominent role in government ceremonies (Lee v. Weisman 633). Beginning with George Washington, all presidents taking the oath of office conclude with the words, “So help me God” (Jonassen 861). Presidents and politicians alike ...
Same sex marriages are those marriages whereby members of the same gender come together and form a family. In same sex marriages, persons who are of the same biological anatomy in terms of sex engage in a family relationship. When both parties are men they are said to be homosexual while when both parties are women, they are said to be lesbians. Same sex marriages are an emerging issue because a few centuries ago; it was rare to hear about cases of gay marriages. Most countries had laws in their supreme laws that defined a marriage as the relationship between woman and a man ...
1.0 Introduction
Terminating parental rights is a legal action undertaken to end any rights a parent has to their child. This legally ceases any relationships and concerns the parent has in their child. On getting a termination of parental rights, parents become as good as strangers to the child. They can neither concern themselves with the ethics of this child, nor make any provisions in terms of child support. Such a parent can have no input in any of the necessities of the child throughout their lifetime. They don’t even have the right to contact their child. To some parents it can ...
The United States has a secret competitive advantage over most other nation. The advantage, however, is not one that normally comes to mind in the public or is a focus of attention of the media or politicians. The advantage is that the U.S. attracts the largest number of immigrants in the world, and it has been doing so since its founding. Indeed, since the late 1700s, over 55 million people have immigrated to the U.S. and made it their home (ACLU). To be sure, except for the Native Americans, every other U.S. citizen is either an immigrant or a ...
The Hare Psychopathy Checklists-Revised refers to a test that uses twenty question to assess and identify whether the offender is psychopathic or not. The checklist has twenty question with each possessing a maximum of two pointscore (0, 1, 2), totalling up to forty points. An individual is assessed according the score he or she attained. This method has been increasingly used globally to by various judges and courts to test whether prisoners the extent of his or her mental illness before releasedor given a court judgement. The scores varies that an individual offender can obtain to be sentenced a death penalty varies from ...
The “Green” Problem of Superfund (CERCLA)
The “green” problem did not start as a disaster. However, it spiraled into one of the worst environmental disasters in the history of the US (Hatfield, 2012). It all began with the Love Canal in 1880s. Love Canal was excavated by W.T. Love in 1890s and it was part of the hydroelectric power project in Niagara Falls, New York. The project was never implemented and Hooker Chemicals and Plastics Corporation used it as a landfill between 1942 and 1952. The surrounding areas were later developed with construction of an elementary school and residential homes. It was not until 1960s when odors ...
Introduction
Republicanism remains America’s ideology to date. USA is a democratic country whose sovereignty is exercised through two levels of governments- the federal government and the state government (Jillson 14). The nation as endeavored to regulate the influence of money in politics and election outcome through federal provisions and state legislations. However the influence of money in voting habit cannot be actively changed unless spending by candidates and political parties is regulated. Money cannot equal a vote. With inadequate public funding, parties(s) and individual candidates who cannot access other sources of funding may not reach out the voter- reducing their ...
Introduction
Death penalty, as the name suggest is a punishment sentenced to the criminals who are involved and have been proven guilty in assassination of one or more individuals or other giant crime. This is a legal manner that is taken into courts and after the hearings of all the witnesses and considering all the proofs; he is than considered guilty if the proofs are against him and then the court decides to announce the death penalty. The rules and regulations regarding the capital punishment are different from one country to another. Many countries have identified the kinds of punishment for several ...
- Cellphones nowadays are considered an essential item that must not be far from a person’s reach. It could be used for media applications, surfing the net, text and calls; and even a parent’s tool to track their children given the new technologies attached to these devices such as specialized apps and GPS systems.
- Thesis Statement: While it may be the case that cellphones can be used as distractions to students in their studies and a minor key to eliminating abductions, the technology in cellphones nowadays not only secure students from crimes, but also present substantial alternatives for ...
I chose my essay to be ‘an argument for making the death penalty mandatory for murders’ because it has been a dilemma in the society. There have been sections advocating for its abolishment and those for its reinforcement. However, statistics show that murder rates are increasing and break outs in prison increase due to advanced technology, hence there have been calls to make the death penalty for murder mandatory so as to rid offenders from the society and prevent the crime reoccurring.
To make my essay stronger for the portfolio, I did revisions in the four sections of the ...
Should the death penalty be mandatory for people that kill other people?
The saying goes do unto others what you would have them do unto you. Therefore, the price for taking away life should cost the offender his or her life. Different kinds of punishment have been used to discourage criminals from unlawful actions, and the greater the criminal act the greater should be the punishment. The death penalty is a controversial issue and people base their arguments for or against death penalty on practical, emotional, religious or practical grounds. People in favor of the capital punishment argue that it improves peace in the society by ensuring that such people do not ...
I want to remind this court that the same people who had reduced my client to a bureaucrat to whom people had lost identity and just became numbers, through their system of obedience (Fromm, 21). Just to prove that my client was not acting out of his free will or with his conscious, I would refer to the Stanford Prison Experiment (Zimbardo, 16) where young men were put in a simulated prison. Though they were healthy men, the conditions disillusioned them and they became totally submissive. In this light, I put it before this court that my client had been psychologically ...
Introduction
The legalization of Gay marriage has stirred a lot of controversies in America, and the world in general. Traditionally, marriage has been rooted in many cultures, practices and even traditions, as the union of a man and a woman. Same sex marriages or relationships have been prohibited all along, and people that went against these practices were often termed as outcasts. But in the recent years, the rate of gay marriages and relationships has been on the rise. This has stirred a lot of debate on whether they should be legalized or not. Movements and societies have been formed to protects the gay ...
Introduction
There are controversial issues concerning blood transfusions for members of religions organizations, like Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW). According to McInroy, “Jehovah's Witnesses have a cultural and religious objection to blood donation and transfusion” (270). This apparently stemmed from some biblical passages that allegedly emphasize that blood from other sources should be avoided . However, some practitioners of JW, especially contemporary devotees, were noted to be ambivalent of complete support and was acknowledged that “it must not be assumed that all Jehovah s Witnesses agree with the blood policy and if given privacy, confidentiality and the exclusion of any third party, some ...
Arguably, the rate of crime activities carried out by teens is tremendously increasing. As a matter of fact, the question should juvenile criminals be tried as adults has become a controversial issue in the world today. Nearly everyone from politicians, lawyers to judges express their opinions on the issue, and because everyone is controversially concerned there is no realistic conclusion that has been reached. The court systems in the global arena are left with the hard task in making decisions. For many years, children have committed heinous crimes just like adults, and how they will be stopped has become another significant ...
Human Right or Commodity? The Ethics of Universal Health Care
The political storm raging over the Obama administration’s health care reform legislation sometimes obscures the fact that universal health care has been a bone of contention in Washington for decades. The American Medical Association (AMA) first endorsed the idea of health care for all Americans in 1921. In the early 1990s the AMA put forth a short-lived proposal for providing affordable insurance for all citizens but it fell victim to politics and traditional (some would say irrational) fears over the socializing of America’s health care system. Politics favored the push for health care reform this time around - the ...
Introduction
There are numerous debates about the death penalty in the United States. America continues to allow states to decide whether to apply the death penalty or not. There are 32 states in America that have the death penalty as opposed to 18 states that have abolished the practice.
The United States of America continues to act as the leader of the free world. American exceptionalism is premised on the fact that America is a uniquely free nation based on democratic ideals and personal liberties. America has led the process of exporting liberal democracies around the world and many nations ...
Introduction
The American government was formed based primarily from the fragments of state governments instituted before the unification. After federalism was established in the country, powers were shared among the local level and the division of power was created separating the Executive branch from Legislative and Judicial branch. Through the years, the division slowly diminishes as one branch extends its power and expanding its influence in governance. The Legislative branch in particular continuously expands it power, which causes the tipping of the balance of power in governance. In return this expansion of power results to struggle and conflict between other ...
Adoption refers to the process whereby an individual takes parenting responsibilities of another person. In this case, all parenting responsibilities transferred to the adopting parent(s) are lasting and therefore the process should be recognized by the society. Various countries have their different laws that guide the adoption process. In Russia, adoption is legally recognized by the law provided that the adopting parents meet all the requirements by the law. However, the emerging issues surrounding the security and welfare of the Russian children adopted by Americans has led to the implementation of a new adoption ban. This paper argues that ...
EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP AND STATE INVOLVEMENT
Employees and employers are parties which interact in a direct manner in the employment relationship. But there is also a third significant party that may not be involved directly and this is the state. The employees in Australia, just like in many other nations across the world, have had the need to be represented. Such representation comes in the form of labor unions. The employment relationship is currently in a changing process (ILO, 2006). It is imperative to understand the reasons for the state being interested in getting involved in the employment relations. This paper is going to focus on the issue ...
Introduction
At times, attorneys ask therapists to provide information that they obtain from their patients as expert witness testimony in a number of their therapy patients litigations. The therapists include psychologists and other professionals in mental health. As a result, they end up providing inaccurate information in the court. Research has found that most attorneys do not understand the difference between forensic and therapeutic roles. Although the two parties may be dealing with the same patient/examinee, this does not justify a therapist proving both services to the same patient-litigant (Greenberg & Shuman, 2007, p.130) .Their roles are distinct based on different professional elements. ...
Search and seizure legal procedures draw much controversy because most people have a high level of expectations regarding privacy. This high level of expectations can be traced back to England’s ‘castle doctrine’ wherein the law recognizes the right of a person to defend one’s home or property from unlawful entry (U.S. Government Publishing Office, 1992, p. 1199). Such expectations regarding privacy, however, is not absolute. In fact, the law provides that intrusion on private property can be made lawful under certain circumstances prescribed by the law. There are several provisions under the United States constitution that can ...
In the preamble to the United States Constitution, the Framers established that three of the fundamental responsibilities of the government was to “insure domestic tranquility”, “provide for a common defense” and “secure the blessings of liberty”. In other words, the government has a duty to protect the nation and its people from harm. The Declaration of Independence, however, states that there are certain unalienable rights that every citizen possesses. Moreover, the Bill of Rights, lists a number of the unalienable rights, such as privacy, freedom of expression, and due process of the law, which the Framers felt were important ...
Religion, when mingled with Politics, is probably one of the most dangerously influential factors in some societies, playing a leading role in terms of power, creating stereotypes, controlling behavior and, this way, controlling people. Religion has been a source of power throughout the centuries in Western nations, with Christianity, but while the Cristian Religion has been losing its grip or softened it, Eastern religions like Islam, on the other hand, have not only kept but also reinforced their power, as they have managed to twist Religion to an unprecedented controller of political life. The result is overwhelming: a group ...
Questions of Law and Terrorism
1. International Law
Public international law, or international law as it is more commonly known, refers to the body of laws that regulate the interactions among and relations between nations. Increasingly, international law has expanded to include jurisdiction over international governmental organizations such as the United Nations, and non-state actors such as individuals and groups, such as Osama bin Laden or more recently ISIS (Joyner, 2005).
No understanding of international law is complete without first understanding its sources. According to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the judicial arm of the United Nations, the sources of international ...
Criminal Justice
Introduction
In the short play written by Billy Goda entitled “No Crime”, he claimed that “a man is innocent until proven guilty by law”. With this statement, Goda maintains that even if a man confesses to commit murder, but the confession was not made before the police or before the court, he must still be treated as an innocent man. It is only the judge who conducted the trial of the accused, who can issue a ruling that the man is guilty (Goda 76).
Point
The quantum of evidence needed for the crime of murder is guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the ...
- The legal issue surrounding flag burning and its verdict in relation to human rights
- The First Amendment
- Comparison between the Arab and Western world on human rights
- Conclusion
- Drawing comparison through cultural expressions
- Debriefing the two authors views
- Justification of Argument
Introduction
What are human rights? It’s the rights humans have. Anybody and everybody born on this planet, irrespective of their nationality, sex, color, religion, and language are equal before the law, and are thus, entitled to be treated equally without discrimination.
The majority of people in the countries in the Middle-East, Africa, and to a certain extent, South America, face discrimination, and human rights issues.
Can non-government organizations, or the elite society of a country help protect their citizens from human rights issues” On reading In Defense of Professional Human Rights Organizations, by Azzam (2014), and Elites Still Matter When Protecting Human Rights, by Cordero (2014), it is apparent that they both failed to address what needs to be done to protect innocent citizens from human rights violations.
In a report in Human Rights, by an anonymous writer in 2009, said that, Kosba, an Egyptian woman, and a few other Egyptian participants, which included lawyers, journalists, engineers, researchers, pharmacists, and activists, participated in a three-week program on human rights abuse, in the U.S. On completing the program, Kosba voiced her opinion that, human rights in their country could come, “if there is an empowered civil society and a new generation of reformers who are grounded in their faith and freedom.”
Kosba’s view has a lot of authenticity, simply because, here, we have a person who has seen and experienced or heard of human rights discrimination at close range. Her view is a perfect example of what needs to be done to stop human rights violations in her country.
In 2013, as the man who tried to become another Hosni Mubarak, Mohamed Morsi was abdicated from office by the military. The so-called empowered civil society is none other than the government, for, it is the government alone, which can initiate and introduce laws to protect people from injustice. It is governments alone, which has the ethical and legal duty to ensure that their people live with dignity. Human rights cover a wide range of issues. It’s not just providing basic security and amenities to the public; it also covers social, cultural, economic, religious and other humanitarian issues. These are not issues that non-government organizations or the elite club members of a country can address or solve. It has to have the support of the government.
People diagnosed with a terminally ill disease should have the right to choose their fate in order to keep their dignity.
Euthanasia is defined as the intentional killing of a person on compassionate grounds, to relieve the person of misery and pain. In most cases of euthanasia, the affected person is put to sleep by a direct action of using a lethal injection, or terminating an action necessary to maintain life. For euthanasia to occur there must be an intention to act to kill. Euthanasia can be voluntary and involuntary, depending upon the seriousness of the case. Of these, the most common cases relate to voluntary euthanasia, where the affected person asks for mercy killing. Harsh as it may sound, euthanasia harbors around this category, for it is the only accurate, non-emotional word to describe the reality of the action and a word that the law uses
The debate on euthanasia continues to cover the front pages of medical journals and the like, yet, there are no clear winners so far, to address the plea of those who seek mercy killing. Dr. Donald Low produced a video eight days before his death, castigating the medical establishment for forcing unnecessary suffering on terminal patients.
Nursall (2014), reporting on euthanasia in The Star.com, wrote that Ed Hung, “who suffered from ALS, died on Sunday in Switzerland, the only country that allows physician-assisted suicide for non-residents.” The other countries that have similar laws for their residents are Belgium and Holland. Several states in the U.S allow doctors to prescribe fatal drugs to terminally ill patients.
The debate on both, assisted suicide and euthanasia continue to rage, as many people try to take the extreme step on medical and mental grounds. No one in their senses would think of killing themselves unless they face uncertainty of life, and/or excruciating pain. To live or die, is the right of a person, and no one has the right to object to that. As Dr. Low said, just before his death, that the medical establishment had no right to put him through such pain and torture.
There is a popular belief that euthanasia shouldn't be allowed even if it were morally right, because, should the law turn a blind eye to euthanasia, it could be abused and used as a cover for murder (BBC, 2005). This argument clearly shows that it has to be a law, that decides what is right and what is wrong, and not, any non-government organizations or the elite society.
Freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom of association, freedom of assembly and petition are all expressions that are based on human rights. These are laws passed by legislation, approved by the government and practiced by the judiciary.
In 1984, during the Republican National Convention in Dallas, Texas, a certain Gregory Lee (Joey) Johnson was part of a political demonstration. The protest was against some of President Reagan’s, and some Dallas-based corporation’s policies. In the heat of the moment, and sometime during the march, it came to light that Johnson had burned an American flag in full view of the demonstrators.
While the march was peaceful, and no one was physically injured or threatened with injury, several protestors who were witness to Johnson’s defamation, were offended by his action. Johnson was found guilty and convicted for desecrating the national flag in violation of a Texas statute. He was charged, and the case was allowed by the State Court of Appeals (Apel, 1989).
However, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reversed their earlier decision, citing that, the State of Texas, consistent with their opinion of the First Amendment, would not punish Johnson for burning the flag. The court declared that Johnson’s act of burning the flag was an expressive conduct that could be protected by the First Amendment. The First Amendment ensured that there could be no prosecution of Johnson under the present circumstance, and so, concluded that the State could not file criminal charges against Johnson for his act. The statute too, did not meet the State’s goal of preventing breaches of the peace, and so, Johnson was not guilty of causing and serious public disturbances (Apel, 1989).
It would be illogical to even contemplate questioning certain Muslim nations whether they have such freedom available to them. It is the rulers who dictate and pass laws there, and the government is just an entity. The question, therefore, is not whether these countries have such liberties accorded to their citizens, but, can an elite league or a non-government organization, let alone, the government; have the power to overrule the hierarchy in those nations?
In the U.S, the First Amendment was passed into law by the government, and protected by the judiciary. Therefore, such human rights are clearly under the jurisdiction of the government, and not some non-government organizations or elite societies.
Conclusion
Would it be possible for them to disobey the hierarchy and take the matter to their Supreme Court? For a nation like Saudi Arabia, where it is illegal for women to show their face in public places, or drive cars on their own, such luxuries are a distant dream, because it is the law of the hierarchy, and not a law that allows them the freedom of expression.
It can be concluded that while both, Azzam (2014), and Cordero (2014), accept the importance of human rights, they are far less convincing in assessing how human rights issues need to be addressed. True, some elites and non-government organizations do have influence with their governments, but they don’t have the power to influence governments in issues as sensitive as this, which is, a human rights issue. It is only governments that can address the issue of human rights, and not non-government organizations or the elite.
Works cited
Apel, Warren S, (1989), U.S. Supreme Court: TEXAS v. JOHNSON, 491 U.S. 397 (1989) 491 U.S. 397, Certiorari to the Court of Criminals Appeals of Texas, No. 88-155, Retrieved March 22, 2014, from http://www.esquilax.com/flag/texasvjohnson.html
Azzam, F, (2014), In defense of 'professional' human rights organizations, Retrieved March 22, 2014, from http://www.opendemocracy.net/openglobalrights/fateh-azzam/in-defense-of-professional-human-rights-organizations
Anonymous, (2009), Human Rights, The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, American Educational Trust, Volume 28(5), ISSN 87554917, p. 58-59
BBC, Religion and Ethics: Ethical Issues, bbc.co.uk, Retrieved March 22, 2014, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/ethics/euthanasia/overview/introduction.shtml
Cordero, F, (2014), Elites still matter when protecting human rights, Retrieved March 22, 2014, from http://www.opendemocracy.net/openglobalrights/felipe-cordero/elites-still-matter-when-protecting-human-rights
Nursall, K, (2014), Canada's shifting landscape on euthanasia, GTA, Retrieved March 22, 2014, from http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2014/03/19/canadas_shifting_landscape_on_euthan asia.html
Shin, H, B, (2013), Human Rights, Asian Journal of International Law, Cambridge University Press, Volume 3(2), ISSN 20442513, p. 419-420, DOI http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/10.1017/S2044251313000118
Introduction
Summary
The book is a historic one. The beginning and the end of the writing refer to the ancient city of Troy under the myth of Britain’s lineage. The books refer the way of Britain’s Trojan founder, Brutus. The translator of the poem makes an introduction of the British greatest leader, the legendary King Arthur (Armitage 12). The main action of the story takes place at the Camelot court where Arthur introduces a new game since it was New Year and game challenges were routine during holiday celebrations.
The poem is plotted during a New Year’s Eve feast ...
One definition of morality is “The quality of being in accord with standards of right or good conduct” (thefreedictionary). The decency of capital punishment is a largely disputed subject and one that tends to polarise people’s views. However, in 2012 and in a leading civilised nation such as the U.S. it is arguable that there can be no circumstances in which sentencing a person to death is acceptable. America is known around the world as being a well-respected, leading democracy. The act of punishing people by death is an ancient one; it is also one that no longer has place in society.
...
Ethical Arguments Against Capital Punishment
Morality can be defined as “The quality of being in accord with standards of right or good conduct.” (thefreedictionary).
The morality of capital punishment is an heavily contested issue and one that often polarises people’s views. However, in 2011 and in a leading civilised nation such as the U.S. it is arguable that there can be no circumstances in which sentencing a person to death is acceptable. America is known around the world as being a well-respected, leading democracy. The act of punishing people by death is an ancient one; it is also one that no longer has place in society.
...
Capital punishment or the death penalty is one of the most contentious types of punishments in the United States of America. It is the type of punishment that puts to death an individual who is found guilty of a crime as a result of a legal trial. The implementation of the death penalty dates back to the 1600s but has undergone many reforms thereafter. The discharge of the death penalty is very uncommon because it is usually applied for crimes of aggravated murder. Because the public views the death penalty as too harsh, immoral, and inhumane, it has been ...
Argumentative Essay: Capital Punishment
Introduction
Capital punishment is one of the most controversial topics pertaining to criminal punishment. For many years, this issue has been debated, yet until today, no conclusive position has been reached especially in the United States. Discussing the issue of capital punishment is important primarily because people are divided on whether capital punishment should be imposed or abolished. Furthermore, capital punishment raises an ethical dilemma that needs to be resolved since it is crucial in achieving a just justice system. This paper would like to argue that capital punishment is a just form of punishment.
The arguments that support ...
English
In spite of the fact that the Declaration of Independence affirmed that “All men are created equal”, due to the institution of slavery, the above-indicated statement was not grounded in law in the United States until after the Civil War (and, credibly, not completely fulfilled for many years thereafter).
The highly-acclaimed case known as Brown v. Board of Education was indeed the name which was given to five separate cases that were heard by the United States Supreme Court in 1954 regarding school desegregation. Despite the fact that all these cases were different, there were raised varied potent and ...
The U.S. Patriot Act
Americans faced one of the most horrifying episodes in their history of the United States. Many individuals watched with horror as the historical landmarks collapsed simultaneously at the hands of terrorists. Who could forget the shock as the terrorist planes embraced the Twin Towers as the terrorist snuffed the lights of many innocent victims? As a result of this horror, the American Congress waited for only forty-five days before passing the USA Patriot Act in response to that fateful date of September 11, 2001. A number of delusion individuals convinced themselves that they reserved the ...
In some states, it has been discussed that all recipients of public funds be drug tested before money can be received. In some instances, this act of drug testing would be for individuals receiving food stamps, cash welfare benefits, and unemployment compensation. In other states, it is only people receiving benefits under Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) that would be affected. There are people who support both sides of these issues. There have been correlations found between drug use and welfare dependency . For some, drug testing should be done since people are receiving funds from tax dollars. These ...
Stop and frisk essay introduction
"In that moment you are so scared," that is how Kasim Walters, a 17 years old New Yorker described his feelings when he was stopped by the police in his neighborhood in Brooklyn (Weir). The controversial stop and frisk policy came into effect in New York following the Terry v. Ohio case in 1968 in which the Supreme Court of the US made a significant ruling that a police officer doesn't violate the Fourth Amendment when he stops and frisks someone suspected on reasonable grounds of having committed a crime, about to commit a crime or is committing a crime. Over the ...
I intend to discuss the ethical implications of euthanasia throughout the course of this essay. Firstly I will be touching on the German philosopher Kant regarding his theories on personhood and consciousness in terms of people in vegetative states such as Terri Schiavo. I then will be moving on to broader issues of euthanasia such as the right to die and the legality of assisted suicide refusal of treatment the utilitarian perspective and the Nicomachean ethics of Aristotle. The purpose of which is to determine whether or not euthanasia is an ethical approach to incurable illnesses or disabilities which ...
For quite a considerable time during his time in office, President Obama has been very vocal about the rights of the gay community. On more than one occasions, he has openly come out clear that these individuals also have their rights and they need to be respected and allowed to enjoy those rights. In his stance, this is an issue related to civil rights (New York Times Editorial Para 1). However, this issue is hotly debated, with only a number of the states of the US having passed legislations which allow the gay people to enjoy their rights. This is quite ...
Gender bias refers to a situation where a decision making authority such as a family court or arbitrator tends to make partial decisions in favor of one party on grounds of gender. The issue of gender bias is most conspicuous in cases involving the legal separation of parents. Gender bias typically comes at the point where children custody is concerned. Apparently, many people have termed the common act of family courts to assign the mother child custody as gender bias (Stoner 259). One such person is David Pissara, a divorce attorney that has been in legal practice for well over a decade. In his ...