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Let's take a moment to look at rights. I've seen rights referenced quite a lot since the election on December 6. For example:

"You have the right to revolt!"
"My right of expression is being violated."
"Our rights are being suppressed."
"You have no right to revolt."
"You do not have the right to disobey Congress."

There are many more, and more varied, rights that have been claimed and denied. Of course, upon closer examination of this country's guiding document, the eUS Constitution, we see that despite all that bluster, as citizens we have no rights.

We shall break it down, segment by segment, and see what rights are afforded the layman.

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Title 1: Procedure

Title 1 discusses the definition of a quorum, the process by which a proposal becomes a law, and what happens if a member resigns from Congress.

Title 2: Congressional Structure

Title 2 discusses the rights of the Speaker of the House, which include, "any powers Congress has granted." It also discusses how he should be removed, should he require removal.

Next there is a brief segment on the Select Committee on Intelligence, which exists entirely divested from the game and controls disbursements of the national treasury, which typically takes 5 votes but in the case of a nebulously-defined "emergency" requires only 3.

We see the origins of the Congressional Budget Office, which exists to "execute the will of Congress", for all the good that definition does us.

IES, too, is established here. Fortunately a task is laid out for IES, if not the definition of "IES": regulating immigration. Of course, it too must "abide by the rules and regulations set forth by Congress."

Title 3: Oversight and Public Disclosure

This sounds promising! Public disclosure, oversight- good stuff so far.

Section 3.11- Anyone who gets money must disclose the usage of those funds to Congress upon request.

Section 3.12- The military, President, and CBO must report to the SCI upon request with regard to money spent.

... this is about Congress' oversight, and disclosure to Congress, isn't it?

Title 4: Rules and Regulations Adopted by Congress

Budgets and Budget amendments.

... and that's it for the Constitution, save for an addendum regarding the Department of Defense. Oh, don't forget about the "Principles" of each branch of government, as defined by the Constitution:

Congress:
Organizes itself, controls the nation's money, controls the tax rate, and "takes advice" from the Executive and military.

Executive:
Commander of the Armed Forces, chief diplomat, and runs programs through a cabinet. Can suspend funding to the Armed Forces, but that can also be overturned by Congress.

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Let us review. The Constitution lays out Congress' powers, gives Congress the ability to do what it wants, stipulates that everyone report to Congress or the SCI, talks about the rights of the Speaker of the House (an interesting term, considering that Congress is unicameral), establishes IES, establishes SCI, and stipulates the existence of a Department of Defense.

You and I are not mentioned in the Constitution once- the Constitution as it exists is wholly inadequate as a basis for any one citizen to make the claim that they even have rights. Indeed, the only rights we have are those that we absolutely cannot be deprived of- free expression (so long as it exists within the game) and the right to vote, except that too is obscured to an extent when those who you vote for are a step removed from actually enacting laws on their own.

In essence, the point is to we should all stop pretending that we have rights and start fighting for them. What rights do we need? What rights do we want?


Let's examine the real-life Bill of Rights. It grants us:

1. Freedom of Speech, Religion, and the Press
2. The Right to Bear Arms
3. The Right to Refuse Quarters to Soldiers
4. Restrictions on Search and Seizure
5. Provisions Concerning Prosecution*
6. Right to a Speedy Public Trial**
7. Right to a Trial by Jury
8. Protection from Excessive Bail or Cruel Punishment
9. The Constitution only names rights that are guaranteed, it doesn't take away those that aren't.
10. Powers not named in the Constitution are given to the States.

* The Fifth Amendment protects one from self-incrimination, guarantees their charges will be heard by a Grand Jury except in military situations, protects from Double Jeopardy, guarantees Due Process of law to every citizen prior to any deprivation of liberty or property, and provides that any private property seized will be compensated for.

** The Sixth Amendment provides the right to a Speedy and Public Trial before an impartial jury, the right to be informed of charges against you, to have compulsory process in obtaining witnesses, and to have the assistance of counsel in your defense.

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This is a treasure trove of rights. There are a lot of rights there, too many to discuss here in any depth. Many are inapplicable to the game, but if you consider the metagame's vast scope we can see where many of these rights are not only applicable but necessary.

During a public discussion on the eUS Forums regarding the proposed Supreme Court, someone (I don't recall who) said something along the lines of, "I see no reason for a Supreme Court, because the Supreme Court interprets the Constitution and there's no need for that here."

That person is right. Feel free to claim credit in the comments, by the way. With the Constitution we have, there is no need for a Supreme Court. This Constitution is so virtually empty of substance that a Supreme Court would have no job.


Simply put: We need a new Constitution less enamored with describing Congress' role, but focused on individual rights and a more workable government that has actual checks and balances.

In closing, before you complain about a right being violated stop and think about whether or not you even have that right. As it stands, I can make that easy for you: You don't.