The Purposes of the Constitution Essays (448 words) - Law

The Purposes of the Constitution The Constitution was created on September 17, 1787 and was signed by delegates in order to give citizens basic rights, create fundamental laws, and establish a government for the United States of America. It aided in building a stronger federal government in America by creating three branches known today as: executive, judicial and legislative. By having this type of government, we can separate ourselves from other countries as stated in Chapter Two, Page Forty-Eight, " How these branches of government are structured and the various functions they perform differentiates one government from another." These branches are all connected to one another. The Legislative branch known as Congress makes creates our laws and are actually split up into another two parts known as the House of Representatives and the Senate. The Representatives all come together to have meeting to go over whether or not certain bills should be passed or not and of they will help our government and communities. The Executive Branch ust follows the President's rules and does whatever he tells them to do. The President oversees the branch and uses them to complete important tasks in political affairs. Lastly we have the Judicial Branch. They are the Supreme Court and overlook any cases involving anyone or anything that goes against the laws created by the legislative branch. My next main purpose pertains to my last point and it's called Checks and Balances. In order for the U.S. government to keep all branches within the same amount of power and not become more powerful than the other. Either parts of the branches can limit one another to the amount of power they have and can use. While one branch makes a decision, another can overrule it, and if another wants to overrule it, then they can. In the end they will come to find a common ground to make a final decision. Therefore, no one has more power than the other or no less. "Such checks, among others, go a long way toward preventing any one branch of the government from running amok" The last main purpose for the constitution is how it gave the citizens of the U.S. basic human rights. It included: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Religion, Right to Bear Arms and many more. By giving Americans rights such as these, they feel more safe and felt protected. That was the goal for the Bill of Rights. So that when you are in America you should feel like you can be your own person. Which is exactly what the Constitution gave us. This is what our Founding Fathers wanted us to have.

Biography of John Riley - Saint Patricks Battalion

Biography of John Riley - Saint Patricks Battalion John Riley (Circa 1805-1850) was an Irish soldier who deserted the American army just before the outbreak of the Mexican-American War. He joined the Mexican army and founded the St. Patricks Battalion, a force made up of fellow deserters, primarily Irish and German Catholics. Riley and the others deserted because treatment of foreigners in the US army was very harsh and because they felt that their allegiance was more with Catholic Mexico than Protestant USA. Riley fought with distinction for the Mexican army and survived the war only to die in obscurity. Early Life and Military Career Riley was born in County Galway, Ireland sometime between 1805 and 1818. Ireland was a very poor country at the time and was hit hard even before the great famines began around 1845. Like many Irish, Riley made his way to Canada, where he likely served in a British army regiment. Moving to Michigan, he enlisted in the US army before the Mexican-American War. When sent to Texas, Riley deserted to Mexico on April 12, 1846, before the war officially broke out. Like other deserters, he was welcomed and invited to serve in the Legion of Foreigners which saw action in the bombardment of Fort Texas and the Battle of Resaca de la Palma. The Saint Patricks Battalion By April of 1846, Riley had been promoted to Lieutenant and had organized a unit comprised of 48 Irishmen who joined the Mexican army. More and more deserters came over from the American side and by August of 1846, he had over 200 men in his battalion. The unit was named el Batallà ³n de San Patricio, or the St. Patricks Battalion, in honor of Irelands patron saint. They marched under a green banner with an image of St. Patrick on one side and a harp and emblem of Mexico on the other. As many of them were skilled artillerymen, they were assigned as an elite artillery regiment. Why Did the San Patricios Defect? During the Mexican-American War, thousands of men deserted on both sides: conditions were harsh and more men died of illness and exposure than in combat. Life in the US army was particularly tough on Irish Catholics: they were seen as lazy, ignorant and foolish. They were given dirty and dangerous jobs and promotions were virtually non-existent. Those who joined the enemy side most likely did so because of the promises of land and money and out of loyalty to Catholicism: Mexico, like Ireland, is a Catholic nation. The St. Patrick’s Battalion was comprised of foreigners, mainly Irish Catholics. There were some German Catholics as well, and some foreigners who lived in Mexico before the war. The Saint Patricks in Action in Northern Mexico The St. Patricks Battalion saw limited action at the siege of Monterrey, as they were stationed in a massive fortress that American General Zachary Taylor decided to avoid entirely. At the Battle of Buena Vista, however, they played a major role. They were stationed alongside the main road on a plateau where the main Mexican assault took place. They won an artillery duel with an American unit and even made off with some American cannons. When Mexican defeat was imminent, they helped cover the retreat. Several San Patricios won a Cross of Honor medal for valor during the battle, including Riley, who was also promoted to captain. The San Patricios in Mexico City After the Americans opened another front, the San Patricios accompanied Mexican General Santa Anna to the east of Mexico City. They saw action at the Battle of Cerro Gordo, although their role in that battle has been largely lost to history. It was at the Battle of Chapultepec that ​they made a name for themselves. As the Americans attacked Mexico City, the Battalion was stationed at one end of a key bridge and in a nearby convent. They held the bridge and convent for hours against superior troops and weapons. When Mexicans in the convent tried to surrender, the San Patricios tore down the white flag three times. They were eventually overwhelmed once they ran out of ammunition. Most of the San Patricios were killed or captured at the Battle of Churubusco, ending its effective life as a unit, although it would re-form after the war with the survivors and last for about another year. Capture and Punishment Riley was among the 85 San Patricios captured during the battle. They were court-martialed and most of them were found guilty of desertion. Between September 10 and 13, 1847, fifty of them would be hanged in punishment for their defection to the other side. Riley, although he was the highest-profile among them, was not hanged: he had defected before the war had officially been declared, and such defection in peacetime was by definition a far less serious offense. Still, Riley, by then a major and highest ranking foreign officer of the San Patricios (the Battalion had Mexican commanding officers), was punished harshly. His head was shaved, he was given fifty lashes (witnesses say the count was botched and that Riley actually received 59), and he was branded with a D (for deserter) on his cheek. When the brand was at first put on upside down, he was re-branded on the other cheek. After that, he was thrown in a dungeon for the duration of the war, which lasted several more months. In spite of this harsh punishment, there were those in the American army who felt he should have been hanged with the others. After the war, Riley and the others were released and re-formed the St. Patricks Battalion. The unit soon became embroiled in the constant infighting among Mexican officials and Riley was briefly jailed for suspicion of participation in an uprising, but he was freed. Records indicating that a Juan Riley died on August 31, 1850, were once believed to refer to him, but new evidence indicates that this is not the case. Efforts are ongoing to determine Rileys true fate: Dr. Michael Hogan (who has written the definitive texts about the San Patricios) writes The search for the burial place of the true John Riley, Mexican major, a decorated hero, and leader of the Irish battalion, must continue. The Legacy   To Americans, Riley is a deserter and a traitor: the lowest of the low. To Mexicans, however, Riley is a great hero: a skilled soldier who followed his conscience and joined the enemy because he thought it was the right thing to do. The St. Patricks Battalion has a place of great honor in Mexican history: there are streets named for it, memorial plaques where they fought, postage stamps, etc. Riley is the name most commonly associated with the Battalion, and he has, therefore, gained extra heroic status for Mexicans, who have erected a statue of him in his birthplace of Clifden, Ireland. The Irish have returned the favor, and there is a bust of Riley now in the San Angel Plaza, courtesy of Ireland. Americans of Irish descent, who once disowned Riley and the Battalion, have warmed to them in recent years: perhaps in part due to a couple of good books that have come out recently. Also, there was a major Hollywood production in 1999 entitled One Mans Hero based (very loosely) on the life of Riley and the Battalion. Sources Hogan, Michael. The Irish Soldiers of Mexico. Paperback, CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, May 25, 2011. Wheelan, Joseph. Invading Mexico: Americas Continental Dream and the Mexican War, 1846-1848. New York: Carroll and Graf, 2007.

The sub-prime mortgage crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The sub-prime mortgage crisis - Essay Example The US sub-prime crisis is the historic turning point in the US economy and global culture. It is the result of the collapse of the speculative bubble in the housing market that began to burst in 2006 and has had rippling effects across many countries in the form of financial failures and global credit crunch. The current credit crisis which is the wave of the collapse of the US sub-prime mortgage market can be evaluated by understanding the history which is associated with it in terms of the effects it has had on the borrower as well as the financial statements of the banks, other financial institutions and the investors in the mortgage backed by securities around the world (Walters, 2008). The mortgage lending market is divided in two sectors prime and sub-prime. Prime borrowers are marked by high income, strong credit rating and sound savings. Sub-prime mortgages are loans which are extended to borrowers who have low credit score, no savings, blemished credit history and weak debt to income ratio. Sub-prime borrowers are considered riskier by the lending institutions and are generally assessed at higher interest rates than the prime borrowers. The sub-prime mortgage market emerged and flourished in the 1990’s. The new trend of extending loans or credit to borrowers with less than perfect profiles was adopted in 1990’s and continued until 2005, resulting in increased homeownership recording 64.1 % in 1993 and 68.9% in 2005(Carpenter,2008). The expansion of sub-prime market improved the access of credit and resulted in the boom in the real estate market. This also led to the expansion of credit to those borrowers whose credit was blemished. This period was also backed by strong overall housing market with increasing value of the home prices. Though this trend did not continue and in 2006 the housing market began to slow down, which resulted in rising late mortgage payments, foreclosures and defaults. This resulted in the collapse of the US sub-pr ime mortgage market. The crisis had widespread impact on the borrowers, investors, financial institutions, securitization, and mortgage broker which led to more involved government regulation. With the emergence of the sub-prime mortgage on the larger scale, there has evolved a new term in the lending world 'predatory lending'. It was seen that as sub-prime market increased so did predatory lending in some form or another. The Joint Report offered this definition: "In a predatory lending situation, the party that initiates the loan often provides misinformation, manipulates the borrower through aggressive sales tactics, and/or takes unfair advantage of the borrower's lack of information about the loan terms and their consequences. The results are loans with onerous terms and conditions that the borrower often cannot repay, leading to foreclosure or bankruptcy" (Carpenter, 2008). This brings in the ethics applied in the lending industry where sub-prime lending can be encouraged and predatory lending can be controlled using regulatory authorities. Owning a house is very noble desire very intrinsic to the happiness of the human beings. When the system goes against this virtue and creates more damage to the parties concerned it becomes a widespread crisis. Sound ethical practice applied to different segments of the mortgage industry will provide a channel which will help solve this ruthless money making machinery from exploiting the situation of nave customers or borrowers. The first time home buyers are elated and confused. It is an intimidating experience for the borrowers especially if they have been declined credit because of their income or credit history. It is a challenging task to negotiate the maze of loan processing which are overwhelming in terms of loan terms, fees, and financing documents. Most of the time borrowers place their trust in the broker or the lending authority which initiates the