The Government giveth and taketh away, not God.

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Photo by Tito Texidor III on Unsplash

Around the 1890s, a prominent Virginia Supreme court justice Westell Willoughby wrote, “There are in the individual no so-called innate or ‘natural rights,’ that is, such rights as exist independently of the State and beyond its control. In so far as the individual has claims upon his fellows to a non-interference upon their part with the free exercise of certain outward acts, such claims have no legal force except as recognized and enforced by the political power.”

This thinking, I would say, has subconsciously had a big influence on the political, judicial, and public sphere during this time period. The variable change of what you can or can not do is demonstrated widely from the end of the civil war and the new deal. We see this influence in cases like Lochner v New York, the slaughterhouse case, and many more. Take Lochner v. New York (1905) was a supreme court case where Joesph Lochner was indicted for violating a New York law that outlaws from a baker to go over the 60 workweeks (Bakeshop Act) because he let an employee do so. The supreme court decided on April 17, 1905, in Lochner’s favor, deciding that “The general right to make a contract in relation to his business is part of the liberty protected by the Fourteenth Amendment, and this includes the right to purchase and sell labor” Lochner v. New York (1905) even though the law is based on health There “is no reasonable ground, on the score of health, for interfering with the liberty of the person or the right of free contract,” Lochner v. New York (1905). In this case, the state originally enacted a law that did not allow a class of persons, i.e., bakers, to work a certain amount of hours during the workweek. This was an act called the baker’s act, and this act was a restriction of the “right to contract” this law to that right away. Still, shortly after, the case was sent to the supreme court and then struck down, so then the government back gave that right. …


The 14th amendment has changed so much since its ratification, but laws are a process.

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Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

The 14th amendment to the constitution was ratified on July 9, 1868. It was an influential law that abridges states from making laws to strip “the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States” and nor “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” Now, given that this law was written broadly was originally designed to denounce the racial disparages that were common in the united states. Even though this might have been the original intent of the author fifty years after the 14th amendment was ratified, the amendment has been interpreted in many different ways and many in different situations; it's been cited in business “personhood” in (Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad Co). The personal rights of racial minorities, in (Plessy v. Ferguson), the right to contract (Lochner v. New York), and the monopoly power to help public health. (The slaughterhouse cases). …


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Photo by Mark S. on Unsplash

So you’re probably thinking, what can a loser tell me about how to get out of debt? Well, I can’t tell you how not to be a loser or how to be successful, but I can show you how a loser like me got out of 15,000 dollars worth of crippling debt, easily within a reasonable amount of time.

Sounds easy enough? Well, depending on what type of debt you have, it could be easy or challenging. …


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Photo by Paul Biñas on Unsplash

So you’re a recording artist or a content creator from youtube, and one day you realize there is a lot of men on your social media who look like they are there for an alternative reason. Here are some things to think about in your next post or video that might help with these weirdo accounts that follow you.


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Photo by Guido Coppa on Unsplash

The language of Pre-incarceration

The United States has one of the most varied systems of incarceration in the world, with more than 51 Types of incarceration systems in the nation that all reasonably independent of each other. The united states have 50 different state prison systems and one vastly complicated central federal prison system. In these systems, we house the most significant number of people compared to any other country, with around a million of people bounded by a system that is structured and run by language and more definitely words. The language that we use and see in incarceration changes we The way look at the policies of punishment and rehabilitation and the success of the people who experience incarceration. The language of imprisonment is vast, but can easily be broken down into three parts. These parts are the language of the statutory and regulatory structure. The words that people are experiencing incarceration use amongst each other. …


The Association of Bay Area Governments and Metropolitan Transportation Commission voted unanimously for a motion to examine critical parts of a proposed transit bill.

On Friday, Feb 14th, in San Francisco, The Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Association Bay area Governments in a joint meeting agreed to in their next meeting to examine many parts of State Bill 79.

This bill Which would implement a 1 cent sales tax to increase the funding for the production of affordable housing and transportation together.

The Agreement after the meeting’s public comment urged the commission to change the method of how the new bill would get its funding. …


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Photo by Pepi Stojanovski on Unsplash

Some days ago, Rep. Ro Khanna and Rep. Tim Ryan, two Democrats in the House of Representatives, proposed the emergency money for the people act that helps fix the problems that were present in the CARES act. The problem with the cares act is that it excluded a lot of people. It prohibited undocumented immigrants and excluded college students and a few other types of workers who desperately need money because they were unable to work due to the shutdown. To add on to that, are some people who can not get approval for unemployment in their state, like Undocumented or part-time workers. Some workers are only eligible for the $600 in the care act and not the additional state benefits. Such a bill like this would help patch specific flaws in the original proposal. …


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Photo by Cristian Newman on Unsplash

America in the 21st century has a large number of criminals and people who experience incarceration. Almost 3 percent of the population suffer this experience, some only for a specific amount of time, others a lifetime. for the ones that live the background for a lifetime. It can start at a young age sometimes at the age of 12, with the terms delinquent, “gangbanger” or “criminal” from their families, community, or the justice system itself.

The words or “titles” that we are given to us from the start of childhood to the early and mid-adulthood can dramatically affect the actions we take in our daily lives. If we are young, these terms can describe unwanted and possible rowdy childish behavior that can be harmless. But then if a prolonged series of poorly chosen words slip out or are used from a person of cultivating authority in the child’s life like a parent or school counselor could turn the child’s action, thoughts, and beliefs about themself, to become adversarial. The child’s activities at first could be harmless like simple disobedience in the classroom, or the lack of playing well with others. But if an untrained teacher called them a delinquent for it might not do anything, but if that same teacher says it again and again, then the likelihood of the child believing increases and could start to think they’re one. …


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Photo by David Veksler on Unsplash

We are in the age where viruses can take over society in a matter of minutes, days, and weeks. Some like the Ebola virus can be extremely deadly, but not the fastest spreading infection out there other viruses like COVID-19 is dangerous but not to the extent that everyone seems to think. Still, the problem is that the virus is exceptionally contagious. The ability of the virus to spread across a community is mind-blowing. In a matter of days, the virus can infect a community. As we see the highest risk groups, their communities can be paralyzed by the impact of the illness. Now the high-risk groups’ risk of dying is low, making probably about less than 3% of all who are infected. While the rest aren’t super concerned about dying from the virus and shouldn’t be. So what should be our priority? …


The Bar That Gave Me Confidence

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Photo by Sérgio Alves Santos on Unsplash

When most people think about the Bay Area, they think about San Francisco, or if they are “woke.” Then they will probably think about Oakland, but this little bar is not in San Francisco or Oakland. No, this unique little-to-medium size bar is in a small-town city east of San Francisco, about 20 miles outside of Oakland, called by the quaint name Walnut Creek.

You’ve probably never heard Walnut Creek. That’s okay because all you need to know is that it is a small city with a small city feel and a kick-ass bar. The bar’s name, Bourbon Highway. Unlike most bars and clubs in the bay area, its pretty true to its name, and its not a bar run and ruined by the tech invaders of Silicone Valley. .It’s a bar for the residents and respectful visitors of the East Bay. Its duality of country hospitality and Bay Area party style, its a must go for someone looking for a good time. This bar has things for everyone: beer, cocktails, and the widely popular white claws. …

About

C.R. Pattison

Bay Area-based writer and content creator. Focusing on media and politics

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