Nearly 4 In 10 Americans Can’t Name ANY First Amendment Rights

[Anti Federalist]

Bet your ass a lot of these people vote though.


Poll: Nearly 4 In 10 Americans Can’t Name Any First Amendment Rights

http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2017/09/13/americans-cant-name-rights/

September 13, 2017 5:05 PM

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — A recent poll conducted by the University of Pennsylvania finds that residents of the United States are poorly informed about basic constitutional provisions.

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The newly released survey suggests Americans cannot name a single right protected by the First Amendment.

According to Penn’s Annenberg Public Policy Center released Tuesday, 37 percent could not name any of the five rights protected by First Amendment, and just about half (48 percent) could name freedom of speech.

In addition, the survey found that 33 percent of those polled were unable to name one of the three branches of the U.S. government, such as legislative, executive and judicial. And only 26 percent of the respondents could name the three branches.

“Protecting the rights guaranteed by the Constitution presupposes that we know what they are. The fact that many don’t is worrisome,” said Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center. “These results emphasize the need for high-quality civics education in the schools and for press reporting that underscores the existence of constitutional protections.”

[TheTexan]

the existence of constitutional protections

Right

[oyarde]

I bet I can hit the bar district in Indianapolis and get 37 percent or better on the 21st amendment . If you think about it , 37 percent is good on the first amendment , americans really do not even need freedom of religion or freedom of the press .

[shakey1]

Do they even teach anything about the Constitution in school any more?

[phill4paul]

Do they even teach anything about the Constitution in school any more?

That's what I was wondering. No civics classes anymore?

[CaptUSA]

Do they even teach anything about the Constitution in school any more?

Government skoolz are not for education. They're babysitting indoctrination centers. Repeat at the end of the week what they tell you at the beginning of the week and you get A's. you don't have to learn anything to get through, so why would you? You'd have to make your own incentive, because their incentive is to get more money from taxpayers. That's it.

[Weston White]

What only 4:10!? Wow, just wow!

Gee, I thought everybody knew that the First Amend. is when the police stop you and they first have Mirandize you and then you have to tell them all the bad things you did or else you get into worse trouble than you otherwise would have.

[fisharmor]

Do they even teach anything about the Constitution in school any more?

I graduated in '92 and at no point was the US Constitution ever a topic of discussion.
Not in 8th grade Civics, not in 11th grade US & VA history, not in 12th grade government class.
This was in Fairfax Co, VA, which even then was rated among the top 25 school districts in the US.
IOW, I refuse to believe they ever did teach anything about the Constitution.

[specsaregood]

Government skoolz are not for education. They're babysitting indoctrination centers. Repeat at the end of the week what they tell you at the beginning of the week and you get A's. you don't have to learn anything to get through, so why would you? You'd have to make your own incentive, because their incentive is to get more money from taxpayers. That's it.

depends on the schools/classrooms. I just went to the back to school night for my kids 1st grade and was really impressed. it is all hands on learning and obvious the teacher actually likes kids. they are running their own "business" in class where they sell flower bouquets around the school and the kids have to take orders, arrange flowers according to requests, take payment, delivery and do inventory and accounting. (all at a 1st grade level obviously) they spend an hour in the creating/building lab everyday with every sort of building toys (legos, connectix, bolts and washers, etc) And a whole bunch of other fun educational stuff like it.

[fisharmor]

I bet the percent of people who don't know that the 1st Amendment doesn't protect freedom of religion is somewhere in the 90s.

[TheTexan]

How can people not know what the 1st amendment is?

Where do they think the right to hunt and own hunting rifles comes from?

[DamianTV]

If people are not taught that they have ANY rights, they may believe they dont have any to begin with, which is what some in power desperately want.

Another major problem with not knowing anything about rights in general is that they also very well may not understand what a right is, and what its limits are. Such as many of our beliefs that there can be no such thing as a Right to Entitlement of any form because that infringes upon the equal rights of others. Without that basic concept, the idea of Entitlements grows in the minds of the mentally impoverished.

[Danke]

The government grants us so many rights, I can see why people have a hard time keeping track of all of them.

[timosman]

How can people not know what the 1st amendment is?

Where do they think the right to hunt and own hunting rifles comes from?

A county clerk?:confused:

[Ender]

Government skoolz are not for education. They're babysitting indoctrination centers. Repeat at the end of the week what they tell you at the beginning of the week and you get A's. you don't have to learn anything to get through, so why would you? You'd have to make your own incentive, because their incentive is to get more money from taxpayers. That's it.

Yep.

The reason Public Education came into existence was to make compliant factory workers- it has been a huge success.

Also, the whole system is based on force which results in simple regurgitation: swallow it, burp it out, forget it.

"Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion has no hold on the mind. Therefore do not use compulsion, but let early education be a sort of amusement; you will then be better able to discover the child's natural bent."
-Plato-

[Ender]

I bet the percent of people who don't know that the 1st Amendment doesn't protect freedom of religion is somewhere in the 90s.

The 1st Amendment says: Congress shall make NO LAW concerning religion.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;

That means .gov has absolutely no say in religion, whatsoever. Unfortunately a quote from Jefferson has been interpreted to mean that the 1st Amendment signifies separation of Church & State, so that the State can dictate what that "means".

Also the incorporation of churches to become 501(c)3s was exactly to bring them under state power. Churches are already tax-exempt and have been since the dawning of this country; they do not need the state's OK.

[Anti Federalist]

Yep.

The reason Public Education came into existence was to make compliant factory workers- it has been a huge success.

Also, the whole system is based on force which results in simple regurgitation: swallow it, burp it out, forget it.

"Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion has no hold on the mind. Therefore do not use compulsion, but let early education be a sort of amusement; you will then be better able to discover the child's natural bent."
-Plato-

And now, since there are no longer any factories with jobs, it makes sense that the government schools now teach nothing but self loathing and nonsense.

The better to stroll into a Soylent Co. suicide clinic, or just shamble along collecting your Universal Basic Income.

No real education required to do either one of those things.

[timosman]

I can not really understand why you guys are such downers. The government practically eliminated all of your competition and you still can not thrive. What else do you need? /s

[fisharmor]

The 1st Amendment says: Congress shall make NO LAW concerning religion.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;

That means .gov has absolutely no say in religion, whatsoever. Unfortunately a quote from Jefferson has been interpreted to mean that the 1st Amendment signifies separation of Church & State, so that the State can dictate what that "means".

Also the incorporation of churches to become 501(c)3s was exactly to bring them under state power. Churches are already tax-exempt and have been since the dawning of this country; they do not need the state's OK.

The restriction is placed on CONGRESS.

There are 50 other states involved in the mix, several territories, and countless localities.

By the letter of that text, barring more restrictive state constitutions, all of them are perfectly free to restrict free exercise of religion.

This is another example of why I'm not a constitutionalist: on several important points it doesn't say what everyone thinks it says, therefore the words written in it are meaningless, so trying to stick to it is meaningless.

[oyarde]

The government grants us so many rights, I can see why people have a hard time keeping track of all of them.

Yes , right to pay sales tax , property tax , income tax , gas tax , cigarette tax , beer tax , wine tax , liquor tax , medicare tax , social security tax ,state tax , county tax and keep a hunting musket . And all those other rights , like nobody is going to search my stuff ......

[Danke]

Yes , right to pay sales tax , property tax , income tax , gas tax , cigarette tax , beer tax , wine tax , liquor tax , medicare tax , social security tax ,state tax , county tax and keep a hunting musket . And all those other rights , like nobody is going to search my stuff ......

You are lucky your forefathers had the sense to sign treaties exempting y'all of that, as long as you stayed put on the lush reservations the white man granted you.

[Raginfridus]

Also the incorporation of churches to become 501(c)3s was exactly to bring them under state power. Churches are already tax-exempt and have been since the dawning of this country; they do not need the state's OK.Back in the day, you went to church to see your taxes at work. Several states had State Churches. (I linked to them in a philosophy sub topic.) But that was all in bounds of the State constitutions. People need to ask themselves: why is it really that Congress isn't to recognize one or another church? Because the States could, and did, choose whether to have a State Church, and which church that might be. For the Feds to choose a church would conflict with the 10th Amendment.

I agree 501 churches are tools (some frauds), and Congress haven't got the authority to declare them, but there was a time when State Churches were normal post-1789.

[Ender]

The restriction is placed on CONGRESS.

There are 50 other states involved in the mix, several territories, and countless localities.

By the letter of that text, barring more restrictive state constitutions, all of them are perfectly free to restrict free exercise of religion.

This is another example of why I'm not a constitutionalist: on several important points it doesn't say what everyone thinks it says, therefore the words written in it are meaningless, so trying to stick to it is meaningless.

My POV is that the Constitution was a Hamiltonian coup for Big Gov. The states were always supposed to have been separate entities, united under one central unit for things such as protection in case of an attack & foreign trade. The Fed was never suppose to be a dictator to the separate states.

[tod evans]

And now, since there are no longer any factories with jobs, it makes sense that the government schools now teach nothing but self loathing and nonsense.

The better to stroll into a Soylent Co. suicide clinic, or just shamble along collecting your Universal Basic Income.

No real education required to do either one of those things.

Pipe down you.