Written In Stone

To the Editor:

The laws written on stone tablets, which according to the Old Testament, Moses brought back from Mount Sinai as the Ten Commandments of God, formed the basis of the laws of the Jewish and also to a large extent the Christian communities and is considered to this day as immensely important to our judicial system and morality.

In our own democratic Republic, we have the Constitution which is the basis of our social contract with each other as a people. All our laws must be based on it and the final arbiter of these laws is our Supreme Court.

If you read the Constitution you will notice that certain portions deal with relatively minor issues, e.g., if in the event of war, troops may be quartered in your home or the sum of money in a civil case to request a jury trial.

Others, however, are the cornerstones on which this Republic rests. Among these are the forms of government we live under, the presumption of innocence until proven guilty, the separation of religious and secular power, freedom of religious expression, and the 14th Amendment which has as its purpose to once and for all eliminate all legal prejudicial and preferential treatment of anyone or any group or faction in our society. It was the lack of including it in the original draft of our Constitution which led to our Civil War and civil strife. Its importance thus cannot be overstated and anyone who believes that it only applies to racism does not understand its meaning.

Any law granting certain privileges to selected groups must pass the scrutiny of this portion of our Constitution and since it states that the protection of the law must extend to every citizen in the state, it must not cause harm, neglect, or loss to any of its citizens. This is the essence of the 14th Amendment, the two aspects of any such law. In effect it says: If you help one group, you may not do this at the expense of others. It is with deliberate purpose that any change in our Constitution is made extremely difficult since it will affect not only the present, but all generations adhering to its carefully crafted language.

If you read the 14th Amendment you will find that there is not an extra word needed nor desired to fulfill its purpose nor must any court or politician attempt to change its meaning into something it does not say. Its words are as critical to us as laws of the tablets of Moses were to the Israelites and we must insist on their strict observance and freedom from political motivation.

It is in this context that we must ensure that any circumvention or infringement of our Constitution by any group be repelled or repealed. In particular, this applies to the tenure laws which I view as a gross violation of our Constitution. We owe it to our children and our posterity to have this law repealed. There can be no compromise.

Oscar Berendsohn

34 Appleblossom Lane, Newtown                                   May 29, 2012