Constitution

I have long expressed deep concern over the rapid erosion of our Constitution. It is under siege and being destroyed. We should be deeply concerned. Our Founding Fathers said unless our Constitution is based on biblical religion and morality it will not work. Christianity has become an empty ritual. Where are the Christian leaders who will even label homosexuality a sin? The Bible labels it an abomination. British historian Paul Johnson said in 1999, "The essence of the rule of law is it's impersonality, omnipotence and ubiquity.

In the past 221 years, nations have risen and fallen, but the United States has remained strong, through civil war, two world wars, the Great Depression, the struggle for civil rights and other challenges. We have weathered these storms, in large part, because of a cherished document. It was 221 years ago today that delegates gathered in Philadelphia to sign the Constitution, which provided for a strong central government with a balance of power among three branches: the legislative, executive and judicial.

On Thursday, for the first time in American history, the 112th Congress opened up their tenure by reciting the U.S. Constitution on the House floor. Progressive Democrats bemoaned the act as “nonsense,” “ritualistic” and “propaganda.” Too bad for them, they missed the point. When I was a kid and I misbehaved in class, my teacher would make me write lines. I’d have to write 300 times, “I will not talk in class” — fitting for a guy who now makes his living with words.

The Centre College Law Society will sponsor a panel presentation titled "The U.S. Constitution: Continuity and Change" at 8 p.m. Monday in Young Hall, room 101 on campus. Panelists include: Pierce Lively, retired senior judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit; Jamey Leahey, Centre College counsel; and Dan Stroup, Centre professor of government. The event is free and open to the public. Each year, on or near the anniversary of the signing of the Constitution, the law society sponsors an event designed to engage the Centre and Danville community in a conversation about the life and history of the U.S. Constitution.

Dear Editor: I am reminded of Frank Capra's 1939 classic movie "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" in which the nave, idealistic, backwoods kid Jefferson Smith, played by James Stewart, thwarts the corrupt political establishment and, in spite of incumbents attempts to discredit him, manages to triumph and bring honesty back to government. This is precisely what we have facing us in this coming election, only the consequences are far more severe. What is at stake is the most sacred document of western civilization, the Constitution of the United States of America.

Dear Editor, The Constitution was written to protect the minority in this county, not the majority. The First Amendment guarantees the right for everyone to worship any way they want. I feel privileged to live in this country and to have had legislators and judges who thought the Constitution should be expanded to include more folks. If not, we would still have slaves and women who would not be able to vote. All this is expansion of the original ideals of the Constitution.

Dear Editor: There you go again Ms. Stipe. I challenge you to find specific language in the Constitution of the United States that says "separation of church and state. " If you are referencing the First Amendment, then let us see what it says: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for redress of grievances.

Dear Editor: I have found the recent letters regarding the so-called "right to smoke" a little unsettling. Smoking is an addiction and a serious health hazard that costs our country enormous amounts of money in lost productivity and health costs, to say nothing of the cost in lives and quality of life. The only thing distinguishing smoking from alcoholism and other destructive forms of addiction is that it happens to be legal, and furthermore well-protected by politically entrenched corporate interests, such as R.J. Reynolds.

Dear Editor, Maybe it's just me. They are talking about drafting a Constitution for Iraq. Why don't we just give them ours? It was written by a lot of really smart guys. It worked for us for over 200 years and we are not using it anymore. Frank Durham Danville

Dear Editor, How does tyranny arise? That it comes out of democracy is fairly clear. Does the change take place in the same sort of way as the change from oligarchy to democracy? Oligarchy was established by men with a certain aim in life: The good they sought was wealth, and it was the insatiable appetite for money - waking to the neglect of everything else that proved its undoing. Is democracy likewise ruined by greed for what it conceives to be "the supreme good?" (Plato, The Republic VIII 562)

There is a good chance that three political issues will soon become legal issues. Look for courts to decide the constitutionality of state legislative redistricting, if Rand Paul can be on the 2016 ballot for both President and Senator, and whether the statutory contract between Kentucky and its pensioners really is “inviolable.” There must be new state legislative districts before the 2014 elections. The current ones are way out of balance because of population changes since the last redistricting more than a decade ago. As a result, some parts of Kentucky are getting more representation than they should and others far less.

Danville-Boyle County Economic Development Partnership will move this summer from its location at McClure-Barbee House to Constitution Square Park. It's an agreement EDP and Boyle County Fiscal Court have been working on for a few years since the state decided to transfer ownership of the park to the county. EDP President and CEO Jody Lassiter said the relocation makes sense, as the park is a focal point of attraction and history for Danville and Boyle County and already houses one of its partners, the Convention and Visitors Bureau at Grayson's Tavern.

Adam Lanza was 20, and apparently a bright young man. He had obvious mental issues. He could've owned his own guns, but he didn't need to. He used his mother's guns.  She obviously had a gun permit. Adam Lanza shot his mother then took her guns, went to Sandy Hook Elementary and shot 20 kids and six adults. He didn't need to own a gun. He used his mother's guns. Gun control supporters are going to use this horrible incident to push for more gun control.  Any more gun control, even taking guns away, will be useless.

Kentucky voters may have believed they were supporting gun rights for hunters when they overwhelmingly approved an amendment to the state constitution on Nov. 6, but in reality they were shooting a very important document full of holes. If the landslide vote to make hunting and fishing a constitutional right is any indication, very few people seem to understand the importance and weight of a document like a constitution. After centuries of freedom, it's obviously easy to take it for granted, but constitutions are what our freedom to do as we wish is built on. Constitutions are mentally hefty, philosophically profound documents that speak to the archetypal ideal that each person is created equal and should be treated with respect and dignity.

I am worried about the state of our nation. I am fearful for my children's future. Every day “pop culture” mocks our country's history and the values America was founded on. News organizations, “think tanks” and the ivory towers of America's universities are asking, “Is the constitution still relevant?” Why is this happening? It is a leadership problem. We have elected officials who will not defend our country and the values and traditions and history of our great nation.

Constitution 5K Results At Danville Sunday Place, Name, Age    Time 1. Daniel Morgan, 28    17:48. 2. David Anderson, 47    19:08. 3. P.J. Loheide, 14    19:45. 4. Patrick Leahey, 15    19:52. 6. Chase Gander, 29    20:08. 7. Jordan Ellis, 32    20:09. 8. Robbie Davis, 37    20:14. 9. Sam Fluty, 15    20:22. 10. Shane Cummins, 43    20:38. 11. Vladimir Kostas, 40    20:55. 12. Ryan Baumann, 28    20:57. 13. Harper Smith, 51    21:00.

Before workers move ahead on bringing parts of Constitution Square Park into the 21st century for its new tenants, they will first have to delve beneath the park's centuries old surface. The state historic site was officially turned over to Boyle County Fiscal Court in March after the county targeted the historical buildings on the perimeter of the park for a $500,000 federal economic development grant.  The money will be used to retro-fit the buildings for use by the organizations that make up the Danville-Boyle County Economic Development Partnership, including adding an up-to-date phone and Internet system.

Boyle Fiscal Court approved hiring an architect Tuesday to renovate buildings at Constitution Square Park.  The Fiscal Court voted unanimously to hire CMW Inc. of Lexington. Fitzsimons Office of Architecture in collaboration with Carmen and Associates of Lexington, Campbell and Associates of Versailles, and Kleier Associates of Louisville also made presentations May 17. Jody Lassiter, president and chief executive officer of the Danville-Boyle County Economic Development Partnership, said all of the firms were on a preferred vendors list with the Kentucky Heritage Council, but CMW stood out because of its price and preparedness to move forward soon.  Talks about the county taking over Constitution Square began in early 2011, but the park commemorating the location where Kentucky's Constitution was signed in 1792 wasn't officially turned over to the county until March.

Local economic development officials eager to move into their new home at Constitution Square State Historic Site will start meeting with architects about renovations to historic buildings next month and hope to be completely moved in by fall. Boyle County Fiscal Court heard an update Tuesday on the architectural firms approved by the Kentucky Heritage Council to work on the buildings that will house agencies of the Danville-Boyle County Economic Development Partnership. Jody Lassiter, president and chief executive officer of the EDP, said the task of overseeing the renovations is being spearheaded by Interim Heart of Danville Director Brenda Willoughby, who ran the park for 17 years, and Philip Nichols, membership director for the Chamber of Commerce.