4 ms·

[Citation needed].

• adamnemecek 13y ago
  I mean, aren't you the one who should be providing citations?
  • Locke1689 13y ago
    Nope. It's good policy to expect that a govt. can do anything, unless presented with evidence to the contrary. This is a good rule of thumb, mostly because its true. I'm not sure why people have trouble understanding this (poor civics classes? too dense?) but the US govt. can do anything it physically can. Sure, it may require a constitutional amendment, but if the political will is there the govt. can do anything. But even in softer formulations, Congress can use general welfare to get away with anything SCOTUS will let them get away with. Luckily though, unlike everyone else on Hacker News, I actually read the Constitution and thus happen to know this line: To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;
    • aaronem 13y ago
      Sovereignty, Citizen, is an obsolete concept.
    • adamnemecek 13y ago
      "It's good policy to expect that a govt. can do anything, unless presented with evidence to the contrary." WTF does this sentence even mean. Evidence to the contrary that the gov't can't do anything? Could you give an example of such a piece of evidence? Also TIL Disney dollar is against the constitution.
      • makerops 13y ago
        But, it can. Sometimes it's hand is slapped, and sometimes it isn't, but the government has proven its willingness and ability to violate everything in the constitution on multiple occasions.
        • adamnemecek 13y ago
          We are talking about laws here, right? Not like say single events where the gov't did something unconstitutional (not that these are ok, but we are talking about a ban on using bitcoins as a currency, which would have to be a law). So which law do you think currently undeniably violates the constitution?