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Quote by: lsbskins1  The Constitution can not possibly and does not specifically address every right that IS NOT protected. |
As I said in various other posts on this and other threads, the Constitution does not grant rights, it limits government. You and sooooo many others seem to think that if it isn't enumerated in the Constitution then there is no right to it. So, again, where does the Constitution say people do not have the right to engage in dogfighting.
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It enumerates classes of rights that are absolutely protected. Just because it does not specifically deny, does not mean you have an absolute right to anything. Show me where the Constitution says I can't pour toxic chemicals in my yard. Show me where it says I can not beat my children. The states can limit it all, as long as they allow me to vote in elections and freely participate in the process, unless they are specifically enjoined from limiting. That is the point of the bill of rights.
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No, the Constitution does not enumerate classes of rights, it limits the federal government (while it does indicate that the federal government is absolutely prohibited from infringing on certain rights, those rights do not come from the Constitution itself but pre-exist the Constitution). In an earlier post I quoted the ninth amendment ("The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people") and referenced the tenth ("The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people").
To use your examples, the federal government does not have the constitutional authority to tell you that you can't pour toxic chemicals in your yard or beat your children. However, since the 14th amendment arguably placed the Constitutional limits of the federal government on the states as well, one could take it to mean the states can't tell you that you can't pour toxic chemicals in your yard or beat your children, or - to get back to the topic of the thread - train your dogs to fight and kill each other.