Do people understand...?

Sure. Slavery and segregation were states' rights issues, too. It was wrong for the federal government to get involved.

They weren't gods. They did the best they could, in light of their world, and how they understood it then.

One thing they included (besides some really vaguely stated general principles in the Preamble) was an ability to CHANGE the Constitution.

Uh, no. People having real liberty does NOT mean each state has the right to take people's rights away; the Constitution is supposed to prevent that. Thus, a state shouldn't have the right to outlaw people using birth control, for instance; or outlawing someone wearing a blue t-shirt, for that matter.

As I read it, the "secure the blessings of liberty" clause with the ninth amendment, together basically mean that we have complete freedom to do anything, unless there's a compelling reason (such as promoting the general welfare) for government to curtail it.

Thus, regulation of companies, which prevents massive bouts of suffering, is within the Constitution.

Uh, why are ONLY the states allowed to decide how to deal with changes? If that were the case, they wouldn't have had any amendment process.

There are things that just don't work on a state-by-state level; they need to be country-wide.

States effect each other more now than then. We're also much more intertwined with the rest of the world.

It's wrong-headed to take what those men thought as universal, unchanging truth. The world has changed, and we understand much more about it now, than they did then.

Do YOU understand that the Constitution was written to overcome the weak confederation that was created before that? They recognized that a stronger Federal government was needed to get things done.

And our needs are a lot different now. We've seen where a lack of action can cause disaster. Our strength as a nation comes from our huge size and economic might which can best be utilized on a national scale.

It's hard to quote our founding fathers and what they intended because when you look back they were racists, biggots, and murderers.

I love my country but I also realize that it was built on the blood of Indians, by men who felt that blacks and women didn't have equal rights.

People would also do well to stop and realize that those same men wanted freedom from religious hold in their government.

They had a good idea, but it must always remain a living and breathing idea that changes with time (IE: blacks, women, etc) or this country will never survive.

And while I'm making friends I might as well say- government has no business with the term 'marriage' anyway. It's a religious term. Governments should have always had civil unions for legal purposes, that's one case of them getting too big and mucking it up.

I think that is a simplistic view of what the founders wanted. Remember that they thought the Articles of Confederation were too weak and that the country needed a stronger federal government. That is why they wrote the Constitution. The Constitution also is flexible and provides the basic framework to function in a modern and complex society.

Few have actually read the Constitution or understand it's purpose. Now it is all about "what do I get out of it" or "how does it benefit me?"

Sure some things were different then but those are trivial details. The ideology of individual freedom doesn't change.

The founding fathers saw the potential for corruption and addressed it many times in personal correspondence, but opted to limit preventative measures to avoid limiting freedoms and independence.

They worked on the assumption that following generations would elect ethical and trustworthy representatives. Boy were they wrong.

Right, but they couldn't anticipate what the U.S. would become in terms of population and culture. Their world was a white one that wanted freedom from a King of a small country. The U.S. of old has little to do with the U.S. of now...

Except for the importance of SEPARATION of church and state, that is...

What evidence is there that the founding fathers despised big government?

You know something, it wasn't for some form of government regulation, you would be working 14 hour days at 50 cents an hour in factories!

The founding fathers also didn't have instant access to the information highway, nor were they able to talk to their constituents instantly to find out how their constituents felt about issues.

Yes they do understand! That is why so many people have been awakened and taken an interest in politics and what is going on. The people can see our rights are being eroded quickly. While it was slow and just a little at a time it was not noticed. But since the Obama Administration and the 111th Congress have tried ramming everything down our throats at one time, Freedom Loving Americans have awakened and taken notice.