Originally posted by Fatty
Sandman, the consititution and the bill of rights apply to citizens only. By definition.
We try to extend those rights and considerations, but nothing in our constitution requires us to.
Sure get all lawyery on us
It is a very interesting question in my opinion. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson set up the idea that all men are created equal. And for many this can be seen as an all encompasing net which would apply the princeples of America (as defined by the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation (briefly) and later the Constitution.
However, Jefferson also set out some of the limitations. Reading the entire passage refereing to the equality of men, we can see some of this:
Originally Divined with Godlike wisome by Thomas Jefferson
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed
emphasis my own of course.
The Just powers of a the government seem to begin and end with the consent of the electorate. We are not qualified to extend the gifts of liberty and justice to those who do not have representation within our governing body. To my mind, this is pretty easy to understand. The US Constitutional Garauntees do not apply to those who are not citizens, however, binding laws passed by
other governmental (and intergovernmental) bodies are. These would include treaty obligations, UN Declarations, and probably other things that I'm not thinking of right now.
That's just a quik overview. I've changed my mind once on this today, so I'm still very malleable on this
