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If by this you mean to compare the Constitution to the laws of other nations, I believe that US rights are indeed "especially well protected." As I argued at the top of this comment, other nations do not have rights, but merely "rights" which, compared to the Constitution, are entirely unprotected.
If you mean an absolute level of protection, then I agree that the Constitution provides only partial protection, and a great deal of individual and cultural effort is required.
If by paper you mean "worthless" or "mere formality", I disagree. Again, refer to my comment above, specifically the section on the right against self-incrimination. The Constitution may be a piece of paper, but it is clearly and obviously not "just as much a piece of paper" as the Charter or the laws of England.
And it's overridden by s. 1 of the Charter, which states "this is all null and void if we feel like it".
I routinely have my property rights violated by the government of
Toronto and OttawaCanada. Of course, property rights don't exist in Canada (and if they did they'd be worthless so long as s. 1 exists), but still.More options
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Can the government(s) of Canada not just "notwithstanding" the Canadian version of the right against self-incrimination?
Edit:
The notwithstanding clause:
The right you cited:
Premise1: The notwithstanding clause applies to sections 7 to 15
Premise2: Section 11 is within sections 7 to 15
Conclusion1: the notwithstanding clause applies to section 11
Conclusion2: The Canadian government can legally write a law that prohibits section 11 from applying to Canadians by invoking the notwithstanding clause
Premise3: The Fifth Amendment would prevent the US government from passing a law as contemplated in Conclusion2
Conclusion3: Therefore, Canadians have less/fewer protections and less recourse for violations.
Technically, there would be no violation because the notwithstanding clause "makes it legal" as they say.
You have to have rights to have a culture of rights. See also, Canadian firearms law, the recent handgun ban by fiat, the trucker protest, the monarchy, etc.
No. It needs three quarters of the states to ratify the amendment.
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Given situations like https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55959133 , do you really find Canada to have better respect for rights?
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The Constitution recognizes rights, it does not grant them. So, legally, the removal of the Fifth Amendment would have no effect. I also reject the validity of the 18th Amendment, but I digress.
In any event, the need to "repeal" a constitutional amendment before passing a law that violates said right is one more speedbump than the Canadian Charter has, as Parliament can just pass the law and invoke the notwithstanding clause, which seems to be evidence in favor of my claim that the Constitution is superior protector of rights.
Can you expand on what you mean, here? The statement 'the Constitution...grant[s] rights legally' is literally false. Happy to supply evidence on this point. What evidence would you accept?
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