Very interesting. I'm going to have to go do some homework now. You (individually and collectively) have really piqued my curiousity on this issue....

So I'm gonna delve into "case law" a little bit, and see what I can find out.

Or maybe I should just go get a JD, right Senax? (j/k)....

Suddenly I'm interested in "where we stand" in relation to the Tenth Amendment. I mean, this is like an epiphany for me -

'Cause now I finally understand why I hate George freakin' Bush and the Neo-Cons.

It's 'cause they're violating my Constitutional rights!!!

(Or at least, what I "perceive" to be my rights at this point, so I gotta go back and try to figure out how much of my perception is "real" - and even if it turns out to be real, what if anything I - or any citizen - could actually DO about it).

So my plan, is to just start by researching the Supreme Court decisions that invoke or relate to the Tenth Amendment, and to the question of "States' Rights", and then I'm going to try to build some "context" around that piece by studying a little lower-level case law to see how the Supreme Court decisions fit in with what's going on "on the ground" -

Does that sound like a plan?

And then I can get back to you guys and report, and we can discuss further, but suddenly I feel very ignorant, like I'm not "fully equipped" to discuss this topic.

And then I gotta check my e-mail and find out whether Senator Feinstein wrote me back, 'cause I asked her this question "as a lawyer", and last time I wrote her she actually took the time to write me a detailed personal reply, which I deeply appreciated, so I'm very eager to hear what she has to say on the subject. (I don't know if you know her, she's our senior Senator from California, she's pretty powerful, sits on all kinds of committees - I'd say she's kinda "centrist" as far as Democrats go, definitely more conservative than Boxer, sides with the President on "many" issues, that kind of thing - she seems like a really smart lady, and she'a a lawyer and all, AND she's a Senator, so I wanted to ping her to see if she could point me in the right direction in terms of things to study).