Discuss the reforms made by SCAP and their legac Essay

Discuss the reforms made by SCAP and their legac - Essay Example At the same time, the demilitarization issue became so controversial because; despite the fact that military empowerment was banned by Article 9 of the constitution, Japan continued to sustain a strong military budget (Buckley 4). The reforms not only demilitarized Japan but also aimed to enhance democracy and the rule of law in the country. They influenced Japan to shift away from the Meiji Constitution and the Prewar forces and policies. An important pillar of the reforms was the introduction of the initiative that sovereignty comes from the citizens because it eliminates the higher privilege of autocracy. At the same time, the reforms aimed to protect the rights of women. The latter gave the Japanese women the power to vote. The endorsement of clause 9 of the constitution by the reforms helped to prevent Japan from becoming a violent military power. However, the United States later pressurized Japan to rebuilt its military power for self-defense against other outside ideologies such as communism in other parts of the world, including Asia. This came soon after the Korean War and the Chinese Civil War. During the war in Korea, the US military forces withdrew from Japan. This left the country almost defenseless. A national police reserve was also created that was armed with massive weaponry equivalent to the army. The reforms also led to the formation of the Japan Self-defense Forces that acted as an extension of the police force. Another reform was liberalization. The priorities of the US towards Japan gradually shifted from the liberal policies to a change in the political stability as well as economic recovery. Democratization and demilitarization lost their momentum and seemed to stall. For example, economic decentralization was uncompleted as the country responded to new imperatives. The US also encouraged industrial policies and business activities that have now become sources of

Weapons, Personal Protection and Use of Force Essay

Weapons, Personal Protection and Use of Force - Essay Example Heller, in the year 2008, the Supreme Court of US held that the second amendment empowers a person to have a gun for personal use. It allows individuals to keep loaded gun for personal safety and security. In the case of McDonald v Chicago in the year 2010, the Supreme Court admitted the rights of states and the federal government (Gutmacher, 2006). Weaponry Laws of the US In the United States of America the sale, purchase and possession of firearms and their use come under the purview Weapons laws. State laws of each state differ from each other and are not dependent on federal firearms laws. However, sometimes they are wide and sometimes they are narrow in terms of its scope. Take the example of some of the states which have put ban on assault weapon which are similar in nature of federal assault weapons bans. There are 44 States wherein state constitutions are identical to the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The names of those states are California, Iowa, Maryland, Minn esota, New Jersey, and New York. The statutory civil rights of the New York are similar to the Second Amendment of the US Constitution. In the McDonald v Chicago it was held by the Supreme Court that the protections of the Second Amendment are applicable against state governments (Lott, 2010). The owners of the fire arms are to abide by the laws of state where they live in. It has nothing to do with their place of temporary or permanent residence. The weaponry laws vary from state to state. The State of Florida allows an individual to carry concealed weapons and firearms. In many states, an individual is not allowed to carry out firearms therefore, it is necessary to check the state laws of weapons where one intends to visit (Lott, 2010). In so many states of US, firearms laws are restrictive and have no comparison with federal firearms laws. However, the state and local police are not legally bound to comply with federal weaponry laws (Lott, 2010). Personal Protection Eligibility C riteria In order to possess firearms for personal safety and security, the US citizen has to meet the following requirement (Eligibility Requirements for a License to Carry Firearms): legal resident 21 years of age No outstanding warrant No current restraining order / suspension / surrender order No confinement for drug addiction or for use of alcoholism. In case of cured for addiction / alcoholism, submit registered physician certificate No confinement to hospital for mental illness. On rehabilitation, an individual has to submit a certificate from registered physician that now he or she is fit for use of firearms in his or her self defense Permanent disqualifiers are those offenses who are punishable for more than 2 years of imprisonment. Personal protection as per US law is a complex right. On the one hand, it gives honors to the inherent rights of a citizen to keep and use firearms for personal safety and security. The provision of firearms to each and every citizen has shaken t he faith and confidence of the citizens in the rule of law. The issuance of firearms license means that the states or federal government absolved from its first and foremost responsibility to maintain law and order in their administrative jurisdiction. By virtue of given right, one can take his or her revenge from any other person or to intimidate someone with the use of firearms to settle his or her score (Mauser, 1996). However, use of firearms for personal protection can be differentiated from all other reasons of using firearms. Personal protect