Lincoln, the Constitution, and whether or not he was the worst thing to happen to America, ever.

Since a fateful project in 10th grade I have personally maintained that Abraham Lincoln was A) a tyrannical despot who B) set an extremely dangerous precedent for American government. He was not the first nor last to dance around the Constitution. He was the first to do so in the name of "national security".

A few points that solidified themselves in my mind tonight:
1. Americans are all bound by the Constitution. It's not a protection of rights for the people, nor simply a listing of rules for the Government. It's both, and with very few exceptions, is extremely clear. Congress has these rights but these limits. The Executive can do this but not that, and the Judicial is allowed to do this, but not these other things. The People are protected by these laws, but under these circumstances, lose certain protections.
2. As the World Superpower, America ought to strive to set an example. This means, in my mind, that the rights and protections set forth in the Constitution apply to everyone, regardless of their citizenship. The American government isn't prohibited from passing laws abridging Americans' freedom of speech: They shall make no law abridging freedom of speech.
3. The Constitution is not a dead document. It's the framework for a living, breathing, changing nation. This means that sometimes it needs to be changed (ie, protecting the rights of various groups to vote). It should not be considered entirely rigid, but all the same: The "spirit" of it is fairly obvious. Some things are not in that spirit and therefore should not be backed up using the Constitution.