the constitution has survived for more than 200 years because?
436567
IMHO, the spirit of compromise imbedded in the document, and reinforced with checks and balances.  I.e., it exists at all because both ends of the political spectrum knew they couldn't get everything they wanted, so they compromised: everyone got something, and then built into the document the processes and mechanisms to ensure that future generations would be forced to compromise as well.  (Interesting that the one civil war we've had in the US was due to the founders' one failed compromise: the existence and spread of slavery.  They put it off 'til later, and so we had to fight it out.)  A bicameral legislature--each chosen differently--so legislation has to be worked out between them; an executive with some power over legislation but also subject to it; a court which has to be appointed by the executive and ratified by the legislature but then can overrule both; a system for amending the document that's doable but not easy; frequent, staggered elections to change the makeup of the executive & legislature...and so on.\n\nAlso IMHO, that's the danger with the current use of war powers to expand the executive: when the President, in the name of security and for the sake of expediency, argues that special circumstances entitle him to act without Congress, and not have to get court warrants for certain activities, he essentially subverts the mechanisms of the Constitution that have made it survive.  Compromise is no longer necessary; power and its exercise falls into fewer (and unchecked) hands; and the Constitution is potentially not so much repealed as simply ignored.
126843
Our founding fathers were incredibly intelligent people. Yet, I believe that while we can't go back into the past and change things, we can wonder what the other outcomes would be if the documents were written differently.\nFor instance, they rightly made the Constitution deliberately ambiguous. Why, you ask? Because that prevents people/states from nitpicking minor details. Various freedoms (freedom of sppech, action...) are listed in teh constitution, and yet, people in the supreme court debate over the interpretation of these words.\n\nAdditionally, the amendability of the constitution is also valuable, since interpretations of the constitution and times change. If it were more rigid, it would be tougher for good change to take place.
125225
The constitution was ratified in 1787.
258295
I assume you are refering to the United States government? Keep in mind that not everyone on Answers is American.\n\nAt any rate, function is a bit too strong a word. However, the current federal system came into being with the radification of the constitution, which began in 1787 and was completed in 1790. The Constitution took effect in 1988 when it had been ratified by 9 of the 13 states. The new federal government began opperations in 1789.\n\nFrom 1777 to 1788, the federal government was defined by the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation remained in effect until the 13th state ratified the constitution in 1790. The government defined by the Articles was strickly speaking a federal system, but the federal government couldn't really do anything, so the systme didn't last very long.
1001450
The constitution is the basis for all law in the United States
969564
The Founding Fathers built checks and balances into our system of government,but the constitution was based on the Bible. Diversity is a correlative, but not a cause.
24656
The Constitution states that a President can serve two terms or a maximum of ten years.
121950
it has been there for thousands of years
10134
There are a number of constitutions in America. The United States OF AMERICA's is the oldest, but all the nations of America have one now. The list below will tell you when they were adopted.\n\nCanada: made up of unwritten and written acts, customs, judicial decisions, and traditions; the written part of the constitution consists of the Constitution Act of 29 March 1867, which created a federation of four provinces, and the Constitution Act of 17 April 1982, which transferred formal control over the constitution from Britain to Canada, and added a Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as procedures for constitutional amendments\n\nUnited States of America: 17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789\n\nMexico: 5 February 1917\n\nGuatamala: 31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986; note - suspended 25 May 1993 by former President SERRANO; reinstated 5 June 1993 following ouster of president; amended November 1993\n\nBelize: 21 September 1981\n\nHondoras: 11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995\n\nEl Salvador: 23 December 1983\n\nNicaragua: 9 January 1987; reforms in 1995 and 2000\n\nPanama: 11 October 1972; major reforms adopted 1978, 1983, 1994, and 2004\n\nColombia: 5 July 1991\n\nVenezuala: 30 December 1999\n\nGuyana: 6 October 1980\n\nSuriname: 30 September 1987\n\nFrench Guiana: 4 October 1958\n\nEcuador: 10 August 1998\n\nPeru: 31 December 1993\n\nBrazil: 5 October 1988\n\nBolivia: 2 February 1967; revised in August 1994\n\nChile: 11 September 1980, effective 11 March 1981; amended 30 July 1989, 1993, and 1997\n\nParaguay: promulgated 20 June 1992\n\nUraguay: 27 November 1966, effective February 1967; suspended 27 June 1973, new constitution rejected by referendum 30 November 1980; two constitutional reforms approved by plebiscite 26 November 1989 and 7 January 1997\n\nArgentina: 1 May 1853; revised August 1994
878852
That's a long list.... instead of giving the answers, I'll give you a link to study.....\n\nBut to answer quickly....\n\nThe constitution was put into effect in 1789, it does serve the people by making "Expo Facto" laws illegal, provide postal service to all citizens and divides power among 3 branches of government just to name a few. It was made even more powerful for the people when the bill of rights (the first 10 amendments) was passed and the amendments were ratified.
811735
Because at the time, it seemed to make the most sense to everyone.  Some people agreed and others disagreed on some aspects of it but it appeased the majority of people in each state.  Off the top of my head that is what I can come up with at the time.    Dude I answered like two of your history questions.    Do you need things for a history class by the way??  Go to constituioncenter.org if you need more info on the constitution.  Hope that helps!!
200614
Read the constitution it's explained
542121
Why?  Quite simply because the constitution was written that way.  One other attribute of the constitution was that changing it is very hard to do.  Changing the constitution to require term limits for US Senators or House Members would require them to support it; and that isn't going to happen now or probably ever.
58119
All that stuff is because of their constitutions or whatever piece of writing they use as their basis for government. In our case, we have the U.S. Constitution. It dictates when presidents are elected and how they are elected and the length of their terms. I would imagine that all countries have something similar to that for their reasoning. Their founding fathers, or at least the one's who redrafted their constitutions, are the ones who decide what it should be.
109752
read the constitution and ammendments
847124
The Constitution and the Idea of Compromise\n\nhttp://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/classroom/index3.html\n\nThe Constitution of the United States\n\nhttp://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.overview.html\n\nhttp://www.awerty.addr.com/cons2.html\n\nhttp://www.usconstitution.net/constquick.html\n\nPREAMBLE\n\nWe, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.\n\nConstitution of the United States.\n\nhttp://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/constitution.html\n\nThe U.S. Constitution is the oldest constitution still in effect in the world. Test your knowledge of this important document.\n\nhttp://www.whitehouse.gov/kids/constitution/quiz/\n\nhttp://www.infoplease.com/spot/usconstitutionquizzes.html\n\nhttp://www.expertrating.com/quizzes/us-constitution-quiz.asp\n\nStudy Tool for the Constitution\n\nhttp://home.att.net/~standardsalert_topics/Const_Study_Tool_to_Amendment_XXVII.htm#_The_Constitution,_with\n\nGood luck.\n\nKevin, Liverpool, England.
542994
You bet, if it has remained in the bible all this time , it is there for a reason. All of the bible preserved throughout the centuries is true and important.