Topic: government issues
Today the Supreme Court ruled that yes, you do have the right to bear arms. Finally, some good news from the same court that ruled that the government can take your home and let developers have it. The Washington, DC ban on handguns has been struck down. The Bill of Rights was written in 1790 and the Second Amendment has been the most debated in the 20th century. Until recently no one gave gun ownership a second thought. But now with murders going on all over the place and a police state looming, are guns all they're cracked up to be? First let's look at the Second Ammendment itself. "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." Some take this to mean that only militia members (law enforcement and national guard) should have guns. Others only look at the second half- the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. Go back to 1790 with me for a second. What is the 1790 definition of "militia"? Every able-bodied male 16-64. Why do these folks need to be armed? The ever-looming threat of Indian attack, maybe pirates, or a slave uprising. Who knows, maybe the British will change their minds on that whole Treaty of Paris thing. Back to the future. Are any of these concerns still valid? No, I hope not. But does that mean we should all give up our guns? No. The police-staters would like that. But then all the guns would be in the hands of either the police, or the criminals. I'm not taking my chances on the police protecting me. They don't usually show up until after a crime. Instead of "protecting" everyone by getting rid of guns (if you're a criminal, why would stop shy of breaking the "you can't have a gun" law if it doesn't bother you to steal or kill?) I say get more guns out there! Sure there will be a bunch of idiots shooting everything that moves but I think crime will go down. Who wants to rob someone who might have an even bigger gun? The Virginia Tech shooting is a prime example of why everyone should carry a gun. If the whole campus was armed do you think he would've killed over 30 people? Writing for the minority, (in)Justice Stephen Breyer said, "In my view, there is simply no untouchable constitutional right guaranteed by the Second Amendment to keep loaded handguns in the house in crime-ridden urban areas." Why not? Don't we have a right to self-defense? Maybe he'd like to live a block away from the Capitol WITHOUT a gun and see how long until he changes his mind. Your thoughts?
