I agree completely.
I browsed some of the BBs mentioned by the author and found that while most people had their perspective on the Second Amendment pretty straight, there were still some that were thinking "militia" or "with reasonable controls". I thought it might be worthwhile to right the following...(I will join the forums this weekend when I have some spare time, but in the meantime if you want to post this anywhere, feel free...just attribute it to me, please.)
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A “Plain English” Explanation of The Second Amendment
The Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States exists to guarantee the right of freedom from domestic oppression by forces of our own government. The first clause, “A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state,” recognizes that an armed force of some sort must be maintained by any government for its defense against external aggression and in some cases against internal sedition. The term “militia” in the Second Amendment means the same thing now that it did then, an organized body of soldiery either under arms or readily called to arms. The militia is assumed to exist by the language of the Second Amendment, therefore it is not the militia that is guaranteed the right to keep and bear arms by the Second Amendment.
The opening adjective pertaining to the militia in the Second Amendment, “well-regulated” implies that the militia may be misused and therefore must be controlled against misuse. Since the government is already assumed to control the militia for its own ends, who else would perform this “regulation”? That answer is in the second clause of this amendment’s single sentence: “…the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.”
The Second Amendment clearly intends the people of the United States to maintain their own arms, and freely bear them as needed, in order to maintain a system of checks and balances (remember that term from your elementary school Civics?) against the unwarranted abuse of power through the misuse of the militia by our own government. We, “the people” are confirmed beyond doubt in our “right to keep and bear arms” which to prevent its loss or diminishment “shall not be infringed” to ensure that our “militia being necessary to the security of a free state” will always be “well-regulated”.
The Second Amendment is beautiful in its simplicity and straightforward approach. The Second Amendment is simply the most powerful guarantee of individual rights and freedom ever recorded in the annals of human government. No other right or privilege recognized for or accorded to the people of the United States has any meaning or force without the provision of the Second Amendment ensuring our right to defend ourselves against all oppression.
Jeff Shelby, December 1, 2011
