2A: What Is Its Context and How Does It Apply Today?

Photo Credit: The Chestertown Spy

In this post, I’ll be explaining the historical and legal context of our God-given Second Amendment right as citizens of these United States with the hopes that you walk away with a better understanding.

Let’s begin with the wording of the Second Amendment – “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” – which wasn’t ratified until December 1791…15 years after independence was declared from Great Britain [Archives.gov]. Its intent wasn’t specifically related to hunting (even though hunting and fishing is a human right) or specific weapons (ex: musket vs. AR-15) but was to give the citizen the ability to defend themselves against a criminal (individually) or a tyrannical and over-reaching government (corporately with neighbors, family, etc). So, who exactly is the “Militia”? Is it the military / armed forces? Is it only a small group of individuals? In 1788, George Mason even made the statement “I ask, sir, who is the Militia? It is the whole people, except for a few public officials.” Also, there’s no limitation on what weapons can be used. A canon – which was legal to use for protection – would be equivalent to a tank or machine gun today. So – this is where I disagree with anti-gunners and many so-called “2A advocates / activists” – essentially, whatever weapons and equipment the government has, the citizens can and should have as well (ex: naval ships, tanks, full-auto firearms, fighter jets, knives, suppressors, body armor, etc) along with other weapons such as brass knuckles. I also don’t support firearm registrations as they ultimately lead to firearm confiscation (ex: “buyback” programs) and then genocide by the government [Gun Control]. Like it or not, I’m telling it like it is! Now, I don’t support any government or citizen having access to nuclear or EMP weapons. As far as background checks go, I believe that each individual should have a reputation score similar to the merchants selling products / services on PayPal (not to be confused with universal background checks or red flag laws).

Anyways, when it’s talking about being “well-regulated”, it’s not referring to government intervention through passing various legislation and establishing agencies but, instead, incorporating proper education and training, as well as, being well-organized. Through proper training and education, accidental deaths are also minimized. For example, according to an article in Time Magazine, “(Switzerland’s) government figures show about 0.5 gun homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2010. By comparison, the U.S. rate the same year was about 5 firearm killings per 100,000 people” [Bachmann]. Credit for the low crime rate is to the responsibility and safety that is passed down from generation to generation. To further add, former President of the Continental Congress, Richard Henry Lee once said “To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them.” Not to mention, it was common for firearm training and safety to be taught in PE classes at public schools here in the U.S. through the ’70’s (as stated in the video above). Thankfully, there are still some schools that incorporate firearm education in their curriculum such as Hot Springs County School District #1 in Thermopolis, WY; however, there should be more! Click here to read four reasons why children should learn firearm safety.

When I worked for an international private protection and security contractor, part of the oath that I took involved “…defending the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic…” My oath wasn’t to a political Party, politician or government entity. I take that oath as seriously today as I did then – good, bad or indifferent. So, when I’m not teaching classes or attending business meetings, I’m reaching out to my representatives and senators to express my concerns and to hold them accountable when they don’t defend our Rights like they’re supposed to as you can see in the email below; I’d like to also encourage you to do the same, regardless of the issue. Let this be a reminder that no one in the government – from the local level all the way up to the White House; from unelected to elected positions – are our “leaders”. We don’t work for them, they work for us!

Read more about our Founding Fathers’ thoughts on the meaning of the Second Amendment here and here.

I hope that you’ve gained a better understanding of what our Second Amendment right represents. If you have questions or comments, please leave them below. If you’d like to learn more about the Second Amendment, you can also visit the USCCA, Gun Owners of America, NSSF, Firearms Policy Coalition, Black Guns Matter, Colion Noir, Guns & Gadgets, 2a Edu, Ted Nugent, Chuck Norris (particularly his book, Black Belt Patriotism), Dana Loesch (particularly her book, Hands Off My Guns), Mises Institute, Louder with Crowder and WallBuilders.