"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."—The Second Amendment to the Constitution of the US
Besides being a badly mangled sentance that my English teacher would have thrown back in my face, this amendment does NOT say the right of "a person" to bear arms. It says the right of "the people", which is prefaced by "a well regulated militia." If it said "a person" instead of "the people" then every single gun control law in the country would be unconstitutional. In fact, the opposite is true. Courts, including the supreme court, have interpreted the second amendment to mean the people, as in "well regulated militias," not individuals, have the right to bear arms. Furthermore, we've allowed people to have weapons, as long as they are registered, like cars. We make people who drive big chunks of steel at high speeds take safety tests, maintain registration, tags, and liscenses. And yet, in many places, driving small pieces of steel or lead at speeds faster than the speed of sound requires no safety tests, no liscenses, no background checks (at gun shows) - nada, zippo, zilch. And that's the way the NRA likes it. Let everyone have a gun if they want one. Sure, guys, Florida tried that and they now have the highest violent crime rate in the country.
But forget all that. Go back to the amendment. Not a single one of you National Redneck Association members could argue for 5 seconds with me on what that amendment says. It's all there in black and white. MILITIA. Any gun ownership you get outside the national guard is a gift, so shut up, and sit down. When you stop screaming your slogans and think about it for a minute you'd realize no one wants to send in Jack-booted thugs to confiscate your weapons. We just want them registered, with proof that you can operate them safely, store them safely, and that they're not bazookas, or howitzers, or nuclear bombs.
That brings up a little side point. Why is it that every time I ask an NRA member what the limit is they never answer? Where do you draw the line? Should we all be allowed automatic weapons? Rocket launchers? How about a tank? It says "arms" not guns, so don't I get to own a howitzer? Where do you draw the line?
So why is the Bush administration, and Pentecost wanna be singer John Ashcroft in particular, now going to argue that they believe the second amendment gives an individual exactly what the amendement doesn't say? Why would they do this when every court in the nation has said that government has a right to restrict gun ownership? Well, it's pretty simple. Go to the chart on this page about the 2000 presidential election. Look at the states in the Bush win column. Can you say red neck? Sure, I knew you could.
Now a lot of these rednecks are union workers, who are pro-choice, environmentalists, working class people, natural Democrats. But Charlton Heston whips them into a drooling frenzy over their guns and they forget about everything else and vote for a rich, coke-head, elitist, AWOL, draft dodging brat who cares more about corporations and making his crooked Enron buddies rich than he does about good paying jobs for these rednecks dumb asses. It's all a trick. Bush could care less about the second amendment. All he cares about is getting union workers in swing states to vote for him so he can steal more money from Social Security, sell more bonds (to rich people) to cover the deficits, cut taxes for millionaires while the middle class pays for it, cut funding for family planning and give it to religions (as long as they believe in Jesus), stop research on zygotes that would save lives and cure diseases, raid cannibus clubs where patients smoke a natural pain reliever approved for them by their doctors and their states' voters, and all kinds of environment destroying, civil liberty removing, horrendous stuff. But Charlton Heston gets up and says the second amendment comes first, and that's how all these stupid red-necks vote.
Amazing.
I'm just waiting for the day that Heston raises up a gun and says the standard line "when you take it from my cold, dead hands" and somebody, like the bug in Men In Black, says, "your proposal is accepted." The world will be a better place without him convincing good people to vote for evildoers like GW Bush and his minions.
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