Do You Own a Gun?

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by Kingswood

The second amendment does not confer an unconditional right to keep and bear arms:

How many Americans who choose to exercise their constitutional right to keep and bear arms also choose to exercise their constitutional obligation to join a well regulated militia? Not everybody, I'm guessing.

When the 2nd amendment was drafted, there was no such thing as a modern police force in the United States, so such a provision makes sense given that the citizens had the responsibility of enforcing the law. This explains the first part: "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State". Had the concept of a modern police force been invented some 20 to 40 years earlier, the 2nd amendment as we know it would probably not exist.

You're way off base. It had nothing to do with police or lack thereof. Crime wasn't an issue, after all, everyone was armed and the most violent John Waynes on the planet.

The fear of the people was oppressive governments they had escaped from and were determined not to suffer again. Adding the guarantee of the right to keep their guns was a necessary inclusion in the bill of rights to win the support of the people for this or any government. Without the Bill of Rights, all of them, the people wouldn't trust any government to rule them.