close

Cartoon was off the mark

2 min read
article image -

The political cartoon in the Dec. 26 edition, created by Matt Wuerker of Politico, was so far off the mark, so ill-informed, that it was more than just a waste of space. It reflected poorly on the judgment of the editor who allowed it to be published.

It depicts a “founding mother” patriot collecting modern guns, as a law-abiding citizen is forced to turn in what could be any modern pistol, while, at the same time, a “founding father” hands him an 18th century flintlock rifle to satisfy his Second Amendment rights. It was titled “Strict Constructionist Comics, Second Amendment Remedies”

This was wrong in so many ways. First, our forefathers were not stupid people who could not foresee or worry about the future, or foresee improvements to the American flintlock rifle or other arms. Also, they were rightfully afraid of the ability of an all-powerful centralized government to become tyrannical, and enshrined the right of individuals to maintain arms and form militias.

Limiting the public to 18th century technology is not a legitimate “constitutional remedy.” Let us apply this remedy to the First Amendment, which allows for freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom to petition the government for redress of grievances. So with this inane “constitutional remedy,” then our First Amendment rights would be upheld only to the point that they were exercised with a Benjamin Franklin-era printing press or a quill pen. I bet it would take quite a staff to get the Observer-Reporter out every day, and you could forget about free speech over the radio, television, Twitter, or the Internet.

Our forefathers built into our Constitution only one legitimate remedy, and that is making amendments to it. Too often, on both sides of the aisle, this process has been thwarted, while so-called precedents become “settled law” by decree or opinion without the due process of ratification.

S. Douglas Smith

Prosperity

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $3.75/week.

Subscribe Today