Jun 4, 2022 3 min read

Second Amendment thought process

Anyone who reads and attempts to use the Second Amendment as support for ownership of assault rifles and other semi-automatic firearms should first understand the rules of English sentence structure, and how a complete sentence generates a complete thought.

We have just suffered yet another mass murder at a Texas grade school where 19 young children and two teachers were murdered. This on the heels of another mass murder at a grocery store in New York. Republicans and gun fanatics are out there shouting that we should use thoughts and prayers instead of stricter gun controls to stop the slaughter that will continue until the Second Amendment is abolished or its true meaning is understood.

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. That is a complete and understandable sentence, and has a complete and understandable thought and definition. The beginning states, “A well-regulated militia,” then it describes why a militia is necessary, and then goes on to state that the people are allowed to keep and bear arms, and this phrase simply refers back to the well-regulated militia, because of the need for a militia. The amendment is a complete sentence that generates a complete and understandable idea. Understanding this amendment should be taken in consideration of the politics and beliefs of the time in which it was accepted in 1791. And it should be an accurate and serious study of history then, and not some sugar-coated grade school reading of American history.

First, the founders, and many of the populace of our early republic, were against the idea of a standing army. History of that time had shown there was hardly ever a time in Europe when there was not a war in progress somewhere on the continent. Throughout history European states all maintained standing armies, which made it all that easy for wars to occur. Second, most Americans then believed state militias were capable of defending the nation, but to do so the American citizens who formed those militias had to be armed. If each citizen armed themselves it saved the government money.

We no longer have or need militias unless you count the right- and left-wing terrorists who like to call themselves militias. Each state now has National Guard units than can be called up, and there are many military reserve units throughout the nation.

There is absolutely no reason why anyone in this country should be allowed to possess an automatic or semi-automatic firearm. This is not a Second Amendment issue. It is a health and safety issue. We need to pass a law banning the sale of these weapons in the United States or its possessions. Further, we need to do what Australia and New Zealand did: outlaw and buy back all automatic and semiautomatic firearms. John Howard, the Australian prime minister who started the program, has said the greatest civil right you have is to stay alive. Howard, during an interview with CBS in 2015 made the point stronger: “Staying alive and being free from random attack is a far more precious right than gun ownership”.

It’s past time when our gutless politicians need to do the right thing.

LeRoy W. Bloom

Lawrence