What does the Second Amendment mean in the context of the Aurora Massacre? Columbine? Virginia Tech? Rep. Giffords Town Meeting? The assassination attempt on President Reagan? The assassination attempts on President Ford? The assassinations of President John Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr? And conditions in other countries, Syria? Iraq? Iran?
“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.”
US Constitution, Bill of Rights, Amendment 2.
Does this give each of us the right to our own nuclear warheads and other weapons of mass destruction? If not, what right does it convey?
Our rights to quiet enjoyment of a film, as at Aurora, Colorado, pursuit of an education, as at Columbine or Virginia Tech, public engagement with our Representatives in the Congress, as at Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ Town Meeting, our rights to live in society outweigh claims to public “enjoyment” of assault rifles with 100-round magazines.
Thus, if the Second Amendment conveys the right to our own personal nuclear weapons, personal anti-aircraft missiles, or to assault rifles with 100 round magazines, then it must be changed.
But if the Second Amendment does not give us a “Right” to these weapons, then gun control is legitimate and, just as we require people who want to drive to demonstrate requisite skill in order to be given and keep a driver’s license, and we require people who want to get married to demonstrate a certain fitness and get a marriage license, we must simply define the limits of weapons possession and issue gun licenses.
But if it doesn’t convey a license to own weapons of mass destruction, what right does the Second Amendment convey?
Jews, Gypsies, communists and gay people were not welcome in the armed forces of Nazi Germany, or, to put it bluntly, in the state itself. Syria’s armed forces are Alawaites like Assad. There are no Sunnis with authority, altho in Syria, Sunnis, about 75% of the population, or 17.25 million people outnumber the 2.76 million Alawites, 12% of the population by about six to one (here and here). There are also no Christians, Jews, or Kurds. Iraq’s Republican Guard was Saddam’s extended family; Gadaffi’s army in Libya was Gadaffi’s tribe.
In contrast, when we look at the armed forces of the United States of America, we see Americans. We see Christians, Jews, Hindus, Moslems, and atheists; blacks, whites, people of all shades, we see Native Americans who’s ancestors were here long before the Europeans, Asians, and Africans; and they all stand shoulder to shoulder.
The Second Amendment guarantees all Americans the right to bear arms in a “well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State.” This right can’t be abridged based on the color of our skin, who we love, or how we approach faith and spirituality. The Second Amendment does not guarantee the right to own weapons of mass destruction, but helps guarantee “certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”
The weapon the alleged shooter used in Aurora, Colorado, was equipped with a 100 round drum – a device designed to hold 100 bullets, and feed them all quickly into the gun. Fortunately for the survivors in the theater, it was reported to have jammed after 13 people were killed. According to a NBC News, here, “The four weapons that authorities say were used in the massacre … included a .223-caliber assault-style rifle with a 100-round drum magazine.”
“Fat Man” and “Little Boy,” pictured above, ended World War II by destroying Hiroshima and Nagasaki. “Little Boy,” dropped on Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945 killed an estimated 70,000 to 130,000 people immediately. “Fat Man,” dropped Man on Nagasaki on August 9th, 1945 killed an estimated 45,000 people immediately.(Image courtesy of Philosopy of Science, here.) The Manhattan Project cost $20 billion (here), altho design, engineering, and construction are a fragment of the complete cost of nuclear weapons, which includes the delivery system, and the externalized costs, aka, the doomesday costs, borne by both sides in a conflict. Still, various individuals, including Sheldon Adelson, Charles and David Koch, are spending millions trying to influence the outcome of the elections in November, 2012. Do they have a Second Amendment right to their own nuclear warheads? Or their own private army? If not, then we need to establish the proper licensing system for guns. If yes, I think we need to revise the Second Amendment.