Citizens can define limits of Second Amendment

The Second Amendment is a single sentence that is ambiguous in meaning. It was ratified in 1791 as a response to the constitutional provision for the federal government to have a permanent military. Many feared that the military would be used for oppression.

The meaning of the amendment was believed to be that the ability of citizens to have the guns needed for warfare cannot be infringed upon because an armed populace is the only guarantee against an oppressive government, and the public was relied upon for national defense. Self-protection and hunting were secondary reasons.

There were no special military guns. The courts have already ruled that this original concept is not what the amendment means.

Since 1934, many gun laws have been passed to restrict ownership of certain guns as demand rose for public safety, supported at first by the NRA. Any such law infringes upon the freedom to have guns. An armed populace is no longer needed for national defense. Independent civilian militias no longer exist. Civilians can no longer defeat the military and overthrow the government.

Mass killings and street violence have been problems since the Wild West and the 1920s Gangster era, but school killings seem of more recent times. Serious problems have caused demand for more laws.

Laws cannot keep guns away from dangerous people if good enforcement is impossible. In restrictions, only public demand determines the line that the government cannot cross.

What does the Second Amendment mean? How is an amendment without precise meaning defended? The definition of "arms" or the purpose of having arms is not stated. Twenty percent of Americans favor repeal of the Second Amendment. Should it be repealed?

What is the value of it? Will repeal remove guns from the streets when laws have not? How important are guns for self-protection and hunting?

Richard Lorimer

Streamwood