Lots and heaps and bunches has been said and said and said about the Second Amendment not upholding an individual right, how the right to bear arms only applies to some ill-defined (and subject to state-by-state standards, if one follows the logic) entity called "militia." Oddly enough, militia is not the beneficiary of any of the other amendments. But that's getting a tad silly and kind of off the point:
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.
You-know-what is you-know-where...
RKBA is a DKos group of second amendment supporters who also have progressive and liberal values. We don't think that being a liberal means one has to be anti-gun. Some of us are extreme in our second amendment views (no licensing, no restrictions on small arms) and some of us are more moderate (licensing, restrictions on small arms.) Moderate or extreme, we hold one common belief: more gun control equals lost elections. We don't want a repeat of 1994. We are an inclusive group: if you see the Second Amendment as safeguarding our right to keep and bear arms individually, then come join us in our conversation. If you are against the right to keep and bear arms, come join our conversation. We look forward to seeing you, as long as you engage in a civil discussion. RKBA stands for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
Let's examine the militia bit:
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state
If language didn't evolve, we probably wouldn't even have these debates about what the Constitution does or doesn't mean. But language does evolve, so here we are. I'm sure the founding fathers never imagined that "militia" would come to be associated with racist, paranoid, anti-goverment wackdoodles. And there's a good body of evidence to indicate that "well regulated" meant something very different back then than modern interpretations of "regulated."
"Whereas in all well regulated Governments, it is the indispensable duty of every Legislature to consult the Happiness of a rising Generation, and endeavor to fit them for an honorable Discharge of the Social Duties of Life, by paying the strictest attention to their Education."
These resounding words were the opening of a November 12, 1789 Act of
the North Carolina Legislature which was passed on December 11, 1789 and
which chartered the University of North Carolina.
So, is a "well regulated" government one that is subject to many laws and restrictions? Imposed by whom or what? Or is it a government that works well and functions properly, a once common meaning of the term "regulated"? Here's Hamilton making use of it in Federalist Paper #29:
"The project of disciplining all the militia of the United States is as futile as it would be injurious, if it were capable of being carried into execution. A tolerable expertness in military movements is a business that requires time and practice. It is not a day, or even a week, that will suffice for the attainment of it.
To oblige the great body of the yeomanry, and of the other classes of the citizens, to be under arms for the purpose of going through military exercises and evolutions, as often as might be necessary to acquire the degree of perfection which would entitle them to the character of a well-regulated militia, would be a real grievance to the people, and a serious public inconvenience and loss...Little more can reasonably be aimed at, with respect to the people at large, than to have them properly armed and equipped; and in order to see that this be not neglected, it will be necessary to assemble them once or twice in the course of a year."
"But though the scheme of disciplining the whole nation must be abandoned as mischievous or impracticable; yet it is a matter of the utmost importance that a well-digested plan should, as soon as possible, be adopted for the proper establishment of the militia. The attention of the government ought particularly to be directed to the formation of a select corps of moderate extent, upon such principles as will really fit them for service in case of need. By thus circumscribing the plan, it will be possible to have an excellent body of well-trained militia, ready to take the field whenever the defense of the State shall require it.
This will not only lessen the call for military establishments, but if circumstances should at any time oblige the government to form an army of any magnitude that army can never be formidable to the liberties of the people while there is a large body of citizens, little, if at all, inferior to them in discipline and the use of arms, who stand ready to defend their own rights and those of their fellow-citizens. This appears to me the only substitute that can be devised for a standing army, and the best possible security against it, if it should exist."
The brat in me wants to ask if "well digested plan" means somebody tasted it, or if "disciplining" means spankings, but I'll behave and instead point out that Hamilton is very clear on the idea that individual citizens should be armed:
Little more can reasonably be aimed at, with respect to the people at large, than to have them properly armed and equipped
He also seems to use "well trained" and "well regulated" interchangeably. "Regulated" shares the same Latin root as "regular;" exploring the definition of "regular," especially entries 3 and 4, is quite illuminating. And you don't even have to look to obsolete definitions of "regulate(d)" to get the sense that it does, indeed, vary from the common understanding of its usage.
m-w.com:
to govern or direct according to rule b (1) : to bring under the control of law or constituted authority (2) : to make regulations for or concerning ( regulate the industries of a country )
to bring order, method, or uniformity to (regulate one's habits)
to fix or adjust the time, amount, degree, or rate of (regulate the pressure of a tire)
Only one of the three definitions pertains to anything even vaguely legal in nature. Here is the definition from oxforddictionaries.com
control or maintain the rate or speed of (a machine or process) so that it operates properly:a hormone that regulates metabolism and organ function
control or supervise (something, especially a company or business activity) by means of rules and regulations:the organization that regulates fishing in the region
set (a clock or other apparatus) according to an external standard.
Oxford does have an obsolete definition of "regulated" in some of their more expansive dictionaries, though: "Of troops: Properly disciplined." And no; I don't think that does involve spankings. Again, we have only one meaning that pertains to laws and such; most of them convey a sense of orderliness and consistency, a question of standards.
Much more significant, though, is Hamilton's use of "the people at large," and the similar phrasing of "the right of the people to bear arms" in the second.
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.
What is a "militia" if not a collection of armed individuals? What is "the people" if not a collection of individuals, armed or otherwise?