Clearly, we have a major problem with gun violence in the United States. We are the only country in the world that has so much random gun violence. Why? Some attribute random gun violence to mental illness. But we don’t have more mentally ill people than other countries. Some say “Guns save lives”, but clearly since we have 400 million guns in this country, guns are part of the problem, not the solution.
Some say the problem is the Second Amendment. This is partially right. But before we blame the Founding Fathers, let’s look at what the Second Amendment actually says. It says: “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.” It seems that many people entirely forget the first half of the Second Amendment.
It does not say that every Tom, Dick, and Harry should be able to purchase any weapon, no matter how lethal. What does an 18-year old kid buying an AR-15 semi-automatic weapon have to do with “a well regulated Militia”? What does an 18-year old kid buying hundreds of rounds of ammunition or body armor have to do with “a well regulated Militia”? What does any of that have to do with “the security of a free State”?
Some seem to believe that anyone should be able to purchase any type of weapon, but this seems contrary to “the security of a free State”.
For that matter, what is “a well regulated Militia”? The “Proud Boys” are not a “well regulated Militia”. Neither are the “Oath Keepers”. Some say that the National Guard is the only Militia.
We will never solve the problem of random gun violence in the United States until we have a proper understanding of the Second Amendment, including the first half of that Amendment.
A few more thoughts. Some say the solution is to have a secure fence around every school, to have only one point of entry, to have metal detectors and an armed guard at that entry point. In other words, some say the solution to random gun violence is to turn our schools into armed fortresses. But this totally ignores that we also have random gun violence in our houses of worship, in movie theaters, at country music concerts, at birthday parties, at shopping malls, at night clubs, and at other places.
Some say that we will never solve the problem of random gun violence until people return to their faith in God. Church attendance is down. People are abandoning their traditional values. So, the problem is that Americans are less Godly than, say, the French, the Germans, the Brits, the Swedes, the Norwegians? Have you checked lately on church attendance rates in Europe? No, the problem is not a lack of religion; it is that we have a horribly misguided interpretation of the Second Amendment.
All we seem to be able to do about random gun violence in America is to offer “thoughts and prayers”. However effective this may be in some areas, “thoughts and prayers” has been spectacularly ineffective in preventing or even reducing random gun violence.
Again, we will not solve the problem of random gun violence until we have a correct interpretation of the Second Amendment. We must remember that “the right to bear arms” is all about “a well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State.…”
We have not always incorrectly interpreted of the Second Amendment. The idea that the Second Amendment means that any Tom, Dick, or Harry has a Constitutional right to purchase any weapon, no matter how deadly, has been sold to the American people by the NRA. And the NRA did not always have this interpretation. They started selling this idea in the 1970s. Unfortunately, this fallacious concept of the Second Amendment has caught on.
Again, we will not solve the problem of random gun violence until we have a correct interpretation of the Second Amendment.