The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
is not about hunting.
It is about government, the powers and limitations of that government. It is not about hunting. Any discussion of big, bad men trying to kill Bambi is totally irreverent and inappropriate to the discussion today. The big bad man in the Constitution is the king, despot, dictator who tries to impinge upon the freedom to live, the liberties of people, and the happiness of pursuit and of peaceful possession.
Note: The reason hunting is mentioned in some state constitutions is because game laws were used effectively in England to disarm the public. Backdoor, just like ecology is used to ban some bullets today.
The word 'free-man' was originally from ancient Rome, a man who was not a slave, but a citizen allowed to freely carry a sword. Those you don't trust are forbidden arms. Every dictator the the last century, holders of title President for Life, cults of personality, has disarmed any potential opposition. This is a step before having opponents locked up in asylums,; and on to the next step which is to have dissenters "disappear". There is a step by step process to allow tyranny.
Story of why Iowa has fireworks law. They were once sold in ever dime store and hardware outlet. A kid lit a sparkler that he waved around and set of some inventory. Ignited the whole place and the adjacent buildings. People opposed to fireworks jumped and passed the law. That law specifically excludes sparklers – which any kid can continue to buy. Better for general safety to have banned kids.
But something must be done – else politicians won't look like leaders. Make symbolic noises to appease all sides. Obama's list of 23 points is to start a dialog on mental health. Harmless leadership.
Paparazzi, rogue photographers, are generally considered obnoxious ; caused death of Princess Diana;
recently cause an accident in Hollywood. Should we :
Outlaw cameras? Or just outlaw long lenses? Outlaw capacity to shoot many pictures? Impose controls on film and SD chips? The constitution is silent on cameras, therefore we can ban them and return civility to life.
There are people who don't like guns. Or more properly, they don't like people who like guns.
to them, every exciting human tragedy is an opportunity to ban guns. 20 kids is a particularly good one. Assassination of a popular figure is also good.
That Obama’s hometown of Chicago averages 41 murders a month .. is too commonplace to garner attention. Besides most are between drug dealers, who are just other people we don't like.
I don't know the numbers, but included in gun deaths are suicides. Suicide is hardly a treat to the public, but inflates the deaths numbers. Men mostly use guns; women don't tend to use that noisy, messy way. They prefer drugs.
Anybody who want to commit suicide can find a way. So can anybody wanting to create mayhem. How about hanging -- with rope, belts, shoelaces.
Guns are a commodity of affluence. People in poor countries use knives to settle disputes. I leave it to others to determine if people, specially our children, are better off to be killed by high speed, lead balls or by the intrusion of a knife into their young bodies -- as happened at a kindergarten in the orient recently.
If knives were banned, would that make Julia Child an accomplice?
Or what about inflammables? Dousing in gasoline is popular on TV. But it must hurt, because they always try to run away from the flames. Falls kill. People actually jumped off the world trade center to get away from jet fuel which is kerosene with some antifreeze additives. Cold kills, too. Ban winter … please.
Electricity kills -- we even make special chairs for it. Imagine doing without electricity as the people from Storm Sandy did and are doing.
Drowning is akin to water boarding. Ban swimming pools, bath tubs, sinks, for the children. If it saves one life ….
These are added to our growing list, so far, in banning : cameras, guns, knives, machetes, gasoline, kerosene, drugs, rope, belts, shoelaces, electricity, tall buildings, mountains, cold (love this global warming), Buicks,
Today's headlines: "Famed Russian ballet star attacked with acid outside Moscow home."
"Attacker throws woman onto subway tracks in Philadelphia."
What does "for our children mean?" Ban guns for our children, save the whales for our children raise teacher's salaries for our children. It almost passes as an all-purpose additive to any cause, equivalent to flag, mother, and apple pie, … for our children. Meaningless,... but effective.
Both political parties have a concern of government security during civil unrest. Democrats want to make sure the people cannot overthrow their government. Republicans want to be able to overthrow that government, if it gets dictatorial.
As a rural landowner, I carry a gun almost every day for use against vermin. The guns could be used for meat hunting, but mine are not – My instinct is to take a picture when I see a fox or such; preferring to use a camera for animals, until those too are banned.
An armed citizenry keeps criminals wondering. Towns in Minnesota and in Utah have asked all households to have a gun -- in each town, burglary is unknown. Washington, DC has the most restrictive anti-gun laws and an extremely high crime rate. The possibility of the presents of a gun is a deterrent. Connecticut newspapers published permit owners, crooks now know which houses to avoid. The possibility of a gun could be used to keep police polite, be used to remind politicians of the other provisions of the Constitution, and possibly for national survival. It has been said that the Japanese considered that because Americans are armed as a reason to not plan on an invasion. And that the Nazi considered Europe a pushover, and it was. NRA raised thousands of hunting guns for the English home guard. The American minuteman does not depend on foreign largess. And never has. Hopefully, never will.
Marshalltown had several children drown last year. If they had not been no-account immigrants, I would not have been surprised if a petition to outlaw open water. To tighten the loop-holes allowing on back yard swimming pools. This would be adequately symbolic, not a big hardship for Marshalltown, but flying into any city, including Des Moines shows thousands of backyard pools easily seen from the air.
If it saves just one child, it is worth it. -- what does that mean?
All children, all people, are beautiful creatures that do not deserve to die prematurely.
The phrase can be used for both "guns kill: and "guns save" arguments.
This meaningless, simplistic phrase has no place in serious discussion.
Should we all wear football helmets or hard hats in case of falling debris -- if just one life is saved ...!
Assault Weapon. No such thing. Emotional name,; like once called Gangster Weapons.
Saturday Nite Special. A less expensive handgun. In other lines of economics, lower prices are good.
Weapon of choice. Compare to, Buicks are the get-away car of choice of bank robbers.
Semi-automatic handgun -- ie. a pistol. But sounds more impressive to use 4-words instead of one.
Militia -- armed citizenry
Commander in Chief -- is to assert civilian control over the standing army. The military is a major part of government. In fact, government is defined as the dominate coercive force in a locale. The position of Commander in Chief assumes some familiarity with military issues. Every president since Coolidge had military or international experience. Hoover lead international recovery of Europe, FDR was assist sec of Navy. Lyndon Johnson and John Kennedy were commissioned Navy officers before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford soon joined and received Navy commissions in 1942. George Bush was commissioned in June 1943 during naval flight training. James Carter graduated from Naval Academy in 1946. Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower were Army officers. Ronald Reagan was Army Air Force captain. William Clinton was a Rhodes Scholar and draft dodger. George W. Bush was fighter pilot. Barrack H. Obama has fired more cruise missiles than any other Peace Prize winner. {he decimated our inventory, leaving us empty of a key weapon.} Before these, Hoover lead international recovery of Europe, FDR was assist Sec of Navy. What qualifications will the next president have? -- Hillary has international exposure as Sec of State.
And we know that woman in power can be stern -- Golda Mier, Indira Ghandi, Margaret Thatcher have all not shied from war.
-- "arms and liberty were inextricably linked"
-- "the most effective way to enslave a people is to disarm them."
-- "the great object is that every man be armed ... Everyone who is able may have a gun." -- Patrick Henry
-- " The Supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword; because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force superior to any bands of regular troops that can be, on any pretense, raised in the United States." -- Noah Webster
-- the advantage of being armed, which Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, -- James Madison
-- the people retain the right to defend their political rights and possessed the means to do so. -- Alexander Hamilton
-- the existence of an armed population as an essential element to preserving liberty. -- Founding Fathers.
-- I agree with the founding fathers who "feared governmental tyranny" and "believed the greatest danger to the new republic was tyrannical government and that the ultimate check on tyranny was an armed population." -- Vandercoy
Trust in Government. Every step to tyranny needs to be examined. Obama Care replaces the insurance companies as the employer of doctors and hospitals. They are ordered to become mandatory reporters of gun ownership, even location of guns and ammunition within one's home. Your doctor as informer? Failure to have reported when a later a tragic event occurs, causes CYA interrogations, (just as lawsuits have increased the number of unnecessary tests and increased medical expenses); insurance rates skyrocket. Frightening (to me).
CBS's Bob Schieffer Likens NRA to 'the Nazis'... Not very enlightening
Armed guards needed not only at kindergartens and schools. The local laundromat is totally unprotected.
The Social Security office -- what about that? There is an employed guard at every office – Why? At what expense? Is he armed? Should he be? Fact, the SS Admin has purchased millions of rounds of Hollow-point ammunition (dum-dums) and stores them at local S.S. offices. Why?
Concerning the number of attacks ==
Does anyone remember the Great Shark scare of a few years ago. Great whites were taking over the waterfront. Every sighting was reported on front pages and nightly news. Later statistics showed that the number of incidents was at an annual low point. All it was, was news fluff to make news interesting.
For the duration, every incident is reported, except about Chicago, murder capital of US, and other large inner cities.
What constitutes an incident: as I write this
The NRA proposed armed guards in every school. But doesn't every wing and every floor and every playground and sports field need an armed guard? The NRA has an agenda, too, in making this recommendation : “Guns are the answer, not the problem.”
Who becomes police and armed guards? Psychic profile indicate that the line between criminal thugs and civil thugs is slight. The desire to carry a gun and boss people around.
Headline this morning: "DC Police Officer Guilty of Killing Mistress, Baby."
Using Massacre of Children to Advance Agenda 'Disgusts Me'...Gov. Perry:
Read the headlines, every day there are people dieing, children dieing; , there is something there to offend anyone who want to be offended. A reason to save or to ban every single item of life.
Obama's proposal, much by executive order, out of the control of even Congress, is said to cost $1/2 Trillion. We know all government programs escalate, often uncontrollably, that is by many multiples, not fractional increases. Once a law, other agencies and interest groups add there pet project, and add and add and add.
Your federal tax returns are confidential. Item one, two and 3 in Obama's list: "Federal agencies are required to make relevant data available".
Item 18 of his list of 23 is : Provide incentives for schools to hire school resource officers. Resource officers -- bodyguards. How much will that boondoggle cost the tax payers? We already have food taking a great part of our "Education" budget.
Item 20, 21, 22. Clarify the mental health services that Medicaid plans 'must' cover. One more add-on to a government program. The cost of Obama care goes up, some more.
Totally silent on the effects of violence on TV. Does what you see effect your behavior? Why does the advertising industry exist if it has no significant effect? My particular pet peeve is to see hero detectives break the law, lie, intimidate people in their endearing effort to catch the bad guy. Sets a standard of "situation ethics" for viewers. Video games. Hit reset, nobody really dies.
A criminal robbed a Diner in Philadelphia, open fire killing a patron from Texas. Her husband lamented that his gun was locked in a box in the back of his car to comply with Penn state law. Would we be safer if a portion of the public were armed, concealed, so that perpetrators never knew who was safe to rob? If we could save only one life, we should allow husbands to carry. ;-) But what if people of criminal mind used concealed carry in a bar?
A Course for a concealed carry permit is available in the county for $40. I had determined last year to sign up in February (between Creative Retirement seasons). This would be to legitimize a practice when carrying cash to also be able to defend it. . But I am now rethinking getting that permit. Do I want the government to know me better, for the record? Do I want the press to publish my name and address if on the public record? First thought was "Hell yes! we need free-men on the streets." Second thought is that to protect my collection, I would answer a questionnaire as having only one gun. If I engaged a criminal with another, I would be open to perjurer while being a good Sumerian. The first response to the press' revelations in Connecticut was these were homes that crooks knew to avoid. Second, was a report of the home of the published address of a permit holder was robbed of his collection. Hint, insurance of guns can be purchased at extra cost. Itemized lists of insurance information, as we all know, is semi-public.
Post Meeting Notes.1. Issue a Presidential Memorandum to require federal agencies to make relevant data available to the federal background-check system.
2. Address unnecessary legal barriers, particularly relating to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, that may prevent states from making information available to the background-check system.
3. Improve incentives for states to share information with the background- check system.
4. Direct the attorney general to review categories of individuals prohibited from having a gun to make sure dangerous people are not slipping through the cracks.
5. Propose rulemaking to give law enforcement the ability to run a full background check on an individual before returning a seized gun.
6. Publish a letter from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to federally licensed gun dealers providing guidance on how to run background checks for private sellers.
7. Launch a national safe and responsible gun ownership campaign.
8. Review safety standards for gun locks and gun safes (Consumer Product Safety Commission).
9. Issue a Presidential Memorandum to require federal law enforcement to trace guns recovered in criminal investigations.
10. Release a Department of Justice report analyzing information on lost and stolen guns and make it widely available to law enforcement.
11. Nominate an ATF director.
12. Provide law enforcement, first responders, and school officials with proper training for active shooter situations.
13. Maximize enforcement efforts to prevent gun violence and prosecute gun crime.
14. Issue a Presidential Memorandum directing the Centers for Disease Control to research the causes and prevention of gun violence.
15. Direct the attorney general to issue a report on the availability and most effective use of new gun-safety technologies and challenge the private sector to develop innovative technologies.
16. Clarify that the Affordable Care Act does not prohibit doctors asking their patients about guns in their homes.
17. Release a letter to healthcare providers clarifying that no federal law prohibits them from reporting threats of violence to law enforcement authorities.
18. Provide incentives for schools to hire school resource officers.
19. Develop model emergency-response plans for schools, houses of worship and institutions of higher education.
20. Release a letter to state health officials clarifying the scope of mental health services that Medicaid plans must cover.
21. Finalize regulations clarifying essential health benefits and parity requirements within Affordable Care Act exchanges.
22. Commit to finalizing mental-health parity regulations.
23. Launch a national dialogue led by Secretaries Sebelius and Duncan on mental health.