I’d encourage you to read the Federalist Papers along with the writings of Jefferson and Madison. The idea behind the Second Amendment makes for much more than our right to self defense. Per the Militia Acts of 1792, the President has the right to call up the militias of the several states in order to put down a rebellion, insurrection, or invasion. The President may demand that the militia serve under him for a period of 2 years. This was first instituted to quell Shays’ Rebellion in 1792.
Later that year, the second Militia Act was written to conscript any and all able-bodied males between 18 and 45 into a militia company. The militias served at the specific command of the state unless otherwise called to service by the President.
The technical and tactical proficiency you speak of was part of the “well-regulated” portion of the Second Amendment which, at the time, meant “to be well-practiced and prepared.” As such, “A well-practiced and prepared militia, being necessary to the security of a free state...”
Remember, American men, many of whom were not professional soldiers, put down the sizable, professional British army, with their knowledge of the frontiers, their home lands, and their very deadly capabilities with a musket. It is in the nature of America’s founding that we all have the most favored and popular weapons of the time for an infantryman to maintain his practice and skill with a firearm.
Your personal and professional experience in the USMC (thank you greatly for your service, by the way) is certainly invaluable, and I personally believe that veterans such as you should make yourself available to teach men like me the skills you learned in the military. While I may never use them, the skills passing down to citizens means that we would be better prepared to suppress an invasion or, God-forbid, our own military if under the command of a despot such as Obama.
You are not incorrect to believe in today’s time we could not perform in the same manner as the modern military, but I contend that had the Second Amendment not been gutted over the last 100 years by progressives, we would all be permitted BARs, MP5s, select-fire AR15s and AR10s, etc. Instead, the government, in fear of her people, instituted laws to ensure that the “professional” armies have those weapons while Americans, who are to be well-regulated per the Second Amendment’s implied instruction, cannot or are otherwise prohibited due to cost.
In Switzerland, young men are required to have a select-fire AR15-platform rifle in their home with sufficient ammunition. They are also required to report once-a-month for drill and/or target practice. It has been this way for hundreds of years and is the reason why both Napoleon and Hitler would not invade them.
Likewise, in Norway, young men and women are required to serve at least a year in the military to become acculturated to the hardware in use in the event the Ruskies get itchy trigger fingers again.
It’s only in America, a country labeled as “gun fanatics” by the world, that we are prohibited from training with the best weapons available to the militaries of the world. It’s only in America, a country founded and based on the ideas of independence and self-reliance, that we are forced to jump through red tape and legal BS to even have the ability to purchase a select-fire weapon, if we could afford it. It’s only in America, a country once associated with the most powerful military in the world, that we cannot protect our own homeland or otherwise train in military tactics, because in many states it is actually illegal to provide paramilitary training to citizens.
I’m not saying that your service and your professional training isn’t invaluable Gunny. I’m saying that prior to the 1900s, it was expected that every man in America had the ability to show up for militia muster with his own weapons and was sufficiently trained to use them. It was actually AGAINST THE LAW to not show up if your company was mustered, and those who broke the law were subject to court martial by a military court.
My how far we have fallen.