Posted on 03/12/2018 10:27:53 PM PDT by FrankLea
The reason for the 2nd Amendment was written was to give the citizen Military grade weapons to protect themselves from the Government. In 1776 the Military grade weapons was a Mussel loader now it is a fully automatic weapon. Thomas Jefferson said, "an Armed man is a Citizen, an unarmed man is a subject." This country was founded on the premise that all citizens are Sovereign.
I agree full auto has no place in the civilian world. They are designed to be used on fast moving vehicles or aircraft to shoot the enemy. They are also good for laying down cover fire so your soldiers can get into a better position to assault the enemy. It will also kill large numbers of people in a crowd. For civilians is waste too much ammo and you have no idea where most of the bullets are going. Semi-auto is good. Select fire puts the bullets where you want them. I used to own a Ruger 10-22 rifle; it was a semi-automatic weapon with a variety of clips. Anywhere from 10 to 50 rounds. Given this; the Ruger 10-22 carbine is considered an Assault weapon in the state of New Jersey. I am certain it has a similar classification in other states. I agree it is a lethal weapon.
My question is; What designates a weapon as an assault weapon? All firearms: Pistols, Rifles, Carbines, Shotguns are designed to Kill. Pistols are designed to kill people. Many states outlaw pistols for hunting. It does not matter if it is mussel loader, Breach loader single shot, semi or full auto all firearms are all designed to kill. By that reckoning, all firearms are assault weapons.
The mussel loaders of the Revolution were the military weapons of the day. In my opinion from reading the Federalist Papers; the argument that the 2nd amendment only pertains to those type of weapons is flawed as those were the high tech military weapons of that time. In the civil war, breech loader riffles were developed. Repeating Lever and bolt action rifles came soon after. Black powder cap and ball pistols were refitted to use cartridges. The carbine and semi-auto and full auto weapons came a short time later. The founding fathers were adamant in the Federalist Papers that an armed society will keep the government in fear of the people; not the people in fear of the government. I believe if we were able to ask the founding fathers do you think it is a good idea that the people of today to have military grade weapons to defend themselves from the government they would to a man say Yes.
As for banning all firearms; this will never work. Anyone who wants to can make a zip gun in the privacy of their home with hand tools and supplies from a hardware store. It will take a while and may not be the best weapon. Then again, firearms started out as handcrafted weapons of exceptional quality. A person in a basic machine shop can manufacturer a pistol, rifle or shotgun in a short amount of time. 3D printers can print a firearm in a few hours. A man in Bulgaria created a key fob gun for personal protection. It is a very small weapon that shoots 22 or 38 caliber bullets. It has a short range of a few feet and fits between 2 fingers. It can be made in a machine shop in less than an hour.
Whatever laws the government passes someone will find a way around it. If the government bans smokeless powder used in the cartridges; someone with a high school level chemistry class education can make a suitable substitute. If all firearms are banned and confiscated then murderous people will find different ways to cause mayhem. Timothy McVeigh the Oklahoma City bomber used a truck, fertilizer, and diesel fuel for domestic terrorism.
Guns are not the problem. There is no simple panacea cure for the violence in this country. I will be the first to say I do not have all of the answers on how to fix this huge problem in our country. Any of the simple answers have been put forth and tried. Many have failed. I do believe we need to get back to a Nuclear family for the majority of the people in the country. This will help stabilize many communities. A strong family was the basis of our country for most of its history. But this is a topic for another day.
As always I look forward to the discussion on my views. These are my views and I believe they are for the most part correct. If you have an opposing view I desire a spirited conversation.
You betcha they did.
Really? Prior to 1934 citizens could own pretty much any type weapon the military used, just as the Founders affirmed, to defend against tyranny. Number of school shootings: 0
Great quotes All!
Not Guilty!
The author should clam up and spell better...
The Founding Fathers intended that we the people be able to defend ourselves from a tyrannical government.
Yeah, and clips for Roger 10-22s.
Second article in less than 24 hours comparing U.S. citizenry to the Sovereign Citizen movement with no justification or explanation. IN THE FIRST SENTENCE, then just carries on with all the other obfuscatory BS.
Some one is trying to lump the founders of our country, conservative U.S. citizens and SOVERIEGN CITIZENS into the same group. This is how conservative Americans will be labeled as ‘BAD’. You are a “Soveriegn”.
When the two have absolutly, completly different definitions. The left is trying to turn them (US) into the same thing.
A little off subject but not much - the AR-15 is not a military weapon. It was originally designed and sold as a civilian weapon and has never been used by the US Military.
We drive military vehicles that kill more than guns do.
Easy Peasy Mussel Loaders!
so by the time the Constitution was written, rifles had been moved from a primarily hunting device to a weapon war, no?
Saving these. Thanks.
Not really. The smooth bore 69 cal. muzzle loading musket remained the standard infantry weapon in the U.S. Army until 1855. There some militia units armed with the “Mississippi” rifle during the Mexican war. After the Mexican war I believe the army did equip one company in a regiment with the “Mississippi” rifle.
I had the privilege of watching chickens shot out of a canon into aircraft windshields. The chickens were taken out of the freezer, thawed and put into the canon. They hired a newbie but did not give him much instruction on how to do the testing. He put a frozen bird into the canon. Instant windshield failure. So..... I would suggest you use a frozen fresh water mussel if you want to exercise you 2nd amendment rights.
Back in those days the civilian had better arms than the military.
Army-—smooth bore musket. Civilian—super accurate rifle.
Army adopts a muzzle loading rifle-—civilians had breachloaders.
Army adopts a breach loading single shot rifle—civilians had tube fed cartridge rifles, some holding up to 32 rounds.
Army adopts a 5 shot bolt action rifle,-—Civilians had lever actions, pump actions, early semi-auto rifles, and were experimenting with full auto rifles.
Army adopts a semi-auto rifle,—citizens banned from full auto rifles due to taxing.
1956 army adopts a full auto rifle- pulling ahead of what Civilians owned for the first time.
Back then I don't think there was a whole lot of difference between military weapons and civilian weapons.
A fringe weapon.
They were expensive and complex.
They were primarily an ambush weapon.
Repeatedly, so not a typo.
The founding fathers clearly were not looking at a right to weapons stuck to the walls by one or more byssal threads.
Read the piece. Aside from crippling his argument with that mussel mistake, its ok.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.