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Hi,

You said:
"the folks who wish to destroy the Second Amendment have an agenda that would result in the wholesale rape of the Bill of Rights"

I don't want to destroy the 2nd amendment, but I have to admit I don't understand it. It's a little ungrammatical frankly.

The 2nd Amendment:

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.

(And if dismantling the 2nd means "raping" the rest, about that 3rd amendment, which is crystal clear BTW, I hope the army guys quartered in my house are really cute.)

Who is the well-regulated militia? Where would one sign up for it? And does this mean that to bear arms you should be part of a well regulated militia? Who does the regulating? Does this mean proper gun licensing. If so, great! I'm all for it.

You have to register ownership and be a licensed user for what must the be the number one tool which causes untimely death (the CAR), so it makes sense to have some kind of regulation and license for another efficient tool of untimely death (the GUN).

BTW, I'm not anti-gun, I like shooting and one day I'll probably have a gun. I'm just agreeing with Tom DeLay that there are a lot of people out there who aren't anti-gun who think there should be some sensible limits on gun ownership, e.g. if you're a felon and can't vote, sensible enough you shouldn't have a legal gun instead.

If you're happy enough to let the government know where you live (property tax, voting, etc), how much you earn, what kind of library books you check out (Patriot Act), take a test for a driving license and register your car, what harm would a little extra registration, regulation and control on weapons do?

Honestly, I really don't understand the objection or why you think anyone who questions unfettered access to potentially dangerous objects is a bad person.

"& the questioning of the motives of these people should not be out of bounds."

Though you're more than welcome to question me on my motives.

Who is the well-regulated militia?

A well-regulated militia is a group of armed citizens who have some ability to function effectively as a citizen army. As distinct from a bunch of draftees who show up and have to be told which end of a rifle to point at the enemy.

The term "well-regulated" was not an adjectival phrase that meant "tightly-controlled" but rather one that referred to uniformity and consistency, as with a "well-regulated clock". Note that the phrase is different in meaning from "regulated well", just as "well-done" is different from "done well". If I order a steak medium rare and it comes back well-done, am I going to be happy with the cook?

In answer to your first question:Who is in the militia ? All able bodied citizens between 17 & 40 except those few public officials who specifically exempted by statute. The term well regulated in the time the Bill of Rights was written was understood to mean that you were proficient in the manual of arms and basic marksmanship.

Your argument that you have to register your car is a straw-man argument since the purpose of vehicle registration is the collection of taxes. Also you do not have a constitutionally protected right to drive your privately owned vehicle on publicly owned & maintained roads without proof of the fact that your vehicle taxes had been paid & that you were actually competent to operate said vehicle in public.

You assume that I am in favor of the patriot act ( I ain't)I am of the belief that the govt. has entirely to much power to snoop on my finances ,medical history,religions beliefs etc.

As for your objecting to someone having access to potentially dangerous objects just look at what you are doing!!! You are visiting a web site that discusses politics, you can go to the grocery store & buy junk food, book matches,go to the hardware store & buy the materials for renovateing your house ie powertools/electrical wiring components , visit a gas station & buy a gallon of gasoline!!!

All these things you can do without have to get down on bent knee to beg some government official to please, please, pretty please let me buy a six pack of Italian sausages instead of the tofu surprise,buy a kitchen cutlery set,decide to sleep in or go to attend the divine services of your choosing.

The same bozo's ramrodding gun control tried to give us "Know your customer" were your bank would literally compile a financial dossier on you for the govt.Being a smart aleck is no substitute for understanding the fact that government is not always looking out for YOUR best interests or the best interests of the citizenry at large .