[robertpaulsen]

"As civil rulers, not having their duty to the people duly before them, may attempt to tyrannize, and as the military forces which must be occasionally raised to defend our country, might pervert their power to the injury of their fellow-citizens, the people are confirmed by the next article in their right to keep and bear their private arms."
-- Tench Coxe

To keep and bear their private arms as part of a Militia. One way to read it.

[Dead Corpse]

Or that without those arms, there is no way for civilians to participate in militia duty.

Poor Bobby... Still can't get it right...

[smoketree]

That is not one way to read it. You cannot just add whatever words you feel like, or omit as you feel.
Do you honestly think that after throwing off the most powerful army in the world with great aid of citizen soldiers they would turn around and bind those soldiers to a tyrannical government again?

[MileHi]

To keep and bear their private arms as part of a Militia. One way to read it.

Um, yes. As long as you inset "as part of a Militia", which is nowhere in the quote... Get it???