The Right of the People to Keep and Bear Arms - Neal Shaffer

The Rutherford Institute - oldSpeak ^ | Neal Shaffer

[wcbtinman]

"...do you have a source for this?"

Yes, and no. I read about this in a treatise on the Bill of Rights in a book that someone loaned me. It was written by a law professor from Loyola I think. I haven't been able to find the information since, and the guy I borrowed the book from has died, so I can't ask him.

Sorry.

[asformeandformyhouse]

I did better than that. I looked at the original document.

I'm not sure where you looked. A copy of the original, with 3 commas, can be found at: http://www.constitution.org/cons/bill.jpg

Look under 'Article the fourth'

[mvpel]

Presumably where he looked was at the National Archives Exhibit Hall in Washington, D.C., where THE original copy is displayed in a nitrogen-filled glass vault and hundreds of people every day file past it.

[Psycho_Bunny]

"The project of disciplining all the militia of the United States is as
futile as it would be injurious, if it were capable of being carried
into execution. A tolerable expertness in military movements is a
business that requires time and practice. It is not a day, or even a
week, that will suffice for the attainment of it. To oblige the great
body of the yeomanry, and of the other classes of the citizens, to be
under arms for the purpose of going through military exercises and
evolutions, as often as might be necessary to acquire the degree of
perfection which would entitle them to the character of a well-regulated
militia, would be a real grievance to the people, and a serious public
inconvenience and loss. It would form an annual deduction from the
productive labor of the country, to an amount which, calculating upon
the present numbers of the people, would not fall far short of the whole
expense of the civil establishments of all the States. To attempt a
thing which would abridge the mass of labor and industry to so
considerable an extent, would be unwise: and the experiment, if made,
could not succeed, because it would not long be endured. Little more can
reasonably be aimed at, with respect to the people at large, than to
have them properly armed and equipped"

-Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 29

This pretty much says all there is to say about the intent of the Second.

[ctdonath2]

Time to lift the full-auto bans. The optimal modern miltia weapon is the M16, and the Constitution guarantees the right to own one.

[ctdonath2]

Excellent find.

[asformeandformyhouse]

Presumably where he looked was at the National Archives Exhibit Hall in Washington, D.C., where THE original copy is displayed in a nitrogen-filled glass vault and hundreds of people every day file past it.

I'm scheduled to go to D.C. next year so I'll take a look but the website for them also has it with 3 commas.

http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/charters_of_freedom/bill_of_rights/amendments_1-10.html

The previous picture of the document that I posted is the same as the one they are showing. if either of you have a grtaphic of where it is shown using only one comma, please include it. Thanks.

[FormerLurker]

I am not holding my breath waiting for this to declared legal, but it should be. Someday, perhaps, a 2nd Amendment case will come before the USSC, and we'll see the wrongs of the past corrected. One can only hope, and perhaps a bit more, now that Bush's nominees (whom I would generally expect to be strict constructionists) can actually get a fair hearing. We'll see.

It's a good thing you're not holding your breath..

[FormerLurker]

The Right to Keep and Bear Arms - REPORT of the SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE CONSTITUTION of the UNITED STATES SENATE NINETY-SEVENTH CONGRESS

The Constitution For The United States, Its Sources and Its Applications - Amendment Article II

THE RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS

[mn_b_one]

Absolutely 100% correct, sir. Its nice to see someone that "GETS IT", thank you.

[mvpel]

Just because one of the judges knew it for a fact doesn't mean they could take judicial notice of it.

[mvpel]

I looked at the 8.5 megabyte high-resolution image at the NARA website, and I saw a very obvious comma between militia and being, between state and the, and a mark that looked like a comma, but was positioned equidistant between arms and shall, as in "... and bear arms , shall..." - very different than the positioning of the comma in the other two locations.

[mvpel]

You should bring a large magnifying glass for a close examination - the vault positions the documents some distance away from the glass, and the text is very, very faint.

[asformeandformyhouse]

You should bring a large magnifying glass for a close examination

Will do. Thanks.