Repeal the 2nd Amendment

[Linden1209]

Old Roy wrote:

Well, who knew - NO - we all knew that this paper had become a voice of confiscatory governmetn policies.
Well, I hope your ink is the next thing taken over by government.

Roy, you are great! You should write the Trib's editorials - then they would make sense.

[govnndotcom]

Get bent. Guns don't kill people. Criminals with illegal guns kill people. Oh, and cops kill people. Soldiers too.

[Jason]

The writers of the constitution hardly need an editor, but the writers of this editorial clearly need a course in grammar.

"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."

The first half of the sentence is called an ablative absolute. It is rarely used in English anymore, but was quite popular in the 18th and 19th centuries as it mimicked classical latin.

Anyway, ablative absolute clauses are used to describe the circumstances or context of the action in the sentence and are wholly tangential to the action or intent expressed by the main verb. This is why they can be removed from the sentence while it's meaning remains intact.

[JCD]

The following was taken from a political blog and sums up everything so nicely for even Chicago Tribune writers to understand with no problem:

"When the first amendment says "the people" have a right to assemble it means all the people and not just government-sanctioned organizations. Right?

When the fourth amendment says "the people" are not to be subjected to unreasonable search and seizure, that means all the people and not just whomever the government decides. Right?

When the fifth amendment says "no person" shall be put into double jeopardy or be forced to testify against himself, "person" means everyone and not just whomever the government decides. Right?

When the eighth amendment says cruel and unusual punishment shall not be inflicted, that applies to everyone and not just whomever the government decides. Right?

So why, when the second amendment says "the people" have the right to keep and bear arms do some people (mostly on the left) think it's meant to apply only to the people whom the government selects?

[Alan Breton]

The non felon citizenry of Washington now have the right to keep weapons for self defense, and hunting. Local, state and federal government agencies have been largely ineffective in preventing drug crime, illegal immigrant crime, streetgang crime, etc. So why anybody would suppose the government could protect the safety of law abiding citizens is beyond me. And obviously our founding fathers.

[Webguy from New Hampshire]

Your editorial is disturbing. Should we also consider repeal of the 1st amendment to silence those we consider offensive? Also in your frenzy to discredit the SC's decision you clearly chose to interpret the 2A in a way that is clearly different from what the authors intended.

The entire bill of rights is about individual rights, not state's rights. The phrase "Free State" is important because it implies the purpose of the 2A is to ensure the "Free State" remains Free and doesn't disolve into an authoritiarian regime. The Militia has been recognized as being the body politics, the people. So a more correct and honest interperation of the 2A would be: In order to keep the state Free, the people may own arms.

[mignn]

well, what would you expect coming out of Chicago?

[Todd Roth]

Sorry, you're wrong about the Second Amendment.

It is about the ability of individuals to protect themselves from an opressive government. Which the Colonists had just done in defeating the British.

It also gives the individual power to protect against criminals. Necessary in a jurisdiction failed by local government in keeping proper order. Sound familiar?

Elitists constantly talk about "guns" because of their inability to control criminals. I've had guns all my life and never once had one misbehave.

[John D]

Joe Guzzardo wrote:

Welcome to Dodge City, USA, and we consider ourselves one of the most advanced nations on the face of this planet. The rest of the civilized world is laughing at us. I'm moving to Denmark.

I've been hearing that "Dodge City" prediction for forty years. Everytime restrictions are eased on firearms or people are allowed concealed carry that hoary old "Dodge City" prediction gets trotted out.

The old saw is that a stopped clock is right twice a day. That's a better record than this trope.

On the other hand, maybe the people of Chicago are just not up to the standards of citzens elsewhere and cannot be trusted with handguns.

[Tom Bryant]

It's articles like this, with its failure to understand that the militia is a defense against the excesses of government, that makes me glad the Founders PUT the amendment in in the first place. What a maroon!

[MinisterR]

Chicago is already "Dodge city" and has gotten worse since the "ban" in the early 80's. Don't wait to move to Denmark, use your government welfare "Stimulus Rebate" to get the F out

Joe Guzzardo wrote:

Welcome to Dodge City, USA, and we consider ourselves one of the most advanced nations on the face of this planet. The rest of the civilized world is laughing at us. I'm moving to Denmark.

[T in Chicago]

Why don't we work on the 14th amendment - the one that now lets illegal citizens give birth to legal citizens and in turn gives them the free health care and services the rest of us legal hardworking citizens bust their butts for and pay the taxes towards everyday. See...there is free health care in America.

[eaglewingz08]

Funny how liberals can find all sorts of rights in the penumbras and emanations of US Constitution, that are nowhere expressly stated, such as abortion on demand, euthanasia, homosexual sodomy, gay marriage, but a right of the people that has existed for nearly four hundred years from English commonlaw through the enactment of the Second Amendment is given short shrift because lib/stalinists hate for the people to be armed and able to defend themselves from their gangs and criminals that libs would allow to prey on common citizens.

[EdC]

The second amendment will never be repealed. Everyone has a right to self defense.

[Woody Stark]

And I thought the LA times was loony. You folks in Chicago have a serious problem with your newspaper.

[Michael Ejercito]

The LA times printed an interesting op-ed today. Here is my letter to them:

Jeffrey Fagan and Stephen Sugarman mention in their opinion article promoting the idea that gun makers should be required to reduce gun homicides that 12,000 Americans will be shot to death.

This number is in the same order of magnitude as 16,000 Americans killed in car crashes caused by drunk driving. And yet, I have not been able to find a column from either of them advocating that alcohol makers be required to reduce deaths caused by drunk driving.

There is one thing gun makers can do to reduce gun homicides. They can stop selling to the NYPD.

The NYPD, after all, has a track record of shooting unarmed black men.

[Ken from Wisconsin]

"Citizens have had the right to protect themselves in their homes with other weapons, such as shotguns."

Try moving a 4.5 inch stick in your hand quickly to point it at an object in your home. Now hold a 36 inch long board in both hands and try it again. Notice the difference in how fast each tracks the object?

[anonymouse]

love how whoever wrote this editorial didn't have to balls to attach his name to it

[Joseph]

Last time I checked, guns were inanimate objects. No gun ever killed a person or anything else without SOMEONE pulling the trigger. Why not fix the people who have the problem of wanting to kill someone?

More importantly, if someone is willing to kill another human being, do you actually think they will care if it is against the law to own a gun? Even with the Second Amendment, how many killers use registered or legally purchased firearms?

IF GUNS ARE OUTLAWED, ONLY OUTLAWS WILL HAVE GUNS!!!

[Always right]

Joe Guzzardo wrote:

Welcome to Dodge City, USA, and we consider ourselves one of the most advanced nations on the face of this planet. The rest of the civilized world is laughing at us. I'm moving to Denmark.

Yes, Europe is the model we should all follow. Massive entitlement program failures- massive immigration of Muslims to help sustain liberal entitlement policies. Someone, please, name one liberal policy that has been a success. I'm waiting...

You want to move to Denmark- I'll help you pack.