Guns, the Constitution and Facts

The More You Now With Stewie
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Guns, the Constitution, and Facts

Recently I have been doing a little research online regarding gun control; I got tired of all the talk about outlawing guns and repealing the 2nd amendment.

First – I want to make sure that everyone reading this is an adult and can act like an adult, so make sure that you have your big kid undies on, if not then this is a waste of your time to read, and all comments are mediated, and nasty comments will not be shared. Okay, kid gloves off, here we go, now understand this – This is a dangerous world and there are dangerous people in it. This has always been the case and it will always be the case, period, nothing we do can change that. Punishment like time behind bars has little effect on those that truly dangerous. They are not like you and I, they are honestly different.

If you do not agree with the aforementioned statement, then you are not adult enough to discuss this any further. If you think everything is all rainbows and unicorns, then you are not adult enough. If you think that by making something illegal for everyone to own or use, will fix the problem, then you are not adult enough.

Rainbows and Unicorns

Second let me “qualify” myself, since that seems to be what everyone who writes anything online seems to do and I wouldn’t want to not follow some unwritten rule, ha, yeah right. First, I’m a former active-duty U.S. Marine and I spent over 10 years on active duty. I still honor my country by working for the Marine Corps and Navy. I’m a gun owner and I firmly believe that if I want to own a gun, then I should be able to own one, period. I’m law-abiding and have never been arrested. Ok, moving on. I don’t want to stop you from owning a hybrid car and drinking your over-priced Starbucks coffee, in fact, I don’t it a second thought.

Third – I’m a firm believer in “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” This may or may not have been stated by Edmund Burke (depending on who you ask).  Burke was an Irish statesman, author, orator, political theorist, and philosopher who, after moving to England, served for many years in the House of Commons of Great Britain as a member of the Whig party. Edmund was a huge friend of the American colonies.

For those that don’t understand what that statement means, it simply means that evil will prevail if we sit idly by and do nothing to stop it.

I’m not the type of person to not lend a helping hand or look the other way when someone needs my help. I was raised this way and then had more of this principle instilled in me while in the Marine Corps. If I see a car accident, I’m that guy that stops and renders assistance. If I’m hiking and I see trash, I’m that guy that picks it up and hikes it out. If you ask me for help, I’m that guy, that will give you the help you need, regardless of the situation or my own safety.

Fourth – All facts and figures have been checked against reliable sources, however, please remember, that sources may slant those numbers in their favor. So, the American Cancer Society is likely to have higher statistics on cancer-related deaths, than say the CDC, which may slant their numbers the other way. I have included sources for most of the information I have listed.

Fifth – Nothing in the U.S. Constitution was set up with short-term goals in mind. It was written with the understanding that from generation-to-generation people change things and the way of thinking changes. But the basic rights outlined in the US Constitution must not change. There were months of thought and debate put into the Constitution by people that firmly believed that the United States should be a free county, free from English control, and free from tyranny.

Aww crap, there is a big word for some of you out there, tyranny is usually defined as the illegitimate possession or use of such power. We are talking dozens of representatives (of each state – 38 actually) and 116 days of debate. They had originally 23 articles, but they condensed them into seven, but that was the easy part. Then we are talking about the ratification process (think approval and adoption by each of the states in the Union).

Are you still with me? Still, got your big kid underwear pulled up? Great, let’s move on.

The Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights that protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms. It was adopted on December 15, 1791, along with the rest of the Bill of Rights. The second amendment is probably the most misread and misunderstood amendment of the Constitution. The Supreme Court of the United States first ruled in 2008 that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess and carry firearms

All the disputes over gun control come from the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution, found in the Bill of Rights. The sad part is that it is only one sentence long, and so greatly debated. And here is why it is greatly debated. There are several versions of the text of the Second Amendment, each with slight capitalization and punctuation differences, found in the official documents surrounding the adoption of the Bill of Rights. One version was passed by Congress, while another is found in the copies distributed to the States and then ratified by them. I will highlight in Red the subtle differences.

As passed by the Congress:

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.

 As ratified by the States and authenticated by Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State:

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.

If you aren’t sure what the difference is, it all has to do with “bear arm”. Is the “A” supposed to be capitalized and is there supposed to be a comma? But that capital “A” and the placement of the comma, actually changes the statement.

(They didn’t have a Kinko’s in 1791, so they would hand write copies, thus the slight capitalization and punctuation differences)

In the most basic form, the Amendment outlines that the states should have a well regulated (trained and controlled) militia (military). This militia will provide security to the state, and it is the right (privileged or guarantee) of the people in that state to bear (have and keep) arm (guns) in order to fulfill this need for a militia. The government (in this case the U.S. Government) shall not infringe (limit or undermine) this right. It technically does not state that we as private citizens can have guns for our personal use. Though that is what the Supreme Court ruled and that is how it has been interrupted over the years.

There is a good article called The Second Amendment Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

Right to have Bear arms

However, the Supreme Court has now definitively held that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that weapon for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home. Moreover, this right applies not just to the federal government, but to states and municipalities as well.

Okay, so currently, the Supreme Court has stated that you and I and our neighbors have the right to possess a firearm. Good, great, we are done here, or are we? Well that all can change with a few votes. After all, the landmark 1973 case, Roe vs Wade was changed by the same court that make the first decision.

We have the second amendment so that, should the need arise, the people can rise up against a tyrannical government. Take that away, and we are completely helpless. The people are supposed to be able to have comparable arms to the current military. But when you take away the ability for the people to rebel against its government, then that government controls the people, not the other way around.  Governments should be scared of the people, not the other way around. Keep in mind that the second amendment was written during a time when the men writing it just ended a bloody fight with an oppressive government (The British and a little argument called the American Revolutionary War or American War of Independence,).

They understood that over time any government could eventually become oppressive (as the British had) and that the people may have to defend themselves from it. They also understood that an armed population was going to keep the government from going overboard with their oppressive ways. Also keep in mind that the Government is supposed to work for the people, not the other way around. We elect them to be our representation and to make our voices heard. Even though it seems like we work for them at times.

Before I continue here, we need to get our minds wrapped around what this means and what happened. To sum up the American Revolution in a few sentences, let’s go with the British (where all the citizens living in British America came from Britain at the time) wanting to rule over the thirteen Colonies in British America. The people living in British America didn’t want that, so they had a dispute over this and it became bloody, thus they had the war and the winner got to control British America and the thirteen colonies  I know this is a very basic overview, but that is what I need for this post.

Before all of you, history majors start to flame me in the comments. I’m trying to keep this very basic and in terms that everyone can understand. If you want to have a flame war about the American Revolution, then please have that war here, they will entertain that for you.

Okay, we need to define tyrannical to fully understand all this: As an adjective: 1.) Exercising power in a cruel or arbitrary way. 2.) Characteristic of tyranny; oppressive and controlling. So, understanding that, then the statement: The current government is becoming more tyrannical every year. This is giving the people a type of Stockholm syndrome. When they do take away the second amendment or are able to dilute it down to where you are not able to own anything but a bow and arrow, you will have no way to stop a tyrannical government.

Again, don’t for one second think that this can’t happen. And don’t think that regardless of your belief, a good half of the citizens in the U.S. will not be on the same side as you are. To prove this, again take a look at Roe vs Wade. It stood for 49 years and then a new Supreme Court Justice here and another one there and bingo, the new Justices no longer believe in the 1973 ruling. And if you are on the side of the current Justices and you think you are in the majority, think again. Pew Research Center did a study and found out that 62% of American citizens disapprove of the 2022 decision. (Source)

I mentioned Stockholm syndrome earlier, It is defined as a psychological phenomenon in which hostages express empathy, and sympathy and have positive feelings towards their captors, sometimes to the point of defending them. Well, that explains why half the country is leaning one way and the other half is leaning the opposite way. Some are feeling empathy for the government and are “blinded”. In the most basic terms, Stockholm syndrome is where the captive sympathizes with who has captured them. And it happens more than you think it does.

A tyrannical government makes me think of the Battle of Athens. The Battle of Athens was a rebellion led by citizens in Athens and Etowah, Tennessee, United States, against the local government in August 1946. The citizens, including some World War II veterans, accused the local officials of political corruption and voter intimidation. The event is sometimes cited by firearms ownership advocates as an example of the value of the Second Amendment in combating tyranny.

So why is there so much talk about the second amendment? It is believed by a large portion of this country that the current Government wants to slowly turn the United States into a Socialist nation. And one of the first steps to do this is to disarm the people of that nation. It is believed that the current administration {insert any modern Presidential administration here} is using the most recent “rash” of mass shootings to fuel the fire for gun control.

When a government wants to take control, it must first disarm the people, once disarmed, they will be able to take over without a fight. But if the people can have firearms and use those firearms to fight back, then the tyrannical government can’t take control that easily, they now have a fight. I know, I know, that can’t happen here. Well, I’m sure the German citizens thought that before Hitler.  I’m sure the people of Cambodia, thought that too, before Pol Pot. How about Russia and Stalin?

Which dictator killed the most people?

I know, this can’t happen today, or can it? How many people died in the war between Russia and Ukraine? Estimates are somewhere around 75,000-80,000 Russian soldiers and somewhere between 10,000-30,000 Ukrainian troops, not to mention a staggering amount of civilians (somewhere around 30,000). It can most definitely happen today.

Now is when most people say, we can’t win a war against a trained Army, and they have bigger guns and tanks and, and, and, and, wait, they have bigger guns, I want a bigger gun so I can fight them on the same level. (And there it is folks, the right to bear arms). Here are two really good articles “When a Population is Disarmed: A Brief History of Tyranny” and “The Seizure of Arms has Always Been an Act of Tyranny

Let’s also try to define “Assault Weapons”
(According to Wikipedia) In discussions about gun laws and gun politics in the United States, an assault weapon is most commonly defined as a semi-automatic firearm possessing certain features similar to those of military firearms. Semi-automatic firearms fire one bullet (round) each time the trigger is pulled; the spent cartridge case is ejected, and another cartridge is loaded into the chamber, without the manual operation of a bolt handle, a lever, or a sliding handgrip. – Okay, this pretty much describes most of the weapons on the market, one pull = one round. This means an antique pistol used in the Wild West is an assault weapon. Let’s read more.

(According to Wikipedia) An assault weapon has a detachable magazine, in conjunction with one, two, or more other features such as a pistol grip, a folding stock, a flash suppressor, or a bayonet lug. Most assault weapons are rifles, but some are pistols or shotguns. – Ok, this narrows it down and I can’t really see why a civilian would ever need a flash suppressor and bayonet lug for a hunting or home-defense weapon. But having a pistol grip or a folding stock does not make the weapon any more or any less lethal. Reading more…

(According to Wikipedia) The term “assault weapon” is sometimes conflated with the term “assault rifle”. An assault rifle is a military rifle that utilizes an intermediate-power cartridge, and that generally is capable of full-automatic fire, where multiple rounds are fired continuously when the trigger is pulled one time or burst capable, where a burst of several rounds is fired when the trigger is pulled one time. In the United States, full-automatic firearms are heavily restricted and regulated by federal laws such as the National Firearms Act of 1934, as well as some state and local laws. Okay, got it, I think. But we will move on and later we will look at the past bans and the currently projected ban.

Armed with this new knowledge about what is an assault rifle, are either of these two rifles an assault rifle?

Ruger® 10/22® Carbine Semi-Auto Rifle

Ruger® 10/22 Tactical Semi-Automatic Rifle

Most of you are likely thinking that the second rifle is an assault rifle, but what if I told you that they are the same rifle? The second one just has $50 worth of plastic added to the outside of it, to make it look cool.

Based on what you just learned about adding a plastic kit to a gun, makes it look like an “assault rifle”, and sort of makes the whole cosmetic appearance of a rifle argument null. This means things like a pistol grip and a folding stock do not make a rifle more deadly, they more than likely will make a rifle more comfortable to shoot.

Let’s move on!

Gun ownership in this country is not a right, it is deterrence. Power-hungry, evil, and corrupt people will find their way into leadership and government, and positions of power. This is what they do and people like this will find their way into power. After all, power is what they seek, and they are thriving off of it. These people are in power because they wanted power, period. They got to where they were by any means necessary.

Stay tuned, there will be more!

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Average Joe

Welcome to the Average Joe Weekly blog. This is basically my place on the web where I can help spread some of the knowledge that I have accumulated over the years. I served 10+ years in the Marine Corps on Active Duty, but that was some 25 years ago.

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By Average Joe

Welcome to the Average Joe Weekly blog. This is basically my place on the web where I can help spread some of the knowledge that I have accumulated over the years. I served 10+ years in the Marine Corps on Active Duty, but that was some 25 years ago.

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