Right To Arms

I support the second ammendment. The actual purpose of having armed citizens was to guard against an overbearing government, and to ensure the security of a free State. While both parties will agree with me on this issue, we differ in that they want to restrict where you can carry and use them.

The conventions of a number of the States having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added.

Second Ammendment - Not only limited to guns

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.

A common error in Constitutional interpretation is the failure to examine the document in the context of its original meaning.  In fact, Thomas Jefferson once wrote to Supreme Court Justice William Johnson, suggesting to him that when examining and interpreting the Constitution, he should study the time in which the document was written, and “carry himself back to that time.”

This would seem to be good advice for today.

In United States v. Miller, the Court sustained that After reciting the original provisions of the Constitution dealing with the militia, the Court observed that ''with obvious purpose to assure the continuation and render possible the effectiveness of such forces the declaration and guarantee of the Second Amendment were made. It must be interpreted with that end in view.'' The significance of the militia, the Court continued, was that it was composed of ''civilians primarily, soldiers on occasion.'' It was upon this force that the States could rely for defense and securing of the laws, on a force that ''comprised all males physically capable of acting in concert for the common defense,'' who, ''when called for service . . . were expected to appear bearing arms supplied by themselves and of the kind in common use at the time."

  Of course, the first call for the militia was to fight the British in what has become known as the American Revolution.

Today, as during the early days of this country, the people are still the militia, in the usage of the word at the time of our founding.   The actual purpose of having armed citizens was to guard against an overbearing government. 

Any attempt by your federal government to disarm you will end in a miseraby failed attempt. You should however be more concerned with the local gun laws that your state passes and revises on a yearly basis. The tenth ammendement gives them the virtue of doing this.

Georgia Laws
HB