The Second Amendment: The peoples right to militarize?

"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."

We established in my last post titled "The First Amendment: Told in Plain English" that the First Amendment was arguably the very most important amendment and that every amendment thereafter would ether reaffirm the precedent it set or lay out methods the citizens could use to defend (peaceably or in a defensive matter) their rights from tyranny.

In this this segment, we will talk about the most misunderstood amendment and ask questions about its application in modern time. First, Let's talk about history and why this amendment exist in the first place.

“The Constitution of most of our states (and of the United States) assert that all power is inherent in the people; that they may exercise it by themselves; that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed.” – Thomas Jefferson, letter to John Cartwright, 5 June 1824

In the late 1700s James Madison (The Father of the Constitution) was tasked by Congress to draft The Bill of Rights which were later ratified in 1791. The goal of these documents were to limit government authority, establish an idea of people's inherent rights and liberties, and establish the duties of each citizen.

James Madison who was a proponent of strong federal government believed that these documents had to contain checks and balances against potential government abuse along with reaffirming people's inherent liberties. The 2nd, 4th, 5,th, 6th, and 8th amendment accomplish just that by empowering both the everyday individual and those accused of crime.

In today's world we think of the Second as the gun rights amendment but our founding fathers had a much grander intention then simply carrying a weapon albeit that the right to arm oneself was indeed one of the intentions . Now, Let's examine some thoughts from James Madison who drafted The Bill of Rights and Thomas Jefferson our third president and primary author of The Declaration of Independence.

For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well-organized and armed militia is their best security. - Thomas Jefferson

A standing army is one of the greatest mischiefs that can possibly happen.”

James Madison, Debates, Virginia Convention, 1787

“None but an armed nation can dispense with a standing army.”

Thomas Jefferson, Letter to unknown recipient, February 25, 1803

Now consider this excerpt from the U.S Constitution.

The U. S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 8

“The Congress shall have Power ... To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years; To provide and maintain a Navy; To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces; To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;”

Note that there could be a permanent navy, but not a standing army. Now read this quote from Thomas Jefferson.

Every citizen should be a soldier. This was the case with the Greeks and Romans, and must be that of every free state. - Thomas Jefferson - 3rd president of US (1743 - 1826)

It is interesting that Thomas Jefferson would say something like that after stating his opposition to a standing army countless times. There is a reason for this however; you see, this sentiment against standing armies was shared with most of our founding fathers. They feared the subjugation that often accompanied militaries. Their solution was to make it the duty and the right for every citizen to participate in a militia and to bear arms. In theory, the collective people of the United States is the standing army against tyranny.

This however begs the question if the United States of today has met the ambitions of our founders for which I think we know the answer to that question... It is also worth asking if the states many National Guards which in theory serves has each state's militia but is very often used as an arm of the federal government. An arm the bears the title of U.S Army and one that very few citizens may actually take part in fulfills the intentions of the second amendment.

In my opinion, the ambitions of our founders will never be met until every citizen realizes that they are a competent individual with inherent rights and duties that cannot be infringed upon.