The Second Amendment


“In a civilized world, there would be no need for law enforcement, the military, or a gun.”

Dr. BLR

Living in a country as violent as the United States should make everyone stop and think about how we got here. The Second Amendment states, “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.” Who knew that these 27 words would carry so much weight and keep a nation of people at arms, no pun intended. 

The idea of people owning guns is controversial because nearly every day, someone is killed by another person with a gun. But wouldn’t the death toll decrease if everyone had a gun for self-defense? I often tell my students that if they are of age and can pass a criminal and mental health background check, they should apply for a permit to purchase a gun. I say this because I am very aware of the world we live in, and that at any moment, they could be confronted by someone trying to end their life, so they must be able to defend themselves. Is this good advice? Yes!

Now, you might wonder why I am so firm in my view. It’s simple. I consider the history of guns and their purpose. I didn’t want to go too far back, so I focused on the United States. Two key periods—the American Revolution and the Civil War—demonstrated how effective a gun can be for killing your enemy. Thousands of lives were lost, and for what? To me, it’s more about human behavior or the lack of it. Why not sit down and talk through differences peacefully and walk away alive? If only it were that easy. Don’t forget, “might makes right.” Back then, white men in power believed they were on the right side of history. To do that, they needed to eliminate their opponents, so what better way than to shoot and kill them? That’s kind of what they’ve been known for, and over the years, citizens have adopted this practice into our everyday lives. 

The bigger issue about why I believe Americans should exercise their rights under the Second Amendment is due to what the Founding Fathers expected of white men in power: the potential for abuse. The idea of arming citizens to prevent tyranny was a major part of their drafting. During the Donald Trump presidency, we’ve seen this in action firsthand.

As a retired law enforcement officer, I am permitted to carry a weapon as long as I qualify twice a year, just like I was required to do before retirement. This rule was reinforced after 9/11 with the passage of HR-218, the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA) in 2004. The reason was to ensure that many law enforcement officers, including retired ones, are armed and ready to prevent acts of terrorism. Gun rights organizations also wanted a voice in this matter because they believed that citizens’ rights might be infringed upon. Organizations like the National Rifle Association (NRA), Gun Owners of America (GOA), the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF), and the Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) are among those that support Americans’ right to bear arms. They have the political muscle to lobby respective politicians to have gun rights laws left intact, or suffer the fallout from constituents.

While there is public demand for politicians to restrict the sale of fully automatic weapons, the number of citizens purchasing firearms and training at gun ranges has risen significantly. I’ve noticed this increase when I am at the gun range as well. It’s no secret that law enforcement is primarily a white male profession, so the large number of white retired police officers isn’t surprising. What caught my attention is the number of women, Jews, and white non-police officers who feel the need to practice shooting alongside me, as if they know something catastrophic is imminent. 

So, where do we stand as a society on this issue? Currently, we have a rogue government that is harassing, arresting, and deporting many of our citizens, regardless of their status. The federal agencies, domestic terrorist groups, and anti-hate organizations such as the FBI, CIA, ICE, KKK, CBP, DOD, GOP, and ADL have gone out of their way to act as enforcers for all the wrong reasons. Additionally, the National Guard has been deployed in several states to combat crime, so why do we still have local police? It feels like something is brewing. At some point, ordinary citizens will turn against the military just as they have against the police. Those uneducated Americans that President Trump champions will realize they’ve been played and start to question if the master plan is to come for their right to purchase a firearm. I’m not an alarmist or a conspiracy theorist; I’m just reading the signs, and it doesn’t look good. I’ll sit back and observe. I’ve said my piece. 

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