From My Cold, Dead Hands

So yesterday the Supreme Court ruled on the interpretation of the Second Amendment. While the interpretation was accurate, the vote was far too close. I for one am tired of liberal tromping trash trials such as this through our courts hoping that some officious judge takes it upon himself to legislate from the bench.

But, for now, I would like to address the second amendment of our US Constitution. The 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.

This seems to be a fairly clear and straightforward addition to the Constitution. Our founding fathers had recently fought a war against a tyranical government and were bent on ensuring that should the government they created become out of control, the PEOPLE, that would be you and I could form militias and defend themselves. They clearly state that for a free state to exist, The People must be able to keep and bear arms.

But this amendment says even more than that. It uses the phrase, "A Well Regulated Militia". In the days of the founding fathers, well regulated did not mean monitored by the bureaucracy. It meant proficient. The Fathers stated that the men within the militia needed to be proficient with their firearms, not simply armed. I believe that this is where our country has gone astray.

As a small child, we had guns laying all over our home. I remember rifles propped up between two stools while the finish dried. I remember handguns stuffed between the mattress and the box spring. Most of all, I remember being dragged to the shooting range and being taught how to handle and proficiently shoot handguns and rifles. How many hoodlums and outlaws can say the same?

Now, the argument against the following theory is that you cannot change human nature or force parents to raise their children by your standards. To this I say B*** Sh**. If Switzerland can do it, we can do it. Our Republic is set up in such a way that we could, in theory, require every able bodied man in our Great Nation to take regular proficiency tests in their use of a firearm. This would be a grand solution and would effectively force the older generation to learn and *hopefully* pass their knowledge down. It could be part of high school graduation or required prior to a driver's test. Not a bad idea, considering cars are more dangerous.

If PARENTS in this great country would take the time to learn to shoot and then, and this is by far the most important part, if they would then take time and teach their children from very young ages, so many tragedies could be averted. There would be no curiousity about that box in the closet. There would be far fewer "gangsters" roaming the streets with a piece tucked in their waistband like some badge of honor. If parents would stop selfishly spending their spare hours at bars, clubs, divorce court, or even watching television and instead arm themselves with both knowledge and a suitable weapon to teach their children, we would see fewer broken homes, fewer drive by shootings, and far fewer criminals willing to break into homes and cars and violate women.

After all, when you are hungry, it makes no sense to hunt lions when you are surrounded by sheep. Let us throw off our reputation as a nation of sheep and instead let us become the proud, fierce country that once inspired the world but now draws only ridicule.