“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.” That’s our second amendment. But given how hotly contested the debate over this amendment is, I don’t need to preference that.
However, most people usually don’t emphasize the first line, they focus on the second. That’s obviously where the debate stems from. But should it? Let’s look at the debate landscape on both sides and why I think the first line should not be overlooked.
Right to control or control of rights?
Both political parties are vehemently set on their side of this issue. Democrats passionately for gun control, and Republicans passionately for gun rights. And the stance of both is well known. From banning or limiting assault weapons and reducing gun violence on the left, to protecting the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens and supporting groups like the NRA, GOA, and NAGR on the right.
Arguments can also arise because of different realities, created by a lot of Democrats living in urban areas and a lot of Republicans living in rural areas.
Crime and violence with guns can be a significant issue in cities but not as much of an issue in rural areas. In Rural communities hunting and farming are prevalent, and guns are seen as very important for these activities.
With different political ideologies and different realities, as well as a 2nd amendment that isn’t extremely thorough, debates on who is allowed to have a gun, what types of guns should be allowed, and what is the purpose of the 2nd amendment are heated.
But as with anything else in politics, this issue has become all too politicized.
The Democrats will stop at nothing to pass gun control reform, assuming that will solve all our problems with gun violence. The Republican’s take a rigid stance on no regulations, despite other amendments being regulated, and always seem concerned with appeasing the gun lobby. And both have different interpretations of the 2nd amendment for convenient political aims.
Which brings me back to the actual wording of the 2nd amendment. As I said, most people don’t emphasize the first line. But for me, the first line is the foundation for the second.
“A well-regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state.” In other words, we need a military for the security of the country. And the first line is at the core of the entire amendment because of one word: security.
A militia is necessary to secure a free state. But also, not infringing on the right to bear arms is necessary to secure a free state. And that is what the amendment is for in my opinion.
It’s about personal protection and protection from your government. A militia is needed to protect us from foreign threats and the right to bear arms is needed to protect us from domestic threats.
Republicans will make this argument for guns, even if it’s unfortunately not their first argument or priority, and Democrats will form arguments against this.
But for me, the 2nd amendment takes priority over them because of this argument. And unfortunately, we now have an event which shows why we need the 2nd amendment. An event that is the reason we have the second line of the 2nd amendment: January 6th.
Checkmate
The wisdom of our founders was that they were highly concerned about government tyranny and authoritarian executive. Because of this, we have our three branches of government and all the checks and balances that come with them.
Americans can get very angry that our government can sometimes not get things done, but fortunately, the system was designed that way.
For example, congress and congressional procedures are designed to prevent irresponsible and dictatorial laws from getting passed.
Having an all-powerful executive could create a quick and effective government, but also a dictatorial one. So, the founders ensured the president had a limited role in law making.
But they also established another check, the 2nd amendment.
However, in the United States, we live in a steady and secure governmental society, so this check gets lost in the environment of our everyday lives.
But it wasn’t always that way. Our democratic system was founded by fighting for our rights and freedoms from a monarchy. And our democratic system was untested and the only of its kind in a world of Kings.
Having the right to bear arms and fight back against the government provided a vital check so we didn’t fall back into monarchal rule.
Americans today may think we are past this type of situation. That this is antiquated thinking and only happens in third world and unstable countries.
Of course, they needed to have like-style weaponry comparable to the military in colonial times. However, with modern technology like assault weapons, everything has changed.
But as the founders knew, and as history has shown all too many times, this can happen anywhere. And it came right to our front door on January 6th.
When Donald Trump led and fueled the attack on the capital, it is an example of an executive trying to overthrow the will of the legislative branch, the heart of any democracy.
The founders gave the most power to the legislative branch for a reason. Had Donald Trump succeeded in stopping the will of the legislative branch and potentially killing members of congress in the process, then all our stability and security could have crumbled.
And had all our stability and security crumbled, we could have been right back in a situation similar to when our country was founded.
The main point is this: the 2nd amendment is another check on tyranny and maybe our last resort in some situations.
What we saw on January 6th should show this can still happen in the United States. We must always be vigilant and protect our rights that protect democracy.
And because of this, I think both parties need to consider a few questions.
For Democrats, are Donald Trump and January 6th an attack on democracy, or is that just a convenient political talking point? Without the 2nd amendment, what check would protect us had Donald Trump succeeded in destroying democracy?
For Republicans, is the biggest threat to the 2nd amendment Democrats like Joe Biden and Barrack Obama? Who still hasn’t taken the guns after 11 years in office? Or is the actual person to fear, Donald Trump and those like him?
