Firearms and the 2nd Amendment: A Solution to All Our Problems.
I heard on CNN today about a ‘gun violence epidemic’ that we are currently suffering through and for some time now. About 1/3 of the American population own one or more guns. That means 66% of us don’t and yet we are all vulnerable to gun violence. If you watch the news, mass shootings have been happening all over the country at an alarming pace.
So what’s to be done to help solve this problem?
First off let’s start with the 2nd Amendment:
“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.”
The big argument here is between ‘individual right theory’ which argues that every individual has a right to own guns and “the collective rights theory” which argues that ‘the people’ collectively (not individually) have the right to defend themselves via a well regulated Militia presumably controlled by a government body.
For the sake of my proposal I believe the “the collective rights theory” is the proper interpretation of the 2nd Amendment. However, let me state that if we wish to allow the coexistence of both interpretations, the ‘individual right theory’ should only allow weapons of personal protection that were available at the time the amendment was envisioned and enacted in 1791. This would include bow and arrow, single load pistols and rifles called muskets, swords, knives, slingshots, axes, clubs, spears, etc. and adequate martial arts training to use them effectively.
Let’s face it, a person well practiced in the use of these weapons could inflict a lot of damage, even mass damage. However, the likelihood of someone with this level of self discipline is probably a lot less likely candidate to engage in senseless random mass killings but could definitely protect him/herself. I could be wrong but this seems a better risk that turning a crazy person loose with easily available automatic or semi automatic weapons and a lot of bullets.
OK moving on… I accept that the tooth paste cannot be put back into the tube at this point when it coms to gun control. We are not going to get rid of all of the guns in the USA and the general freak out over confiscating all of the guns in the USA (as if that were possible) would cause a backlash like we cannot and would not want to imagine. However, half measures will not work either. Just putting a regulation here and there, as we have seen, is completely ineffective when it comes to protecting the general population from gun violence.
The idea of a well regulated Militia is the key to my proposal. What if, instead of suppressing arms, we instead celebrated them by building stadium/armories all over the country? These stadium/armories would be very fancy, perhaps even sprawling and very secure having multiple restaurants, gyms, spas, pools, firing ranges, training arenas, gun and equipment shops, other appropriate retail shops, sports bars, a casino, shooting competitions, individual storage facilities of various sizes that all gun owners would rent and keep their armaments in, etc. Every thing gun owners would want all in one place. Members would be required to maintain something of a sports membership like at a country club but way cooler than a country club and probably more expensive. It could even be partially subsidized by the state or federal government as a public safety solution.
While inside of the complex members would be able access their ‘locker’ to freely exercise their right to practice with and use their weapons in a safe and secure environment along with all of the other members of the stadium/armory/club. This takes care of the ‘well regulated’ part of the 2nd Amendment.
However, all able bodied members would have to accept the possibility in the future — unlikely as it may be — of being called upon to voluntarily serve in a citizen militia should the need ever arise such as to be a buffer in case of civil unrest or insurrections, lend aide in natural disasters, fend off zombie attacks or alien invasions, etc. It would be something like a civilian version and backup for the National Guard. This might even come with an all expenses paid adventure in an international conflict of some sort. This would be a part of the fine print of the contract of membership. Such an obligation would require of all gun owners who would have to participate and be certified in various seminars and trainings on a regular basis in order maintain good standing in the sports club.
Gun ownership should have consequences and civil obligations that go with that ownership. Buying a gun is not like buying other commodities like phones, computers, televisions or furniture. A gun is intended for one purpose and that is for killing. That is deadly serious and should not be taken lightly or covered over by other side issues like target practice which is for being precise in killing.
Still, our fellow citizen gun owners love their guns, guns are not going away. So let’s respect that reality and create ‘well regulated’ places where guns are kept safe and gun owners can enjoy the thrill of shooting stuff and at the same time keep our streets and homes safe for all the rest of us.
