Subject: Re: 2nd amendment madness
Our 'well regulated' militia needs machine guns.

Well, the right that the have is an individual right to keep and bear guns mostly for self defense purposes, nothing to do with militia. <i<Heller did away with the prefatory clause modifying the operative clause and so it has no effect and is simply introductory. So the more effect you want to give the prefatory clause, i.e., emphasizing militia to get machine guns and military use guns, the less of an individual right you have and the more of a collective right you have (i.e., less individual right, and more of a collective right for the State to have a National Guard[militia]).

The State already has a National Guard and I think De Santis has his own militia now - another state may have one. Any way, the State can designate a militia, but under the Constitution only the State and the Fed can designate militia - so there are no self appointed militias. All self appointed militias are in reality gun clubs that use the word militia. There are a few historical militias, but they use historical weapons.

So basically, when it all shakes out in the end, and we get over this craziness there's something special to gun rights, we'll get to limiting guns properly and be limited by the power of the gun lobby - which is formidable. And there are endless workarounds perfectly capable of rendering a new regulation meaningless within days. But every other right has limits and so do guns. Nothing special about guns.

Somehow we have to rip this desire to have a pretend military band, to be John Wick, to think Civil War is imminent, to see yourself as part of a band of desperadoes facing down a tyrannical government - rip it out of the imaginations of young men ( and some women) and just have something like being a good backwoodsman, fisherman, hunter, living simply, etc., and being OK citizens. I think most of us are OK citizens.

Here's to OK citizens. :)