July 17 - Pet Peeve Monday - 2nd Amendment

This week’s PET PEEVE MONDAY is going to go a little deeper than past PET PEEVES about poor customer service or abhorrent driving skills. I want to address something that will probably eliminate my chances as being elected to anything other than Den Father of my daughter’s Brownie Troop.

I believe the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is a farce and needs to be modified, updated, or repealed.



The debate is not simple. The Second Amendment contains archaic vocabulary and grammar. In addition there is the possibility that the Second Amendment was drafted deliberately with ambiguous meaning as part of the process of negotiation and compromise necessary for passage by a disjointed, conflicted, “representaive government”.

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.”

I could overwhelm you with facts from:

New England Journal of Medicine, June 12, 1986, Vol. 314 No. 24, pp. 1557-60 that states that: A homeowner's gun is 43 times more likely to kill a family member than an intruder therefore "the advisability of keeping firearms in the home for protection must be questioned."

New England Journal of Medicine, October 7, 1993, Vol. 329 No. 15, pp. 1084-91 that states that: In homes with guns, a member of the household is almost three times as likely to be the victim of a homicide compared to gun-free homes.

Remember the Facts are Our Friends. But, I will center my argument on the following thoughts:

1. Obsolescence

This Amendment was ratified in 1789. That was 217 years ago. “Arms” consisted of musket-loaded guns. To correctly interpret “Arms”, one could argue that anyone should be able to have any “Arms” available to their arsenal. If I can develop Atomic, Hydrogen, and even Nuclear weapons would that be protected by the Second Amendment?. I watch Bill the Science Guy. It’s possible.

If AK-47s were available in 1789, do you think the wording might have changed? The Constitution was written on parchment paper using a quill pen and ink. It was drafted by candlelight by guys wearing puffy shirts and wigs. Come on, times have changed, so should the laws, and the Constitution.

Some have suggested that banning weapons that have "no sporting or hunting purpose" would make sense. I would suggest if we were to “Arm” the deer and other wildlife, would that would make it more “sporting”?

2. Intent and Interpretation

The original intent and purpose of the Second Amendment was to preserve and guarantee, not grant, the pre-existing right of individuals to keep and bear arms. We had just completed a Revolution against an imperialist nation.

The term "people" refers to the people collectively, rather than the people as individuals.

It might also make sense to allow legislatures to recognize that in certain circumstances firearms constitute a special danger. One thinks in particular of saloons: Perhaps guns and alcohol do not mix, just as according to the laws of many states and communities naked dancers and alcohol don't mix. I reserve the right to address this in a future PET PEEVE.
In addition, you can also parse the lanuguage of the Second Amendment.

• Who or what does the Amendment mean by the "militia"?


• What relationship does "militia" today have with "militia" in 1789?


• What does "shall not be infringed" mean?

As Bill Clinton said, “It all depends what the definitin of “is” is.”

3. Qualifications of Original Authors

Our Founding Fathers were middle-aged, high-income white guys. They were slave owners, opportunists, and adulterers. Think Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings.

This is analogous to any Country Club today. If you insert “domestic help” for slaves and juxtaposition William Jefferson Clinton and Monica Lewinsky for the third President, the results are the same. I’m not sure who would win “Most Lothario President” award.

My PET PEEVE is that too many people wrap themselves in the flag, call themselves patriots and announce that you will “Take My Gun From My Cold, Dead Hands.”

Ironically when Charlton Heston made this infamous remark in 2000, he was holding an antique Revolutionary War-era muzzle loader.

If you believe in statistical probabilities, as a gun-owner it may only be a matter of time before that gun is pried from its owner’s hands (see above referenced articles).

People put too much faith in our forefathers. They beleive that they were infallible. Many of the signers of our Constitution were fullof whiskey not wisdom.

What’s next, millions of people following a man that wears red Prada shoes wears a zucchetto on his head, carries a scepter, and rides around in a bubble car?

BTW – I’ve had firearms training. I’ve lived in the crime centers of Los Angeles, Sacramento, and a particular seedy area of Dayton, OH. I CHOOSE not to own a gun.

Maybe I’m naïve.