Second Amendment II

 

Happiness is a Warm Gun

Happiness is a warm gun (bang, bang, shoot, shoot)
Happiness is a warm gun, momma (bang, bang, shoot, shoot)

Does a gun make you happy?

Judges are often derided by those on the right for concocting rights from the Constitution, which are not explicitly defined in the Constitution.  I am sure that the late Justice Scalia would have been their model for a proper Judge.  However in District of Columbia versus Heller, Justice Scalia wrote the opinion that stated that people had a undefined right, implied by the second amendment, of self defense.  The people’s right are defined in the First Amendment as. 

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

There is no right of self defense that is listed.

The second amendment reads.

"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 people’s rights are explicitly listed in the First and later amendments that comprise the Bill of Rights, but not in the Second Amendment.  You have to purposely ignore the phrase “a well regulated militia” to imply a people’s right.

Justice Scalia noted, and explicitly ignored, the phase a well regulated militia, ( e.g. a state’s National Guard) and said that there was a right to self defense implied by the right to keep and bear arms.

By the text of the Second Amendment, Congress shall not infringe on the right of the people to keep and bear arms for purposes of providing for a well-regulated militia.  Thus Congress or the states should be able to regulate arms not needed by that state’s militia.  Armed individuals that are NOT in a well-regulated militia are more properly vigilantes, and not necessarily well‑regulated vigilantes, whether acting singly or collectively.  There is no right in the Second Amendment to keep and bear arms except for a well-regulated militia.  If you are not a member of a state’s National Guard, and your own arms are not desired by that militia, National Guard, I see no right to keep or bear arms, for self defense or otherwise in that amendment. Justice Scalia wrote. 

“Private citizens have the right under the Second Amendment to possess an ordinary type of weapon and use it for lawful, historically established situations such as self-defense in a home, even when there is no relationship to a local militia.” 

Talk about an activist judge!