Introduction to Gun Rights

Nearly every day I hear a comment or see a news story that causes me to think back to the many patriots who so valiantly fought for liberty during the American Revolution. In a world of turmoil and political corruption, I am proud to be an American and to live in a free country. As an American I share the rich and inspiring legacy of the founding of our country and feel a solemn responsibility to uphold and protect the freedoms that so many lost their lives to secure. In recent years, basic constitutional rights have come under discussion and have even been infringed upon. One of the most fundamental rights, the right to bear arms, has come under particular controversy lately and runs the risk of becoming more and more constricted.

The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution declares: “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.” Essentially, the right to bear arms is not only the right to a fundamental liberty, but it is the right to a secure method of maintaining our freedom against tyranny. For diverse reasons, many politicians and organizations seek to encroach on this right and restrict its availability to all law-abiding Americans. The frequent argument for banning gun rights relies heavily on the use of guns for violence. Undoubtedly, this produces a legitimate concern; but punishment should be directed to the criminal, not to the constitutional guarenteed right to bear arms. These specific agendas to regulate and restrict gun rights will be discussed further on. For now, I awaken our attention to understanding why the Second Amendment is essential to liberty and what we can do to protect this fundamental right. I will discuss the above topics throughout the upcoming weeks.