May 7, 2010
GUEST COMMENTARY: Why the 2nd Amendment?
By Tom Stark
Consider, for a moment, the situation the founders faced before the first shot was fired in the American Revolution. Many of the colonists were outcast from English society because of their religion beliefs. But for whatever reason they came to this country, they found the English ruler to be relentless in his attempts to extract every pound, shilling, and pence he could from the colonists. They were taxed far beyond their means.
At some point, human nature kicked in and many said, "Enough is enough!" The result was the birth of a great nation. America won the first struggle. But then the colonists had to find some means to joint the colonies together for protection and coordination of their collective activities in order to survive without England to provide help. After the loose "confederation" that the Articles of Confederation failed to provide adequately for this purpose, a convention was called to fix a new structure of self-government.
There was never a consideration given to the idea that the individual states would relinquish their individual character and government to a central power designed to hand them things or dictate to the states how they managed their affairs. All that was desired in a central "government" was the joint protection of the collective colonies in cases of war or insurrection, and the coordination (regulation was the word used, which meant "to make regular or uniform") of those activities in which all the states were engaged -- commerce, intellectual property, etc. -- so that one state could not take advantage of another.
They always took the position that the federal government was subservient to their governance of their separate states. That was all the Constitution was intended to do. Shortly after the original document was signed a number of citizens expressed concern over the failure of the document to address individual rights of the people that had been so terribly trampled by the English. They insisted on the inclusion of the first ten Amendments - what we call the Bill of Rights - to be added to the Constitution.
So that was the context of things when the 2nd Amendment was added to the Constitution as a separate and distinct individual right intended to do only one thing -- PROTECT THE CITIZENS FROM EVER BEING OVERTAKEN BY ANOTHER OUT-OF-CONTROL GOVERNMENT. Does that sound eerily relevant in this day and age? It is the single individual right that provides the means whereby individual citizens retain the power to never again be overpowered. It is one of the shortest and most succinct of the amendments and cannot be mis-interpreted (current and future attempts to do so notwithstanding). A fact that has been affirmed in the Heller case decided last year by the Supreme Court and that will, again be affirmed in the Chicago case currently before the court. (Editor's Note: This commentary was written in February).
This amendment may likely be assaulted by the left again this year as they attempt to circumvent the court's rulings to further their own agenda. If not this year, sooner or later they will attack it again because without it there can never be the complete control of the population envisioned by the "progressive agenda" of big government and the one world government philosophy. We must remain ever vigilant. We cannot forget why this Amendment was written and the circumstances that brought it to a level of importance in the mind of our founders hundreds of years ago. It is no less a concern now as it was then. It is the lynch-pin of our individual freedom.
Next time you meet an NRA member, shake his or her hand. Next time you meet a serviceman, shake their hand and thank them. In their own ways they are both helping to maintain the wall between us and tyranny. Were it not for the influence of the NRA, this country might already have fallen prey to those who want control over everything. Were it not for the serviceman, we might well be speaking German or Japanese.
Firearms are tools, not evil criminals. They can be used for good or evil. As with everything else in this world, it is what happens in the person's mind that determines the use and the results achieved. Anyone who does not support the individual's right to keep and bear arms is sadly blind to human nature. Taking away an object does not prevent the feared behavior. What it does is prevent self-defense.
As always your thoughts and comments are welcome.
Stark, of Parkersburg, a candidate for the GOP nomination for Congress in the First District, is a retired civil servant who relocated to West Virginia in 1997 to be a businessman and furniture maker. Before coming to West Virginia, Stark served for more than 20 years in management positions with private sector employers, concluding his career with the Orange County, Fla., government. In Orange County, Stark served as a public services manager and later as assistant deputy clerk to the board of county commissioners. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1965-69, including a year in Thailand and Vietnam.
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GUEST COMMENTARY: Why the 2nd Amendment?
By Tom Stark
Consider, for a moment, the situation the founders faced before the first shot was fired in the American Revolution. Many of the colonists were outcast from English society because of their religion beliefs. But for whatever reason they came to this country, they found the English ruler to be relentless in his attempts to extract every pound, shilling, and pence he could from the colonists. They were taxed far beyond their means.
At some point, human nature kicked in and many said, "Enough is enough!" The result was the birth of a great nation. America won the first struggle. But then the colonists had to find some means to joint the colonies together for protection and coordination of their collective activities in order to survive without England to provide help. After the loose "confederation" that the Articles of Confederation failed to provide adequately for this purpose, a convention was called to fix a new structure of self-government.
There was never a consideration given to the idea that the individual states would relinquish their individual character and government to a central power designed to hand them things or dictate to the states how they managed their affairs. All that was desired in a central "government" was the joint protection of the collective colonies in cases of war or insurrection, and the coordination (regulation was the word used, which meant "to make regular or uniform") of those activities in which all the states were engaged -- commerce, intellectual property, etc. -- so that one state could not take advantage of another.
They always took the position that the federal government was subservient to their governance of their separate states. That was all the Constitution was intended to do. Shortly after the original document was signed a number of citizens expressed concern over the failure of the document to address individual rights of the people that had been so terribly trampled by the English. They insisted on the inclusion of the first ten Amendments - what we call the Bill of Rights - to be added to the Constitution.
So that was the context of things when the 2nd Amendment was added to the Constitution as a separate and distinct individual right intended to do only one thing -- PROTECT THE CITIZENS FROM EVER BEING OVERTAKEN BY ANOTHER OUT-OF-CONTROL GOVERNMENT. Does that sound eerily relevant in this day and age? It is the single individual right that provides the means whereby individual citizens retain the power to never again be overpowered. It is one of the shortest and most succinct of the amendments and cannot be mis-interpreted (current and future attempts to do so notwithstanding). A fact that has been affirmed in the Heller case decided last year by the Supreme Court and that will, again be affirmed in the Chicago case currently before the court. (Editor's Note: This commentary was written in February).
This amendment may likely be assaulted by the left again this year as they attempt to circumvent the court's rulings to further their own agenda. If not this year, sooner or later they will attack it again because without it there can never be the complete control of the population envisioned by the "progressive agenda" of big government and the one world government philosophy. We must remain ever vigilant. We cannot forget why this Amendment was written and the circumstances that brought it to a level of importance in the mind of our founders hundreds of years ago. It is no less a concern now as it was then. It is the lynch-pin of our individual freedom.
Next time you meet an NRA member, shake his or her hand. Next time you meet a serviceman, shake their hand and thank them. In their own ways they are both helping to maintain the wall between us and tyranny. Were it not for the influence of the NRA, this country might already have fallen prey to those who want control over everything. Were it not for the serviceman, we might well be speaking German or Japanese.
Firearms are tools, not evil criminals. They can be used for good or evil. As with everything else in this world, it is what happens in the person's mind that determines the use and the results achieved. Anyone who does not support the individual's right to keep and bear arms is sadly blind to human nature. Taking away an object does not prevent the feared behavior. What it does is prevent self-defense.
As always your thoughts and comments are welcome.
Stark, of Parkersburg, a candidate for the GOP nomination for Congress in the First District, is a retired civil servant who relocated to West Virginia in 1997 to be a businessman and furniture maker. Before coming to West Virginia, Stark served for more than 20 years in management positions with private sector employers, concluding his career with the Orange County, Fla., government. In Orange County, Stark served as a public services manager and later as assistant deputy clerk to the board of county commissioners. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1965-69, including a year in Thailand and Vietnam.
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