A well organized militia...

The report by the Capitol Police Inspector-General regarding the 1/6/21 insurrection brought back the thoughts provoked by that event in my mind, among them the role of the Second Amendment in our lives today. The majority of Americans who are in favor of restrictions on the right to bear arms, especially firearms, are repeatedly stymied by this Amendment, the premise of which is that "a well organized militia being necessary to the security of a free State" the right of the People etc. Not being a historian or a constitutional scholar, I can only guess at the thought process of the Founding Fathers when they conceived it. However, a significant portion of the Judiciary subscribes to the "originalist" point of view which is that the US Constitution must be interpreted as it was understood at the time it was adopted and can be changed only by the mechanism provided by Article Five, i.e. a constitutional amendment. A steady drumbeat of domestic violence, suicides and massacres commited by individuals with increasingly efficient firearms has not been enough to move the needle on this issue. Neither has the large numbers of firearms in the population, far in excess of all reasonable hunting and self-defence needs. This is where the events of 1/6/21 are relevant. What we now have is a situation where well organized militias are undermining the security of the free State, using their unfettered access to firearms to do so. They are infiltrating the ranks of the police and military. They are threatening the legitimacy of duly elected state and federal governments. They plotted to "arrest, try and execute" at least one state governor (Michigan). The attack on the Capitol in Washington, DC, was their boldest and, so far, most outrageous, most brazen act. As if all this is not bad enough, we have to consider the fact the then Chief Executive and a large part of the Legislative Branch were complicit in these acts. And still "we the people" carry on, most of us inexplicably complacent, distracted by the pandemic and associated ridiculous conspiracy chatter and lulled by the steadily rising stock market. I must remind you of the proverbial frog in a pot of water coming to a boil slowly, oblivious to its fate, that I have referred to in a past blog. It is time to say Enough! Let us stop pussy-footing around this issue and face the fact that incremental change, the preferred mode of change of the Moderate voter, is not possible on this issue. Pro-gun rights voters will not agree to any accomodation citing the "slippery slope" argument. Even the Founding Fathers who bequeathed us the 2nd Amendment did not claim infallibility. Even they were not so arrogant as to deny the possibility that they could be wrong and that change may be called for, even necessary, present-day originalists notwithstanding. For this to happen, middle-of-the-roaders who I believe constitute a large part of the electorate on this issue, must shake off our laissez-faire attitude, and make this a litmus test for political candidates at all levels. Wherever we may stand on taxes, abortion, religion etc., we must refuse to vote for any candidate regardless of party affiliation who opposes repeal of the 2nd Amendment. The security of this free State depends on it - bless those Founding Fathers!