MILITARY & MOTORCYCLES – JANUARY 3, 2013
Second Amendment
First of all, I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
On December 15, 1791, ten amendments to the Constitution of the United States were ratified under what is known as the ‘Bill of Rights.’
I am not a scholar by any means or stretch of the imagination, however I know what the ‘Bill of Rights’ says.
Not being a lawyer I don’t try to make it any different than the original intent in which it was written by men much more intelligent than me two hundred plus years ago.
Amendment II 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.”
There was no discussion as to its meaning then and there should not be today. The intent of its writing was the basis to which this country keeps itself free from any group (foreign or domestic) who may want to control this country by force or circumventing the laws thereof.
My parents owned the first sporting goods store in Manatee County back in 1951. I have had and shot weapons all of my life, mostly for pleasure and sometimes in the line of duty (military service and law enforcement.)
Just because I may have a weapon and a permit doesn’t make me someone to be thrust into the media limelight just because of some ‘wack jobs’ at Fort Hood, Aurora, Colorado, a mall in Nebraska or the most recent shootings in Newtown, Connecticut.
In a large majority of cases, these shootings occur in a “No Weapons” zone. The reason for that is the fact that there will be little or no resistance from an armed person protecting themselves or other citizens under the Second Amendment.
Secondly, I along with a few others do believe the new computer games and violent movies make the shooters in these occurrences desensitized as to what they are actually doing.
One other area that comes into play is the mental health issue, which involves medications or lack thereof.
Again I am not nor have I ever been employed in the mental health field, I have been on the receiving end of many an onslaught by those who have either been seeing a doctor or should have been.
Several weeks ago, I wrote a column entitled ‘Accepting Responsibility’ and I want to add to that column. “It is the responsibility of those friends, family members or the general public to tell authorities when they see or feel someone is slipping away from what would be considered normal reality.”
Here is what I believe to be the baseline problems:
- Lack of Christianity
- Lack of two parent homes (parental control)
- Video Games
- Violent Movies
- Mental Health Issues
School Resource Officers at schools is acceptable to almost everyone even though there is a high cost factor.
Blaming the weapon makes as much sense as blaming McDonalds for being obese. It takes a person to pick up the hamburger or weapon to make what it does the end result.
God Bless America and all those who serve in uniform to protect us.
Terry Longpre