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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 abridged.
This suggests to me that the government (we, the people) has the right to regulate who can own and shoot them. ("Well regulated” does not mean “government regulations on guns.” The militia is to be “well regulated,” that is, organized and orderly.)
It would indicate that we are expected to be responsible and employ common sense in there use. (No it would not. The expectation, meritorious though it may be, cannot be derived from the Amendment. The Amendment, like all provisions of the Constitution, speaks to the powers and restrictions towards government.)
Because they are not appropriate for hunting, assault weapons and high capacity ammunition clips have no practical use and should be restricted to military use. (There is no “hunting-only clause” in the 2nd Amendment. There is no "practical use" clause either. How a person intends to lawfully use a gun is not a matter of government review.)
When I hunted I wanted a clean shot with a minimum of meat damage. Exceptions to owning military weapons could be allowed for gun collections or target use after a thorough background and mental health check have been accomplished. Demonstration of proper storage and locks should be part of the check. (There are already background checks. most every mass shooting was achieved with a legally-possessed firearm. Tell us again how making more laws will help?)
With our great advances in technology, a gun could be made to be usable only by the owner. We have no problem with putting people on a no-fly list. Shouldn’t these same people be on a no gun list? (Such a list already exists, sir. That's why some people cannot own guns.)
Generally, statistics are all over the place, but some are reliable. In 2010 there were 19,392 gun related suicides and 11,078 homicides. FBI stats in 2011 showed 201 justifiable homicides by gun. Guns are successfully used to kill good guys a lot more often than to protect good guys. (Since we're now talking about statistics, gun deaths have trended downwards for decades.)
This suggests to me that the government (we, the people) has the right to regulate who can own and shoot them. ("Well regulated” does not mean “government regulations on guns.” The militia is to be “well regulated,” that is, organized and orderly.)
It would indicate that we are expected to be responsible and employ common sense in there use. (No it would not. The expectation, meritorious though it may be, cannot be derived from the Amendment. The Amendment, like all provisions of the Constitution, speaks to the powers and restrictions towards government.)
Because they are not appropriate for hunting, assault weapons and high capacity ammunition clips have no practical use and should be restricted to military use. (There is no “hunting-only clause” in the 2nd Amendment. There is no "practical use" clause either. How a person intends to lawfully use a gun is not a matter of government review.)
When I hunted I wanted a clean shot with a minimum of meat damage. Exceptions to owning military weapons could be allowed for gun collections or target use after a thorough background and mental health check have been accomplished. Demonstration of proper storage and locks should be part of the check. (There are already background checks. most every mass shooting was achieved with a legally-possessed firearm. Tell us again how making more laws will help?)
With our great advances in technology, a gun could be made to be usable only by the owner. We have no problem with putting people on a no-fly list. Shouldn’t these same people be on a no gun list? (Such a list already exists, sir. That's why some people cannot own guns.)
Generally, statistics are all over the place, but some are reliable. In 2010 there were 19,392 gun related suicides and 11,078 homicides. FBI stats in 2011 showed 201 justifiable homicides by gun. Guns are successfully used to kill good guys a lot more often than to protect good guys. (Since we're now talking about statistics, gun deaths have trended downwards for decades.)
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