Time to Repeal the Outdated and Dangerous Second Amendment

The murder-loving NRA gun lobby hides behind the second amendment every time a mass shooting occurs in America. Read the amendment, and tell me where it says that every American has the right to carry a military assault rifle or a handgun.

[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.]

Common sense confirms that the first words of this poorly written and extremely controversial amendment confirm the intent. Without a standing army in 1789, a militia was necessary to protect the new nation from attacks from foreign adversaries. Knowing the type of weapons which would be developed over the years to come was not possible. If they had a crystal ball and could have looked into the future, they would have included a clause protecting the safety of people first. Once again, common sense should be the basic standard for legal action.

In 1991, former conservative Chief Justice, Warren Burger, stated that he would have voted against the second amendment at the Constitutional Convention of 1787. Recently retired Justice David Souter confirmed that he would have voted in favor of repealing an amendment which has allowed tens of thousands of deaths every year in our country, exclusively.

Domestic Terrorism is irrefutably the greatest danger to the people of our country. If guns were not able to be purchased more easily than a six-pack of beer, America would be a far safer country, regardless of what the NRA gun lobby, and right-wing politicians want you to believe. “The truth lives here,” and I can tell you, they lie, and common sense confirms everything I am telling you.

Let me ask you a question, but first read the third amendment.

[No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.]

When’s the last time you were asked to allow members of our military temporary residence in your home? This makes no sense in the 21st century, and neither does the second amendment.

Our leaders made many mistakes during the Constitutional Convention. The second and third amendments made sense in 1789, but are ludicrous today. The discussion about presidential elections created the Electoral College and that has become a disaster. It eventually created “red” and “blue” states and millions of votes are a waste of time every four years. The people should elect the woman or man who leads our nation every four years, not the states. This has proven to be a disaster in at least two recent elections, 2000 and 2016. These are the years in which the last two Republican Presidents lost the popular vote but were gifted the Electoral College. The two worst presidents in history were allowed to reside in the White House because the men who founded our country were not clairvoyants.

Mistakes are made by governments. However, in a democracy, the nation’s leaders are obligated to rectify those mistakes.

With the death toll rising from mass shootings, our government is required to act. They cannot sit on their overgrown derrieres and do nothing. The people demand action and demand it immediately.

How is it possible in the richest nation in the world that it has become unsafe to go to a movie, attend a concert, shop at a mall, go to a bar or restaurant, attend a church service, or send your child to school? It has become logical to be afraid of leaving your home. This is not only unacceptable, it is criminal. Doing the right thing will end these murders immediately.

Demand more from those in power. Your family and others you love deserve more from those we elect who live lives of luxury and privilege thanks to the American voter.

Op-ed by James Turnage

My nine novels are available on Amazon’s Kindle

Sources:

Deadline: Michael Moore Tells MSNBC’s Chris Hayes, “It’s Time To Repeal The Second Amendment”

Yahoo: Biden keeps repeating false Second Amendment claim, despite repeated fact checks

The Conversation: Who invented the Electoral College?
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