Piling on.
Greetings loyal minions. Your Maximum Leader just loves it when the Minister of Agriculture has to revise prior statements. (Just as I am sure that he loves it when your Maximum Leader resists revising his...) Allow me to just say "here, here" to the Foreign Minister's comments and then pile on with some of my own.
First, where exactly does he come up with " Historically speaking, arguing that the militia consisted of all free men was bunk;...?" Humm could it be that historically speaking a "well-regulated militia" did in fact mean all free men. Let's start with the Father of the Bill of Rights, George Mason who wrote this into the Virginia Constitution of 1776 (widely viewed as the precursor to the US Bill of Rights): "That a well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the proper, natural, and safe defense of a free state; that standing armies, in time of peace, should be avoided as dangerous to liberty; and that in all cases the military should be under strict subordination to, and governed by, the civil power." It is Section 13 of the VA Constitution of 1776. Check it out if you like. I will point out that this language was used to be the first draft of the Second Amendment to the US Constitution.
Your Maximum Leader was just surfing around trying to find other sources to back up his position. And remembered that the good Eugene Volokh, of the Volokh Conspiracy, is a Second Amendment Scholar (among other things). And he has a lovely sampling of source materials on this issue. I commend them to the Minister of Agriculture so that he might become enlightened. A quick review of the source materials show that the good Minister of Agriculture seems to be talking out of his proverbial arse when he asserts "Additionally, the courts had always agreed with me." Humm, it appears as though the courts haven't always agreed with you.
Of course, my favourite part of the post is right at the end of that 8th paragraph where the M of A deliciously writes: "Last year, I had to send the Maximum Leader a congratulatory note; an appeals court actually overturned a gun law on the basis of the Second Amendment. Since I support the rule of law, I have to now concede that the Second Amendment does give some protections to an individual's right to own firearms." Your Maximum Leader just loves what the M of A can put into a note... Allow your Maximum Leader to summarize for the rest of the minions who may not have been reading too closely: the Minister of Agriculture said that there was no individual right to gun ownership; then said there is. Humm... Can't get much clearer than that can we?
As for the whole public safety argument about guns... To what extent would it be acceptable to limit other civil rights in the name of "public safety" or the "common weal?" Isn't this the very debate going on around the country concerning the Patriot Act? The M of A may be contented to allow the courts or the various legislative bodies around the country limit his liberty in the interest of nebulous interests of "public safety," but until the MWO comes - your Maximum Leader is not. (And rest assured, the M of A's liberty will be severely restricted during the MWO. Just to make a point...)
Carry on my minions.
First, where exactly does he come up with " Historically speaking, arguing that the militia consisted of all free men was bunk;...?" Humm could it be that historically speaking a "well-regulated militia" did in fact mean all free men. Let's start with the Father of the Bill of Rights, George Mason who wrote this into the Virginia Constitution of 1776 (widely viewed as the precursor to the US Bill of Rights): "That a well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the proper, natural, and safe defense of a free state; that standing armies, in time of peace, should be avoided as dangerous to liberty; and that in all cases the military should be under strict subordination to, and governed by, the civil power." It is Section 13 of the VA Constitution of 1776. Check it out if you like. I will point out that this language was used to be the first draft of the Second Amendment to the US Constitution.
Your Maximum Leader was just surfing around trying to find other sources to back up his position. And remembered that the good Eugene Volokh, of the Volokh Conspiracy, is a Second Amendment Scholar (among other things). And he has a lovely sampling of source materials on this issue. I commend them to the Minister of Agriculture so that he might become enlightened. A quick review of the source materials show that the good Minister of Agriculture seems to be talking out of his proverbial arse when he asserts "Additionally, the courts had always agreed with me." Humm, it appears as though the courts haven't always agreed with you.
Of course, my favourite part of the post is right at the end of that 8th paragraph where the M of A deliciously writes: "Last year, I had to send the Maximum Leader a congratulatory note; an appeals court actually overturned a gun law on the basis of the Second Amendment. Since I support the rule of law, I have to now concede that the Second Amendment does give some protections to an individual's right to own firearms." Your Maximum Leader just loves what the M of A can put into a note... Allow your Maximum Leader to summarize for the rest of the minions who may not have been reading too closely: the Minister of Agriculture said that there was no individual right to gun ownership; then said there is. Humm... Can't get much clearer than that can we?
As for the whole public safety argument about guns... To what extent would it be acceptable to limit other civil rights in the name of "public safety" or the "common weal?" Isn't this the very debate going on around the country concerning the Patriot Act? The M of A may be contented to allow the courts or the various legislative bodies around the country limit his liberty in the interest of nebulous interests of "public safety," but until the MWO comes - your Maximum Leader is not. (And rest assured, the M of A's liberty will be severely restricted during the MWO. Just to make a point...)
Carry on my minions.
posted by The Maximum Leader at 11/22/2003 12:35:00 PM
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