First, the British government had been confiscating weapons of the citizens as an aid to enforcing their rule.

Second, the rebels/freedom fighters/revolutionaries needed to utilize military teams (militias) outside the formal standing armies common the time for national conflict. These militia fighters needed weapons at the ready.

Overall, that means that citizens needed arms to defend against enemies, foreign and domestic.

Even if home defense wasn’t a problem in the US, as long as the government has arms, the people should have arms.

Some might counter that there is no way citizens could band together in conflict against the government, but the truth is that is EXACTLY what happened just over 200 years ago, when a group of white men, feed up with taxes and attacks on personal freedoms, took up arms against the preeminent military power of the time, Great Britain, defeated them in a war and kicked them off the continent.

So, IMHO, as long as governments, mine or others, have arms, I should have some as well.

If you haven’t read the Constitution and Declaration of Independence in a while, you should. It’s completely focused on limiting the power of government, limiting opportunities on the abuse of government power, and specifically delineating the rights of the individual as paramount in society.

I’m done here folks. I’m not overreacting, I don’t think we’re going to have a blood bath on our hands here in DC, and I don’t think it’s going to turn into the OK Corral. Honestly, DC officials have their heads so far up their asses that it really doesn’t matter what the law says.

My story, and I’m stickin’ to it, is that I see no need for anyone to own a gun, whether they’re a "good guy" or a "bad guy". Whether they’re responsible or not. Whether they play by the rules or don’t.

You. Don’t. Need. A. Gun.

You say you know that banning all guns will never happen, so what is the goal of this argument? This is a post about something that actually happened in reality, so a followup discussion that is filled with things that everyone knows will never happen is rather confusing. I ask again, what would you suggest would be a good way to ban all guns and have them actually disappear? You haven’t answered that question, perhaps because you know as well as everyone else that there’s no way to do it. I happen to think we as humanity could save a lot of gas and costs and cut down on our carbon if instead of boarding jet plans when we needed to go somewhere distant we sprouted wings and flew there ourselves. I think that would be awesome and be good for everyone. I also know there’s no way it’ll ever happen, which is why I’m not online arguing in its favor.

You have nothing to fear from almost every lawful citizen who owns a firearm. We go through background checks to be able to purchase and if you want to carry concealed, there is training and more background checks. You don’t need to go through any of that to buy off the black market.

Your comparisons to fighter jets and using dynamite are hyperbole that has nothing to do with the actual issue.

"I think the law that says that you can own guns made sense at the time it was written, but believe that time has come and gone."

The 2nd amendment is not just a law. It is part of the supreme law of the land. You don’t like it? Fine, work to legally change it through the amendment process.

"…the simple matter is you don’t like guns. And you don’t seem to care what the law says. You just want them banned."

Not true. I think the law that says that you can own guns made sense at the time it was written, but believe that time has come and gone.

I’m not telling you that you don’t have the right to go target and skeet shooting, because you do! But would your life come crumbling down upon you if you weren’t allowed to do so? What if there was a law, an amendment, that gave me the right to go golfing with a bazooka? If people were killing each other with bazookas, I’d happily stop golfing, turn in my bazooka, and take up tennis.

Sean:

"Cars kill more people in the blink of an eye. Pools kill more people every single year."

Yeah, the crime rates are skyrocketing for people being drowned in a pool by someone trying to rob their house. If we take away their guns, I expect this statistic to go even higher, along with tying people to a railroad track and running them over with their cars.

In other words, accidental deaths shouldn’t be compared to calculated, gun-related deaths.

And yes, I have absolutely no problem with banning all guns. They’re completely unnecessary. Will it ever happen? No, and I realize that.

You don’t have to like or want to own a gun yourself, but you can not ignore the fact that they are there, so it makes more sense to look at that and see how to deal with it going forward then pretending you can just make them go away. Again I cite the "war on drugs" which hasn’t stopped people from doing/selling/owning drugs at all, no matter how illegal they make them.

This ruling makes guns in the home as self defense legal, as they ought to be.

Doesn’t say that we give them out like candy, doesn’t say that they can be carried outside the home, just says that we can defend ourselves in our homes. You’re definitely overreacting, Max :)

This isn’t going to become the OK Corral.

Or how about this? Let’s make it illegal to own bullets, not guns. If you want to beat me over the head with a gun when you "break into my home", that’s a risk I’m willing to take.

I know it’s just my opinion, but I see the right to own a gun along the lines of the right to own a fighter jet. It sure would be fun to fly around at mach speed for "sport", but I wouldn’t want someone else launching sidewinder missiles at me.

Do you think if we actually banned all handguns, they would disappear. We tried that in DC, and there was plenty of gun violence in DC. That is because criminals don’t care about the laws. THEY ARE CRIMINALS.

Your life may be complete without as you put it, "blow up shit." But I happen to enjoy target shooting and skeet shooting. Why do you have the right to tell me I cannot do those things.

Again, I want a gun for protection because the criminals have one. Look at the crime stats. In areas where handguns are allowed and even more where concealed carry is allowed, crime is lower. Criminals are generally pretty dumb, but they know they don’t want to risk becoming a dead criminal by robbing an armed victim.

Max, the simple matter is you don’t like guns. And you don’t seem to care what the law says. You just want them banned.