The Pros And Cons Of The Second Amendment

The Second Amendment forms part of the 10 ratified amendments of the constitution which form the Bill of Rights and was enabled by the United States Congress in December 1791. The amendment 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” . These twenty-seven words have been the focus of much debate and lobbying not just within the three branches of government but across the whole of the United States. It is the most controversial topic regarding the American Constitution and has become an emotive subject with two very distinct camps of thought. The one side of the debate, the loud minority, arguing for and protecting their constitutional

Statistics show that comparable to other democratic nations the United states has a higher proportion of gun related violent incidents than those states where gun control legislation has been adopted. An example would be the case of the United Kingdom, which had approximately 2,261 Violence Against the Person (VAP) Offences involving firearms, including low velocity Air weapons in 2015/16 . If this is then compared to the United States which had, in the same period, 9,616 gun related murders and a million VAP offences that did not end in a fatality, then it can be argued that the NRA’s outdated mantra is illogical . There are many further problems with the NRA argument that can be identified in the modern era., but the main issue would be the NRA’s reasons for the existence of the Amendment. The idea that the Founders wanted to put the citizens on an equal footing as the Government to provide a defence against oppression is also no longer a valid interpretation of the Second Amendment. The United States Federal Government has a vast arsenal of weapons at its disposal including Nuclear weapons, advocates of the Second Amendment would have to advocate for these weapons to be made available to all citizens. It is clear that the second Amendment does not have the same meaning as it did when it was ratified. The founding fathers did not consider the advancements of technology that exist today, or never considered the Amendment as an individual right but rather a group right for a recognised, well-regulated militia. The NRA has lobbied effectively to prevent the control and appropriate regulation of firearms in the United States of America and has taken ownership of the Second Amendment as a Battle cry against Federal Government. In doing so it has removed the rights of all those killed by uncontrolled firearms, it has taken away the rights of a