Framers Take on the 2nd Amendment

Liberals like to try to convince people that the 2nd amendment talked about militias, which really means the national guard. We see it over and over. Instead of parsing a comma, why not read what else the framers had written on the subject. There are plenty of letters, address, and papers written by the same people who wrote the 2nd Amendment:

"I ask who are the militia? They consist now of the whole people, except a few public officers."

- George Mason, Address to the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 4, 1788

"The Constitution shall never be construed to prevent the people of the United States who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms."

- Samuel Adams, Massachusetts Ratifying Convention, 1788

"A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined..."

- George Washington, First Annual Address, to both House of Congress, January 8, 1790

"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms."

- Thomas Jefferson, Virginia Constitution, Draft 1, 1776

"Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed, as they are in almost every country in Europe. The supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword; because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force superior to any band of regular troops."

- Noah Webster, An Examination of the Leading Principles of the Federal Constitution, October 10, 1787

"Besides the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, the existence of subordinate governments, to which the people are attached, and by which the militia officers are appointed, forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of any form can admit of."

- James Madison, Federalist No. 46, January 29, 1788

"The laws that forbid the carrying of arms are laws of such a nature. They disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes.... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man."
- Thomas Jefferson, Commonplace Book (quoting 18th century criminologist Cesare Beccaria), 1774-1776


"The Constitution of most of our states (and of the United States) assert that all power is inherent in the people; that they may exercise it by themselves; that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed."
- Thomas Jefferson, letter to to John Cartwright, 5 June 1824


"I enclose you a list of the killed, wounded, and captives of the enemy from the commencement of hostilities at Lexington in April, 1775, until November, 1777, since which there has been no event of any consequence ... I think that upon the whole it has been about one half the number lost by them, in some instances more, but in others less. This difference is ascribed to our superiority in taking aim when we fire; every soldier in our army having been intimate with his gun from his infancy."
- Thomas Jefferson, letter to Giovanni Fabbroni, June 8, 1778


"I ask who are the militia? They consist now of the whole people, except a few public officers."
- George Mason, Address to the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 4, 1788


"Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed, as they are in almost every country in Europe. The supreme power in America cannot enforce unjust laws by the sword; because the whole body of the people are armed, and constitute a force superior to any band of regular troops."
- Noah Webster, An Examination of the Leading Principles of the Federal Constitution, October 10, 1787


"Besides the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, the existence of subordinate governments, to which the people are attached, and by which the militia officers are appointed, forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of any form can admit of."
- James Madison, Federalist No. 46, January 29, 1788


"The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the best and most natural defense of a free country."
- James Madison, I Annals of Congress 434, June 8, 1789


"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves."
- William Pitt (the Younger), Speech in the House of Commons, November 18, 1783


“A militia when properly formed are in fact the people themselves…and include, according to the past and general usuage of the states, all men capable of bearing arms…  "To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
- Richard Henry Lee, Federal Farmer No. 18, January 25, 1788


"Guard with jealous attention the public liberty. Suspect everyone who approaches that jewel. Unfortunately, nothing will preserve it but downright force. Whenever you give up that force, you are ruined.... The great object is that every man be armed. Everyone who is able might have a gun."
- Patrick Henry, Speech to the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 5, 1778


"This may be considered as the true palladium of liberty.... The right of self defense is the first law of nature: in most governments it has been the study of rulers to confine this right within the narrowest limits possible. Wherever standing armies are kept up, and the right of the people to keep and bear arms is, under any color or pretext whatsoever, prohibited, liberty, if not already annihilated, is on the brink of destruction."
- St. George Tucker, Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England, 1803


"The supposed quietude of a good man allures the ruffian; while on the other hand, arms, like law, discourage and keep the invader and the plunderer in awe, and preserve order in the world as well as property. The balance ofpower is the scale of peace. The same balance would be preserved were all the world destitute of arms, for all would be alike; but since some will not, others dare not lay them aside. And while a single nation refuses to lay them down, it is proper that all should keep them up. Horrid mischief would ensue were one-half the world deprived of the use of them; for while avarice and ambition have a place in the heart of man, the weak will become a prey to the strong. The history of every age and nation establishes these truths, and facts need but little arguments when they prove themselves."
- Thomas Paine, "Thoughts on Defensive War" in Pennsylvania Magazine, July 1775


"The Constitution shall never be construed to prevent the people of the United States who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms."
- Samuel Adams, Massachusetts Ratifying Convention, 1788


"The right of the citizens to keep and bear arms has justly been considered, as the palladium of the liberties of a republic; since it offers a strong moral check against the usurpation and arbitrary power of rulers; and will generally, even if these are successful in the first instance, enable the people to resist and triumph over them."
- Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States, 1833


"What, Sir, is the use of a militia? It is to prevent the establishment of a standing army, the bane of liberty .... Whenever Governments mean to invade the rights and liberties of the people, they always attempt to destroy the militia, in order to raise an army upon their ruins."
- Rep. Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts, I Annals of Congress 750, August 17, 1789


"For it is a truth, which the experience of ages has attested, that the people are always most in danger when the means of injuring their rights are in the possession of those of whom they entertain the least suspicion."
- Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 25, December 21, 1787


"If the representatives of the people betray their constituents, there is then no resource left but in the exertion of that original right of self-defense which is paramount to all positive forms of government, and which against the usurpations of the national rulers, may be exerted with infinitely better prospect of success than against those of the rulers of an individual state. In a single state, if the persons intrusted with supreme power become usurpers, the different parcels, subdivisions, or districts of which it consists, having no distinct government in each, can take no regular measures for defense. The citizens must rush tumultuously to arms, without concert, without system, without resource; except in their courage and despair."
- Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 28


"[I]f circumstances should at any time oblige the government to form an army of any magnitude that army can never be formidable to the liberties of the people while there is a large body of citizens, little, if at all, inferior to them in discipline and the use of arms, who stand ready to defend their own rights and those of their fellow-citizens. This appears to me the only substitute that can be devised for a standing army, and the best possible security against it, if it should exist."
- Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 28, January 10, 1788


"As civil rulers, not having their duty to the people before them, may attempt to tyrannize, and as the military forces which must be occasionally raised to defend our country, might pervert their power to the injury of their fellow citizens, the people are confirmed by the article in their right to keep and bear their private arms."
- Tench Coxe, Philadelphia Federal Gazette, June 18, 1789

2020 Dem Nomination Outlook update

This race is Bernie vs Kamala.

• Bernie: he's the thought leader. Every other candidate has been parroting Bernie, or have been too afraid to challenge his proposals
• Kamala: She's reasonably smart, a little awkward, but she's black and a woman. If she wasn't she'd be polling like Kloubachar.
• Pete: Peak Pete is happening now. He's an elitist who is gay. The writers at the NY Times love him, but the voters won't care.
• Biden: He's done before he starts. He's too afraid to be a centrist, so he's going to parrot Bernie. So why get the dime-store Bernie, when you can have the real deal. Look for a bump when he announces and then a steady decline every day after that.
• Yang: He's a one trick pony with his UBL proposal. That garner's tons of enthusiasm with a few people but not enough on a broad basis.
• Warren: Fed gov't paying student loan debt was her hail mary. She's done.
• Beto: The media found Pete. He's like Beto, but is smarter, doesn't wave his arms, and is gay.
• Booker: He was done at Spartacus.

US Population vs Prison Population

So? In Brazil, criminals go unpunished. In Saudi Arabia, criminals are quickly executed or are subjected to corporal punishment so they don’t actually spend time in prison. In Britian, murderers often only get 5 years in prison. In Japan, there is just a lot less criminals. There is much less crime in Vermont than Chicago, but that doesn’t mean that the higher prison population in Chicago is unjust.

Some of our sentencing policies for drugs usage are overly harsh, and I applaud Trump’s efforts for reform, but you can’t look at broad statistics and declare an injustice.

One of the statistics circulating is that the US has 5% of the world’s population, but 25% of the world’s prison population, implying that there is an inherent injustice. 

My answer:   So? In Brazil, criminals go unpunished. In Saudi Arabia, criminals are quickly executed or are subjected to corporal punishment so they don’t actually spend time in prison. In Britian, murderers often only get 5 years in prison. In Japan, there is just a lot less criminals. There is much less crime in Vermont than Chicago, but that doesn’t mean that the higher prison population in Chicago is unjust.

Some of our sentencing policies for drugs usage are overly harsh, and I applaud Trump’s efforts for reform, but you can’t look at broad statistics and declare an injustice.

2020 Democratic Nomination predictions

Here's my handicap of the 2020 Democratic Nomination. I find it interesting because it’s the first Democrat primary since 1992, where there are more than 2 candidate who attract a significant interest (which I would consider higher than 5 cents). Republicans have had wide open fields in every election since 2008.

• Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke is nominally the front runner. On the plus side, while he lost,  he had a strong showing in a loss for a Senate race. His father-in-law is worth some $20 billion giving him a campaign finance boost, not to mention that he was easily able to raise money on his own in the 2016 cycle. Women find him attractive and has managed to create a persona of being hip. However, he still lost, is still only a Congressman, and is a straight white male. How sexist of him to stand in the way of several women candidate?  Aside from Trump, when was the last time someone other than a Governor, Senator, or VP won a nomination? Is Trump the start of a new trend or a one-off blip. The left has so-far ignored the fact that he is a white guy masquerading as a Hispanic. “Beto” is a Spanish nickname for Roberto, which was helpful in his TX race in order to endear himself to Hispanics in his race against an actual Hispanic , the hated Ted Cruz. Now that he’s running against other Dems, will there be cries of cultural appropriation or “race faker” (ala Rachel Dolezan)?
• Kamala Harris: My money is on her, literally. She’s authentically left-wing which is key to getting the nomination. She ranks highest on the intersectionality scale, so she can bludgeon opponents as either being anti-woman or racist. Being a left-wing minority female is key but if it was the only thing, Maxine Waters would be the nomination. Most importantly, she has a good resume and she’s smart. She was the most impressive Dem Senator during the Kavanaugh hearings.
• Joe Biden couldn’t win in 1988 or 2008.  2016 was his chance and he didn’t do it. I don’t even think he runs. He’s a 76,  white, and male. There’s also a lot of video of him being creepy to women, which won’t hold up well under a campaign.
• Bernie Sanders’s high water mark was in 2016. He was an outlet for opposition to Hillary, but there are several candidates which hold similar left-wing views who are younger.
• Cory Booker has come across as too stupid. As mayor of Newark, NJ, he showed some promise as a centrist and someone who can achieve results, but he has since decided that he needed to tack far left to capture the nomination. His “I am Spartacus” moment was cringeworthy and he looked lackluster in the Kavanaugh hearings.
• Elizabeth Warren, once a darling of the left, already seems desperate. Two cringe-worthy  episodes right out of the gate: her I’m 1/1024^th Native American was a desperate attempt to be more than “just a white woman”. Her “Hold on, let me get a beer” was a desperate attempt to be “hip” and reminded me of Doctor Evil trying to do the Macarena.  Bernie’s more socialist, Beto is more hip, and Kamala is higher on the intersectionality scale. That leaves Warren out in the wind.
• Kristen Gillibrand & Amy Klobuchar – who? Ok, I know who they are but they have poor name recognition, and solely being a white woman doesn’t really excite the left these days. Maybe one of them will get desperate and convert to Islam. Otherwise, they are like the Tim Pawlenty of 2012 Republican Primary. Klobuchar will finish 3^rd in Iowa primary and Gillibrand will finish 3^rd in NH primary, and that will be their high-water mark. They’ll drop out, at the latest, immediately following super-Tuesday.
• John Hickenlooper – Not on the list and could have won the nomination with a Democratic party circa 1996. Now he’s too center, too white, and too male.

Recent Non firearm mass killings

Every time there is a shooting, there is a chorus to ban guns, but non-firearm mass killings are on the rise. The automobile has become an effective weapon of choice, but there are no calls to limit or ban them.  Here's a partial list of recent attacks to keep in mind for future discussion:

July 14, 2016: Nice. Ttruck. 86 killed, 434 injured
March 22, 2017: Westminster . Car. 5 killed, 49 injured
May 22, 2017: Manchester: Bomb. 22 killed. 800 injured

June 3, 2017: London bridge. Truck. 8 killed, 48 injured (21 critically) 

August 17, 2017: Barcelona. 13 killed, 130 injured
October 13, 2017: New York City. Rented Pickup. 8 killed, 11 injured

April 23, 2018: Toronto. Van. 10 killed, 16 injured

November 21, 2021: Waukesha Christmas Parade. 6 killed, 62 injured (9 critically)

There is finally a wikipedia page listing out the vehicle ramming attacks, but who knows before that is deleted. 

UK Death Panel in Action

London - Charlie Gard, an infant with an inherited disease died after being died treatment in the UK. The parents had raised money, and had US hospitals offering to help. However, "three British courts ruled that further treatment of Charlie’s disease would cause the infant “significant harm.” Is that not just some amazing Orwellian newspeak?
 
 In 2008, liberals mocked Sarah Palin for talking about death panels with regard to Obamacare. Is this not a death panel?

Opposing the Revolution

The American Revolution was not always a forgone conclusion. Leading up to Independence there was many dissenting voices. On this day in 1776, John Dickinson, a Pennsylvania representative to the Continental Congress, rose up in opposition to Independence.


With all sincerity , Dickinson believed that the colonies were unprepared militarily, economically, and politically for war with England. The frontiers would be abandoned and Indians would set loose to create havoc. Instead of supporting the colonies, France and Spain would capitalize on the internal struggle to invade and recapture territory lost in the Seven Years War.


His concerns were entirely reasonable, and shows how risky the Revolution was.

Guide to Houston Gun Shops (Inside the Beltway)

My work-in-progress opinion of Houston gun shops.




Collectors Firearms - This is the premiere gun shop in Houston, and one of the top in the country. For vintage guns, it is likely the top shop. The selection at this place is amazing.  It has all types of firearms, from revolutionary war muskets to modern black rifles. See for yourself as the website is phonemnal and frequently updated. The prices are generally higher than most, but it helps availability. When I was looking for an Ithaca model 37, they were the only shop in town that had one.  I could bid on one online, and they were less, but when you factor in shipping and FFA charges, it would be about $30 cheaper. Is $30 worthwhile to be able to personally inspect the gun, rather than relying on pictures?  On the week June 5 - 10, 2017, they had a store wide 15% off sale, which was great. For common modern arms they are reasonably competitive with other shops. The staff is nice but their knowledge varies. 









Lone Star Defense & Arms - This place is the best shop for new owners and the best place for FFL transfers. The owners of this shop are very friendly and nice. They don't keep stock of new guns, but you can order online and have it arrive within 2-3 days. The online prices are extremely competitive, if you are not in a rush and good benchmark for prices. They do have a nice selection of used guns sold on Consignment. This list used to be frequently updated, but it has been slower as of recent. Prices are competitive, so you have to check frequently as some won't sit for long. The price will be 10%-20% less than you might find at Collectors. FFL transfers are only $15, and free for guns bought in their online store. I've also used them to ship guns out for repair, for which they only charged me one FFL fee. Since they are a gun shop, they have better and more convenient access to shipping, so it was much cheaper to use them than to go to FedEx on my own.









Full Armor Firearms - Okay, these guys are just outside the beltway, but too big to ignore. They have both a shop and range.









Carter's Country (Katy Freeway) - They have a good selection of both new and used guns. They also have the best selection of safes, holsters, optics, reloading supplies, hunting gear, shooting accessories, and ammo. They have a small selection of black guns but their specialty is more of pistols, hunting rifles and shotguns.  For used guns, they have a weekly listing but supply may change inter-week without being updated.






Republic Arms - Nice guys, but they usually have less than 5 guns in their store.  You can order through their online shop (which looks like every other online shop). I think their specialty is appraisals and estate sales.







Sunbelt Jewelry & Pawn (2 locations) - Going to a pawn shop for a gun may seem sketchy, but they have a decent stock of used guns. Their sticker prices aren't that attractively priced, but you can bargain. Unlike a Cash America or some national pawnshop chain, the manager will have a better ability to negotiate.






Black Gold Guns & Ammo - Small shop located near Karbach brewery, and not far from Academy.






Top Gun - Primary an indoor firing range, they have a solid selection new pistols as well as some used ones. You can rent a wide variety of guns to try out, in case you are unsure about how a caliber or model feels.





Cash America Pawn (1816 N Durham Dr) - I'm not sure about other Cash America pawn shops, but this one has a few guns. I might have left it completely off the list, but they had a French MAS-49 on of the few times that I have gone it.








Freer Gun Shop - This is more of a gun repair facility than a shop. They will have a few vintage long guns for sale. Great repair shop, though, especially for vintage guns.













The Liberty Armory -  This place seems to be a great shop for people interested in black guns, e.g., AR-15s, semi automatic pistols, etc. Their website doesn't show what is in stock. They do have a range and training classes which teach more than just the CHL. These look intriguing, but I've never attended.




Academy Sports & Outdoor - No used guns, but they have a wide variety of new guns, plus they have a wide array of ammo, shooting supplies, and hunting gear.