Come check out the latest edition of the Practical Training Podcast!
Josh Marshall, founder of the liberal news site Talking Points Memo, claimed on Tuesday the right to own guns is "made up" by pro-Second Amendment activists.
He says, "Just to remind everyone, the individual right to own and use firearms is completely made up and the product of NRA funded activism," Marshall wrote.
Here's the thing, he can't even be bothered to use the Founding Father's original language.
They said, and this is their words here. They said "the right of the people to keep and bear arms", not own and use firearms.
That is a ploy the anti-gun group likes to pull the thread on. They like to twist the vernacular from "Keep" to "Own" and "Bear" to "Use". They also like to say that when the Founders said "The People", they say what the Founders meant was "The State".
It is interesting that the phrase "right of the people" only appears in three amendments for the Constitution, the 1st, 2nd, and 4th. Are the people referred to in the 1st and 4th the same people referenced in the 2nd. I think the use of people makes the amendment self-explanatory
I am not sure where these people come up with these talking points, but you would think after 200 years, they would have got the memo (wink wink Talking Points Memo).
It's as if their version of history must be different than ours.
I guess they think that if they say something enough they can magically erase history, and their version will eventually become true.
Look at the writing of the Second Amendment in its context. The writers of the Constitution were deeply skeptical of any centralized power and control of a federal government. Clearly they did not want the centralized government to threaten local populations. It can easily be argued that state governments were also seen as a centralized power and thus should also be viewed with skepticism. Thus, you must look to the militias of the day as the ones with the right to keep and bear arms, militias which were made up of individual people. No one ran down to the federal, state, or militia storehouse to collect their weapons. They kept them at home and took them along, if and when needed.
Note, that at the time, by law, the "militia" was all able bodied men of age, with the exception of certain critical occupations. They were required, by law, to maintain a military grade weapon, ammunition, and all required accoutrements.
In other words, the modern equivalent would be every adult in America being required by Federal law to keep a fully automatic AR-15, sufficient high capacity magazines, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, LBE, bullet proof vest, helmet, ect. in his/her home, ready for use.
I don't have a problem with that
I would also encourage you to go and read the Federalist Papers Number 46. It is pretty clear in there exactly what a militia is and is not, and the strength of that militia.
What do you guys think?
Drop down in the comments and let us know if you think this, what I just said, is what the Founding Fathers intended.
Moving on,
The first of July was a historic day for Tennessee. The bill pushed through by the General Assembly and signed by Governor Bill Lee for constitutional carry took effect.
What this means:
The new measure means Tennesseans of certain ages will no longer have to apply for a permit or go through the required safety courses to legally carry a handgun. You would have to be 21 to legally carry, or 18 if you're active duty military, and there would be restrictions against people with certain convictions like DUI's and stalking.
Passing of the bill means stealing a gun would become a minimum class E felony, and if you are convicted of stealing a gun, you would have to serve a minimum of six months in jail — far more than the 30 days you’d currently receive.
What do you guys think of this?
My personal beliefs are that training should be optional, but is certainly recommended.
The last thing I want is someone acting like a hero throwing lead in a crowded room trying win the day.
One thing this law is missing, and something I have contention with, is this: Why 21 years old? Why not 18? Are 18 year old's not allowed to defend themselves?
This leads us to our last talking point here:
On July 13th, an appeals court ruled that persons 18 years old and older are permitted under the Constitution to buy handguns from licensed dealers.
In a 2-1 opinion, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond overturned a lower court ruling upholding the law.
Judge Julius Richardson wrote that the right to bear arms is a “cherished constitutional right” that vests at age 18.
“(W)e refuse to relegate either the Second Amendment or 18- to 20-year-olds to a second-class status,” Richardson wrote.
This appeal is in regards to a federal law, enacted in 1968, that bars federally licensed dealers from selling handguns to people under age 21. But those age 18 and over are still permitted under federal law to purchase handguns from a private party and buy long guns from a dealer.
Amy Hunter, the NRA's director of media relations said "The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recognized today that millions of young adults must be allowed to exercise their fundamental constitutional right."
Again, I'd like to know what you guys think. Should 18 year old persons be allowed to buy firearms from FFL's?
My take, it would probably be a lot safer that way. It might keep some innocent kid trying to defend himself from buying an illegal firearm from a unreputable source.
All right guys, that’s it for this week.
We will end it with Mike's Favorite of the week:
This week we want to mention the Mantis Blackbeard.
The Mantis Blackbeard is an AR15 automatic trigger reset system that allows you to use your weapon system in a dryfire set up.
Head over to PTP Firearms Training YouTube to watch me do a full breakdown of the system and stay tuned as we test drive it with some indoor dryfire training.
Get training for your CCW in Maryland here: https://www.ptpgun.com/product-page/maryland-wear-carry
And with that, we out here.
Learn. Defend. Prevail.
Mike Bell