I don't understand

      The right to bear arms is in the constitution and it was put there for a good reason. The picture below from the Las Vegas shooting that killed 58 people and wounded 500 others was not the reason for the right to bear arms.

      The reason was so that an armed militia could be called up to support the new republic from incursions into our country by the British. The young republic did not have a lot of money to equip an army, so the provision in the constitution made sense. American patriots rose up to defeat the Brits using their squirrel guns to drive the invaders out.
      Thomas Jefferson is quoted as saying, "The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in the government." That is a debatable quote because it does not appear in Jefferson's papers.
      Whatever was said then was probably correct for the time. Fast forward over 200 years the framers of the constitution nor Jefferson had any concept of what we have today.
      I have no problem with anyone having hunting rifles, shotguns or handguns for self defense. My problem is assault rifles and extended magazines for them and handguns that allow people to engage in mass shootings. There will always people that do lose self control, but let's not give them the help to kill or wound as many as an assault rifle or handgun can do with these extended magazines. I know I may or will get a lot of flack for this, but I believe it needs to be said.
      
      
Copyright Bill Weber 2006-2019 and beyond.