Live Free or Die
“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.” Thus reads the second amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America. There is no way to interpret this statement other than the guarantee of the right for a citizen to own and use firearms. Lately, however, people have shown a blatant disregard for this fundamental right, citing the fact that guns are danger to the population. But just how dangerous are they?
According to the federal government, the number of deaths due to automobiles every year is three times the number of deaths due to firearms. Instantly, I know many of you will be thinking it is unfair to compare cars and guns, because cars have an everyday use. However, if you think about it, guns do too. Firearms are used for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to shooting sports and hunting. But you might argue that cars aren’t intended to harm people, while as guns are. If you were to assert this, you would be correct, but that still does not make the case against guns.
Guns ARE used to harm people. But that doesn’t mean they should be taken away. The first essential reason behind the right to bear arms is a person’s right to defend themselves and his or her loved ones. This is fundamental to our freedom as Americans; we have the right to not live in constant fear and we have the right to defend ourselves. The police can sometimes take up to fifteen minutes to show up, even in small towns. When you or your family’s physical well-being is on the line, fifteen minutes is not acceptable.
The second essential reason behind the right to bear arms is the people’s right to revolution. The intent in founding the United States of America was to take power away from the federal government so that it could not be abused. A crucial idea behind the right to bear arms is that if the government starts to take away the rights of the people, the people are obligated to rise up and rebel. This is a crucial part of the American system, a safeguard to ensure that our country follows the ideals on which it was founded.
The principle idea behind the founding of America was the right for all citizens to be free: free to choose what to do with their own life, freedom of contract and labor and freedom to fight for one’s own sake. These past years, however, have given birth to the rise of the “nanny state.” It has increasingly become the norm to force one’s ideals on the people around them. We see this both from the left and the right. This moral superiority is taking the form of a powerful federal government which values the life of an individual more than the individual’s freedom to choose. New Hampshire’s motto is “Live Free or Die.” What is the point of living if you live without freedom?
This anti-freedom movement goes against all of the principles set forth in the Constitution. I do agree that the Constitution itself needs to be revised from time to time, otherwise we would still have slaves. But the most important part of the Constitution, the part designed to be timeless—the Bill of Rights—is being shattered to pieces as I write this. Gun rights are just a figurehead for the underlying issue: freedom. Any enemy of freedom is an enemy of America and an enemy of the citizens who make up this nation.