Tyranny

We are a nation that began with the recognition that people, by virtue of birth, have natural rights that are unalienable. These rights are not bestowed by man or government but by our Creator. These rights belong to the individual and may not be infringed unless the individual uses them to infringe the rights of others. Among these are the right to life, liberty. To protect these and other rights, we have the right to arms. To defend our rights against an government that has become tyrannical, these arms include contemporary military weapons. The founders had just fought and won our freedom from a tyrannical government. They were successful because, among other things, they had access to the weapons in common use by armies of the time. The Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States codifies the right to arms. It does not limit the type of arms, it only limits government from infringing the right of each individual. It is not about hunting or sporting use. It is a recognition that all free people have the right to arms required to defend against all enemies, foreign and domestic. The Constitution of the United States would not have been ratified had the Bill of Rights not been included. There is a preamble to the Bill of Rights that many people have never heard or read. It states the purpose for the inclusion of the first ten amendments. It says, “The Conventions of a number of the States, having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added. And as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government, will best ensure the beneficent ends of its institution.” Some felt that rights were self-evident enough that they need not be codified. Others knew that governments, given power, become corrupt. Even with the restrictive clauses, our elected officials infringe these rights with impunity. Of the ten amendments in the Bill of Rights, the only one that has not infringed is the third. It is time to stop tyranny. It is time to return the government to the limits of the Constitution. Thomas Jefferson said, “When governments fear the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny.” A tyrant will continue their evil until the become aware that their actions can cost them their life. Our Declaration of Independence rightly recognizes that we don't change long established governments for “light and transient causes” and that history shows that “mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable.” It's not our government that needs changed, it's the elected officials. We've allowed them to expand the scope of government outside the bounds of the Constitution. We've allowed them to turn the Congress into a place where they increase their bank accounts rather than focusing on the business of the people. We must petition our government to stop their continued infringements. We must demand they stop operating outside the confines of the constitution. However, if all peaceful attempts at stopping the tyranny fails, we must also let them know in no uncertain terms that we will stop them.