Golarz: Second Amendment wasn't about personal freedom, until the Supreme Court stepped in

The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution reads as follows: “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.”

When I taught government, my students would ask questions as to the purpose and meaning of amendments, particularly the Second Amendment. My response to this question was, “Our founders were painfully aware, because of their experiences with England, of a federal government’s potentially abusive power, and they were committed to the preservation of the power of the states. Our founders had, as a primary concern that specific protection. The Second Amendment was meant to be a collective-rights state’s protection, not an individual right to bear arms.”

In 2009, to the shock of many Americans, the Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller declared that the intent of the Second Amendment was not to protect the states, but rather to empower individuals to bear arms and if that were not enough, in 2022, the court in New York State Rifle and Pistol Assoc. v. Bruen fashioned the ultimate blow by declared that citizens could carry guns in public settings without registration. The court literally moved the playing field and tilted it irretrievably.

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If Wyatt Earp were still alive cleaning up the rampant crime in Dodge City, we could tell him to stop bothering citizens. We would advise him that there is a new sheriff in town called the Supreme Court. Shoot up the streets and saloons and have a ball.

We live in a nation that must now be prepared for anarchy and chaos in small towns, schools, on streets, in grocery stores, virtually anywhere at any time.

Meanwhile, the misinformed ignore the obvious — hundreds of millions of weapons. They suggest rather that we should focus upon, what they say, is the modicum of Americans who are mentally ill. Some years ago, I taught abnormal psychology. Research then and still today makes it clear: No less than 25% of Americans are considered to be in need of some kind of psychological assistance.

The actual number is staggering. Who should we focus on? Come on America, get real! Does anyone really believe that we can accurately pinpoint probable killers in a timely manner and thus resolve this gun-killing epidemic?

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The most Alice in Wonderland aspect of this gun controversy is the allowance, ownership, and use of automatic weapons of war — pure insanity. As a veteran, father, grandfather, and citizen I say the AR-15-style rifle must be outlawed in every corner of this country. Following there should be a brief period of time where such weapons must be turned over to authorities. After this brief period, possession and ownership of such a weapon, including modified weapons capable of firing at this speed should be considered a felony. How do we expect our law enforcement officers to insure a safe America with these weapons out there? How do we relax about the safety of any citizen?

Former Chief Justice Warren Burger summarized the action of the Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller as, “one of the greatest pieces of fraud ever perpetrated on the American people.” Years later Justice John Paul Stephens declared that the decision in Heller was the worst decision ever rendered by a Supreme Court.

Don’t be misled. Guns kill and we have 400 million of them and counting. Only one country in the world has constitutionally protected arms possession with minimal regulations — the United States. Not even the most primitive of societies can compete now with our new predictable savagery.

Raymond Golarz is co-author of “The Problem Isn’t Teachers” and “Sweet Land of Liberty” and former superintendent of the Richmond and Hobart schools. He is a Bloomington resident.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Columnist argues no one is safe with so many guns in America