An immediate way to end federal gun control?

Steve Steve
Sat Oct 9 22:38:24 PDT 1999


At 10:32 PM 10/9/99 -0500, Jim Choate wrote:

This is not new turf.  In my view you are correct, but the federales have
stolen the show through a number of legal shennagans and the refusal of
courts to hold them to their constitutional mandates.  For an excellent
review of this topic, see Brannon P. Denning, Palladium of Liberty? Causes
and Consequences of the Federalization of State Militias in the Twentieth
Century, http://www.2ndlawlib.org/journals/denpall.html

----- End of forwarded message from Steve Schear -----

Actualy it's not the same thing at all. As to federalization of state
militia's. This should surprise no-one since states can't keep troops of any
form, even militia. The Constitution is also clear that there can be only
*one* militia and it is a national or federal militia. Even Mr. Denning
doesn't seem to catch the paradox because of his use of 'militias' in the
plural. It also misses the point that individual rights to own weapons is
*not* based on the requirement to have a militia. If the Constitution is
taken as a whole the right of the individual to own and bear arms is in
addition to both the federal military and militia. Also, his claim that
membership in the Militia is universal is faulty as well, membership is
voluntary but by no means mandatory as he implies.

There are a couple of issues with the current implimentation of the National
Guard as well. If it's the militia then there can't be 50 of them organized
by state. If they're not the militia then the state funding that goes
directly into them is unconstitutional. The reality is that at the federal
level there are three military forces; army, navy, and militia.

I am unaware of any assaults on federal gun control laws that use this line
of reasoning; states are required to protect themselves against invasion or
periods of domestic violence not dependant upon federal or even state
resources and that this authorizes private ownership of weapons. If you can
point to a summary of such a case I'd appreciate it.



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