Right to Bear Arms All Over

Busted Tees

Early this morning I read about the buzz surrounding a court case quickly climbing the ladder to the Supreme Court. And it's about the 2nd Amendment.

Specifically, The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said D.C.'s 31-year ban on handguns violates the Constitution. And now it SCOTUS will announce, possibly Tuesday, whether or not it will hear the case.

If the Court hears the case, they will set precedent: does the 2nd Amendment specifically allow for the right of individuals to bear arms or is its only designation to allow for the formation of state militias. It's an iffy one, and I'll be keeping a close eye on it. As liberal as I can be at times, I don't like the government being able to say that I, as a law-abiding citizen, am not able to own a handgun at a time that the government - because of the lackadaisical enforcement of accountability of weapons dealers - has allowed our country to be overrun by criminals with handguns.

Should I decide I need to protect myself, I should be able to do so. Do I need an automatic weapon to hunt elk? No. That's about where that line should be drawn.

And in related news, an Oregon teacher has lost her fight to carry a handgun to school.

For the most part, I agree with this. See, I first heard about this story on the Sean Hannity radio show. It was brought up many times, mostly in relation to the whack right thought that gun-toting teachers would be able to stop school shootings. It was often to the effect of "She's got a license, she wants to protect herself." He never mentioned that she was trying to protect herself from her ex-husband. Of course.

That added a small kink, but what's the other side? Allow any teacher to tote a gun to school? Just in case? That doesn't sound sane on any level.

The whole idea, on both issues, is very interesting and should generate a lot of debate. Have at it.