55
votes
When was the Second Amendment last used to fight against the US government to protect people's freedom?
This has happened as recently as 2014 in Bunkerville, Clark County, Nevada.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundy_standoff
The 2014 Bundy standoff was an armed confrontation between supporters of ...
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51
votes
When was the Second Amendment last used to fight against the US government to protect people's freedom?
It hasn't happened.
The Second Amendment is a doomsday provision. It exists to protect the American people from government tyranny and oppression.
The U.S. government has not exercised its power ...
- 10.3k
49
votes
What percentage of mass shootings in the USA are actually stopped by ordinary gun-bearing Americans?
From the details in the The Violence Project database. The following can be seen.
In six incidents, armed civilians were present at the location. (Armed
Police were present in 19 Incidents) out of ...
- 1,575
46
votes
Accepted
Could the second amendment be, well, amended?
Yes, the constitution can be amended. In fact the second amendment is just that: an amendment. You can continue to add new amendments, even on existing amendments.
This has actually already happened....
44
votes
What percentage of mass shootings in the USA are actually stopped by ordinary gun-bearing Americans?
Unfortunately, statistics based on actual events are not able to answer this question.
A working hypothesis is that a higher rate of gun ownership among targets will discourage potential shooters from ...
- 12.8k
38
votes
How are states supposed to protect themselves when the National Guard is under the federal government?
TL:DR; Some states still do have militias.
Realistically, in the modern era the U.S. states are not expected to require defense from the federal government, nor would such a defense seem possible if ...
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38
votes
When was the Second Amendment last used to fight against the US government to protect people's freedom?
The most recent event I can identify is the Battle of Athens. It was a direct confrontation with the corruption of the local government and efforts to rig the election to ensure the continuity of ...
- 9,989
38
votes
Why is the Second Amendment to the US constitution structured differently from all other amendments?
This seems to go back to the various texts that inspired the Bill of Rights. In particular the "Virginia Declaration of Rights" (by Virginia anti-federalist George Mason) This reads:
That a ...
- 93.6k
35
votes
What percentage of mass shootings in the USA are actually stopped by ordinary gun-bearing Americans?
There are several factors that make this a very difficult question to answer definitively.
What exactly is a "mass shooting"?
What exactly does it mean to stop a mass shooting?
How to ...
- 1,948
27
votes
Accepted
Can the US government outlaw the buying, selling and manufacture of arms?
Keep in mind that prior to District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 US 570 (2008), the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was basically a dead letter with no enforceable effect, in substantial part ...
- 54.3k
20
votes
Why is the Second Amendment to the US constitution structured differently from all other amendments?
Not sure of the answer to your question but I think that the answer will not alter the overall effect
Legal texts with a preamble before the operative clause (e.g. A being the case, there shall be B) ...
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19
votes
Why did the Supreme Court decide to disregard the prefatory clause of the 2nd amendment?
Excerpt on the summary from the Wikipedia page on the case:
(a) The Amendment’s prefatory clause announces a purpose, but does not limit or expand the scope of the second part, the operative clause. ...
- 6,140
17
votes
Accepted
Why did the Supreme Court decide to disregard the prefatory clause of the 2nd amendment?
A couple things:
Militia referred to all able-bodied men in the community. As such, "member of militia" and "citizens" were mostly synonymous if you limit citizens to people eligible to vote at ...
- 88.1k
17
votes
When was the Second Amendment last used to fight against the US government to protect people's freedom?
To address your broader question, I think you, like many, many others, mistake the scope and intent of the Second Amendment. The amendment is not limited to enabling resistance of internal government ...
- 431
16
votes
How are states supposed to protect themselves when the National Guard is under the federal government?
Justice of the Supreme Court Paul Stevens:
Congress may authorize members of the National Guard to be ordered to active federal duty for training outside the U. S. without either the consent of a ...
- 27.6k
13
votes
How are states supposed to protect themselves when the National Guard is under the federal government?
Another relevant example was the "Little Rock crisis" -- see Arkansas National Guard and the integration of Central High School. The timeline as I understand it was:
Some people want to "integrate" ...
- 1,195
13
votes
Can the US government outlaw the buying, selling and manufacture of arms?
In McDonald v. Chicago, SCOTUS found that state governments could not ban the sale of handguns.
In Heller v. DC, SCOTUS found that the Federal government could not ban the sale of handguns.
Any other ...
- 7,426
11
votes
When was the Second Amendment last used to fight against the US government to protect people's freedom?
Every day. The second amendment isn't exercised when someone pulls the trigger in an act of rebellion against the government; it's exercised whenever a civilian purchases a firearm. Actually using ...
- 1,222
11
votes
How are states supposed to protect themselves when the National Guard is under the federal government?
The 'Militia' and the 2nd Amendment
The National Guard is part of the 'militia,' but it is not all of it.
Under current law, the 'militia' of the United States literally includes all able-bodied male ...
- 7,493
11
votes
U.S. constitution 2nd amendment and state militias
As a matter of history, the answer is of course unknowable.
As a matter of law, the answer is that the Second Amendment was intended to preserve more than just state militias. Instead, it was ...
- 219
10
votes
Accepted
How do "originalist" interpreters of the constitution cope with the 2nd amendment?
No, even originalists recognize that rights have some limits. Speech is limited in cases of inciting violence, acceptable arms are similarly limited.
This is a false dilemma, the second amendment can ...
- 13.3k
10
votes
Under the US 2nd Amendment, are there limits to the size or type of firearm?
The 2nd Amendment is subject to government regulations.
This is known as the National Firearms Act
First enacted in 1934 as a reaction to the St Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago, it required ...
- 10k
10
votes
What arguments do proponents of the second amendment use to conclude that gun ownership helps protect the people against the government?
A "standard" argument (in the sense that I've seen it many times) is to point out how costly asymmetric insurgencies are for the "big guy", ranging from Vietnam, [Soviet] Afghanistan, etc. Or even ...
- 109k
10
votes
Accepted
Do any 2020 Democratic presidential candidates support banning semi-automatic weapons?
It's important to note that banning all semi-automatic weapons is a far more expansive stance than most candidates are willing to take (which is remarkable in a year when they've run further Left on ...
- 39.1k
8
votes
Under the US 2nd Amendment, are there limits to the size or type of firearm?
To answer your question in short:
Hard No:
Explosives (Grenades, bombs, det charges)
Chemical weapons (viruses, nerve gas, caustic gas)
Flamethrowers of any significant power
Anything you could not ...
- 189
7
votes
Why did Trump suddenly flip on the gun issue?
As multiple Conservative commentators have noted, Trump never really changed his position on guns, he just wasn't as vocal about it as Hillary Clinton was. I mean, the man had stated, multiple times ...
- 39.1k
7
votes
How are states supposed to protect themselves when the National Guard is under the federal government?
The individual servicemen have a say in the matter
This is unfortunately mostly anecdotal evidence, but for a mostly hypothetical topic such as this, I don't know what hard evidence I can give. But ...
- 537
6
votes
How do "originalist" interpreters of the constitution cope with the 2nd amendment?
I'm going to modify the questions slightly [with explanation] so as to make a direct answer easier:
Does an originalist reading of the 2nd Amendment support the right of
any citizen [in good standing]...
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Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible