Van Canna wrote:
Well, then...the 2nd should have been drafted without gray shades

Let's see...
"
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."
At that time the term was often used to mean, "well ordered", "adjusted to ensure accuracy" or "correctly functioning according to a standard" and was even used when referring to "well regulated clocks" which were correctly functioning and accurate. The term "well regulated" also meant to "control or direct by rule, principle, method" or "to be controlled or ruled". (At this point the pro-2nd Amendment people who have been pounded by propaganda against the 2nd all their lives will start to get all squirmy and sweaty, but not to worry...)
The term "militia" had many meanings then and a lot of pro-2nd Amendment people try to focus on the meaning which states that the militia is "every able-bodied man {now person} owning a gun". The anti-2nd Amendment people try to focus on the usage of militia as meaning a standing army and police. The reason the pro-2nd folks argue that meaning as incorrect is because the Founders specifically used the term "standing army" separate from "militia". But let's look at the meaning of "militia" in the Constitution...
realizing that the Bill of Rights (BoR) was demanded by the People and the States
specifically because they had issues with the original Constitution!
In Article 1, Section 8, clause 15, Congress is granted the power:
"To provide for the calling forth the MILITIA to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrection and repel Invasions."
Article 1, Section 8, Clause 16 further empowers Congress:
"To provide for the organizing, arming, and disciplining, the MILITIA, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;"
Article 2, Section 2, Clause 1 empowers:
"The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the MILITIA of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States;"
So, what about that made the People & the States upset enough that they wanted a special, specific Amendment to the Constitution to clarify it?
The People of the States
realized that their freedoms and liberties ("
the Security of a Free State") required that ANY militia which was under the command of the government
must be
controlled ("well regulated") by a
restrictive clause. This understanding, enlightenment, and desire of the People and the States in this regard becomes self-evident when reading the Federalist and Anti-Federalist Papers. In those writings the Founders debate
this exact need and desire and discuss how destructive to freedom "standing armies" can be and are! When brought forth under the Constitution, the People, the States and the FOUNDERS all knew that the militia became a "standing army". (Actually, a few Founders argued that the People should not be so concerned because everyone knew that "the Militia" included everyone. Those Founders were Federalists and wanted as much power as possible to reside in the newly formed Federal government. They were generally against the entire BoR, but caved because they quickly realized that the People were having none of THAT!)
Now also realize that the BoR were requirements, limits and
restrictions on the newly created Constitutional Federal Government...
So how would the People and the States insure control ("well regulation") of the Constitutional militia?
With the second restrictive clause insuring that: "
The Right of the People to Keep and Bear Arms shall not be infringed."
The People and the States
knew that as long as the "
People" were "
Armed" then they could "
well regulate" the "
militia".
So, read with that in mind, read it again:
"
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."
For those who still want to drink the anti-gun kool-aid, the 2nd Amendment is a declaration that if the Militia is not well regulated by the People keeping and bearing arms, the Militia becomes a threat to a Free State.
And the People, States and Founders of the time using the definitive clause "
shall not be infringed" never dreamed that there would come a time when a standing military and/or police force(s) would be allowed to have arms denied to
We, the People.
No matter how many obfuscations the anti-gun people attempt, even some of their best, most anti-gun scholars... including Laurence Tribe from Harvard,
knew they were wrong on "
the Embarrassing 2nd Amendment". (The title of one of Laurence Tribe's writings on the subject...) Even though activist judges try to reinterpret the Constitution for their own Statist desires, the entire BoRs was written to clarify and address individual rights. So, why would the Founders change that in the 2nd Amendment and make it a "Right of the State".
The 1st discusses the "Right of the People",
The 2nd discusses the "Right of the People",
The 3rd discusses the "Right of the Owner",
The 4th discusses the "Right of the People",
The 5th discusses the personal rights,
The 6th discusses the rights of the "accused",
The 7th discusses the Right to Trial by Jury (and who would be on trial? not the State!),
The 8th discusses restrictions on cruel & unusual punishment and excessive bail,
The 9th discusses the fact that the "People" have OTHER "Rights" not enumerated,
The 10th discusses that the Feds ONLY have the powers expressly granted to them, otherwise those powers are kept by the People or the States.
The 10th is the only place where a non-individual Right is even potentially mentioned, when it reserves power to the States. So, it is disingenuous at best for ANY judge, politician, or person to say that ALL of the BoR are individual Rights
except the 2nd. The SCOTUS got this one correct... in as far as they went. I hope that someday soon, they will go the full distance and say what we all should already know...
"
Congress shall make no Law" means
Congress SHALL MAKE NO LAW!
And
"
shall not be infringed" means
SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED!