The Second Amendment to the Constitution states that the right of the People to bear arms shall not be infringed upon.  This is due to the necessity of a well regulated militia and the thought that since the populace is armed, then they would remain free.  This thought comes after years of oppression by the British and the subsequent revolution leading to our independence.  A war that was fought by local militias banding together to become an effective army.  A war in which, soldiers brought their guns from their homes to fight their oppresors.  However, what is the definition of a militia?  It is commonly used as a group of citizens that respond to an emergency that may necessitate the use of force.  In the case of the current state, this is filled by the National Guard and Reserves, citizen soldiers that can be mobilized in response to multiple emergencies.

My question is, if the National Guard and Reserves are the militia does the Second Amendment protect my right to purchase and keep a weapon?  I am a law abiding citizen and former military officer who is trained in the use of firearms, and should be allowed to have a weapon in my house.  The use for my weapon is to protect my family and my property in case a criminal, intent on stealing from me or causing harm to my family tries to invade the privacy of my home.

The number of legally bought hand guns in the United States does not accurately reflect the percentage of violent crime in this country.  I know and have worked with dozens of people who own weapons, my family owns weapons and all of us are law abiding citizens.  It is our right to purchase a weapon for our self defense or to hunt, or even, if we so choose to shoot at a range. 

The problem in the United States is gun control.  The government does not keep guns out of the hands of criminals.  Obviously in the VTU case, the government system of the instant check does not always work.  We have to strengthen our gun control systems.  When Cho was declared a threat, the hospital that diagnosed him as such became responsible to enter him into the computer as unable to legally purchase a gun.  They should be penalized for this failure.  In the computer age, it is not difficult to maintain large databases.  I am sure that I and anyone who reads this shows up in a government database somewhere.  Why can't we reform the system that we have?  Keeping guns out of criminals or others who may cause harm to peace loving people should not be allowed to be able to purchase guns. 

I believe in the right to bear arms.  I believe that laws such as the concealed carry permit cut down on violent crime rates.  I believe that we have a good system in place that just needs to be restructured to make sure that people do not fall in through the cracks.  I am also willing to turn in my weapons the day that all illegal guns have been confiscated in the country.  All of South Central LA, the Montana Freedmen, and everything in between.

It is not the gun that kills people.  I have carried many a loaded M4 or pistol during deployments in Iraq and Kosovo.  I have been with many soldiers that have done the same.  Never once did a gun go off without someone pulling a trigger.  It just does not happen.  We need better education for gun owners and better training for them.  We need more active law enforcement keeping guns out of criminals hands.  We need to make this nation safe so we can raise our children without the worry off some idiot on a college campus causing them harm.

Once criminals no longer possess the tools to harm my family then we can put more stringent gun control laws on the books, until that day, we need to upgrade our systems and better educate our kids.