There is nothing absolute about the freedoms in our own Bill of Rights. Freedom of speech is not freedom to shout "fire" in a crowded theater. Freedom of religion is not freedom to have more than one spouse, or sacrifice a lamb in the local park, or other strange rites and practices. Whatever right the Second Amendment protects regarding the private possession of guns, for whatever definition of "militia," is not an absolute right. It must serve the overall public interest, including (from the preamble of the US Constitution) the need to "insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense and promote the general welfare." Whatever right there is to possess firearms is no less important than the right of innocent people to be protected against people who carry these weapons in public. I should be able to have an argument without having to worry about getting shot.
This issue needs to be argued between reasonable people without the lobbying power and money of groups like the NRA. There is just too much gun violence in this country and a black eye on our nation. I fear that things will only get more dire withour reasonable gun control. I repeat ,the rights set forth by the first 10 ammendments were never meant to be absolute.
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