What is the meaning of Well Regulated?

Some would confuse the term well regulated using today’s modern language with government regulation. This translation couldn’t be further from the truth. When thinking of the time that the amendment was constructed, well regulated would have meant disciplined in the use of firearms. It would have meant that each member of the militia adhere to certain rules such as chain of command, rules of engagement, etc.

Who are the Militia?

Title 10 section 246(a) of the United States Code (Federal Law), defines the militia as “The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard”.



Okay, so we have a “National Guard”. Doesn’t this take away the need for citizen militias?

Subsection (b) describes the 2 classes of militia.
“(b) The classes of the militia are—
(1) the organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval Militia; and
(2) the unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.”
The ”unorganized militia”, are in fact the citizen militia. As stated above “ consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 and under 45 years of age”. So does this mean that upon attaining the age of 45 you are no longer allowed to keep and bear arms? Of course not, it only means that one would not be required to respond to a call to action in the event of a call being made.
So what about things like assault weapons, or high capacity magazines?
Contrary to popular belief, there were in fact firearms that were capable of firing multiple rounds without reloading. One such example is known as the “Puckle gun” patented in 1718, which was capable of firing 6 to 11 rounds without reloading.
During the War for Independence, the British army used muskets, which is a smooth bore gun that fired a round lead ball. These firearms were not very accurate a long ranges. However, the Americans had devised “rifling” of the barrel (also known as the Pennsylvania or Kentucky rifle) , which causes the projectile or bullet, to spin. This made it more accurate at longer ranges since the spinning had a smoother trajectory and kept the bullet from veering off course. Since the Americans were able to out distance the Brit’s in accuracy, these types of weapons would certainly fall into the class of “assault weapons” by today’s standards.

Now that we have Police, National Guard, and U.S. Military, do we still need Citizen Militia’s?

The answer to that question is a resound YES. When the founders adopted the Constitution, they had just won independence from a tyrant. The entire object of the Second Amendment, is to ensure that the freedoms they had just secured, would not be taken away by those in power, either at the present time, or any time in the future. When you consider the events of the 20th century alone, more people have been murdered by their own governments, than in the history of the world
In 1911, Turkey established gun control:
From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
In 1929, the Soviet Union established gun control:
From 1929 to 1953, about 20 million dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
In 1938 Germany established gun control:
From 1939 to 1945, a total of 13 million Jews and others who were unable to defend themselves were rounded up and exterminated.
China established gun control in 1935:
From 1948 to 1952, 20 million political dissidents, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Cambodia established gun control in 1956:
From 1975 to 1977, one million educated people, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Guatemala established gun control in 1964:
From 1964 to 1981, 100,000 Mayan Indians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
Uganda established gun control in 1970:
From 1971 to 1979, 300,000 Christians, unable to defend themselves, were rounded up and exterminated.
56 million defenseless people were rounded up and exterminated in the 20th Century because of gun control.
More recently in 2012,
Venezuela disarmed their population, calling for common sense gun control:
In 2019, they shot their own citizens and ran over them with military vehicles.