That Darn Old Constitution!

 

 

"Give me Liberty, or Give me Death!"

 

Patrick Henry

 

 

Even though I learned about the Constitution while in high school, as I have grown older I have developed much more of a respect for our founding document. Not only the document itself, but also the wisdom of the men who put it together. One of the things I have come to realize is that most of the amendments, as well as the document itself, is a reaction to the tyranny the early inhabitants of the colonies endured living under the British.

 

Actually, we should be very grateful to the British and how they ruled us before we became a country. If they were benevolent, we might never had sought to be an independent country. However, it was the tyranny of the British which lit the fire for Independence and allowed our founders to sculpt such a magnificent document. Possibly not knowing it at the time of inception, this document was designed to be timeless.

 

That being said, I am amazed at the every growing number of people in this country which believe our Constitution is dated or outdated. It needs to change with the times - like maybe becoming a "living document" rather than the cornerstone of our liberty. Recently, we even had one of our Supreme Court justices go to a foreign country and advise them to use another constitution as a guide instead of ours. When I read that, you could have knocked me over with a feather.

 

Of all the parts of our Constitution, the one which comes under fire the most (especially now) is the Second Amendment. I like to refer to this one as the "hunting amendment" just because it has absolutely NOTHING to do with hunting. However, many times when the "chattering class" or the "low information voters" start talking about revision or repeal, they equate this amendment with hunting.

 

First a couple of facts before I continue. The purpose of the Constitution was not to allow us or give us powers, rather it was to define and contain the powers we give to our government. That has been proven time and time again. Next, the purpose of the Second Amendment was specifically to keep the government in check. What our founders knew way back then was this - the first step in tyranny is take the guns away from the people. When our country was young, the people had the same type of guns the government had - nothing less, nothing more. The fact that folks also used their guns for hunting was incidental.

 

We have rights and we have laws. We have the right to bear arms - that is sacrosanct. If we misuse that right by robbing, assaulting or killing innocent people, the person responsible will be punished in accordance to the laws we have on the books. What many on the Left don't understand is this - laws can be changed and should be enforced. A right, as guaranteed by our founding document, should never be changed or eliminated.

 

I am a gun owner. I belong to the NRA. I have a carry permit. In the service, I qualified as an expert marksman with both rifle and pistol. Most importantly, I understand my right to buy and use arms as well as I understand the law should I ever misuse them. I cherish this right as well as the rights I have under the other amendments of our Constitution.

 

That "darn old constitution"? Not in my book. It is that magnificent document crafted for us by the wisdom and courage of our founding fathers. It is my duty to preserve and protect this document so we may in turn pass that down to our children and grandchildren. It is the cornerstone of our liberty. It is the cornerstone of American exceptionalism. It is a beacon of light for the world to see - and hopefully, imitate.