Molon Labe

The United States Supreme Court is hearing arguments this week about the right of states to impose restrictions on firearms that preempt federal regulation. Two years ago, the ban on handguns in Washington D.C. was struck down and the court ruled for the first time that gun ownership was an individual right, not one reserved for militias. At stake now is whether or not the states have the authority to restrict the application of the 2nd Amendment, when all other Bill of Rights provisions are staunchly upheld.

Some make the argument now that the 2nd Amendment is somehow a lesser right that requires careful applications by nature of the immediate and lethal threat it poses. Many news articles are quoting the children’s rhyme we know as ‘sticks and stones’ as justification that the 1st Amendment does not bear the same weight or lethality as the 2nd. Humbly, I disagree.

Every fight I’ve ever witnessed or been part of was immediately preceded by angry words meant to incite violence. Philosophically, I know that violence is a choice and with sufficient self control, words alone cannot goad another to violence. However, philosophy is an exercise in logic, and violence is an expression of emotion. Seldom do logic and emotion intersect.

There are superb examples throughout history of the artful use of words, both for good and for evil. Little more than 77 years ago, a young veteran of the First World War was rising very quickly through the political ranks of post-war Europe. He was intelligent, charismatic, and well spoken. After his appointment to the highest office in his government, he made an impassioned plea to his countrymen that they better themselves, reaping the gifts that their heritage has bestowed. They rallied as a people, frenzied and determined to rebuild their nation. They engineered an infrastructure which no other country could match. Their industry exploded and the people prospered. And in a final stroke of political genius and nationalistic pride, they rounded up every undesirable person in their borders and shipped them away to places like Auschwitz-Birkenau, Sobibor, and Belzec.

Adolf Hitler had a way with words that few others have ever exhibited. For his skill with words, two-hundred and twenty-five thousand German Jews, and as many as eight-million other German military personnel and civilians died. Quantifying the global impact is far too difficult, so these statistics are limited to German nationals. One could argue that they all died violently in the war, that the direct cause of death was the use of weapons. However, many more died by starvation, gas chamber, and mob action than ever fell to the bullet.

Words, my friends, have a reach far beyond the capabilities of a firearm. There is nothing one can do with a gun that cannot be done with the bare hands of one so artfully inspired by a turn of phrase. I personally do not intend to arm myself only after all diplomatic means have been exhausted. The police have already said that they are not responsible for crimes to which they cannot respond in a timely fashion.

If not now, when? If not them, who?

I have said before that those who wish to deprive you of your liberties will not ask your permission. You must answer back with the loudest voice necessary, or else bear the burden of being robbed of your rights as a human by implied consent. The 2nd Amendment is there because you should not need the government to tell you that you’re allowed to defend yourself. It’s there to acknowledge that you don’t have to ask.