In the wake of last week's slaughter in Santa Barbara, political pundit Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher --- a.k.a. "Joe the Plumber" --- made a startlingly candid declaration, directed to the bereaved families. Here's his message of condolence:
"As harsh as this sounds .... your dead kids
don't trump my constitutional rights."
Contrast the abject cruelty of this statement with the heartfelt plea of Richard Martinez, whose only child Christopher was one of those who died.
"They talk about gun rights. What about
Chris's right to live?"
I make no pretense of being a constitutional scholar. But it seems as if the intent of the Constitution's framers will always be an issue. This is the Second Amendment as written in one clear sentence:
A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the
security of a free state, the right of the people
to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
With the most robust military force on the planet as well as law enforcement units at all levels of government, we're hardly in need of seat-of-the-pants militias. Here and there, a handful of wackos, who worship at The Altar of Things That Go Bang, may take issue with that statement. But the mainstream polls consistently conclude that a clear majority supports sensible gun laws.
I have little doubt that "Joe the Plumber" himself would ever lose his marbles while carrying a firearm. Considering the fact that, despite his self-anointed nickname he's not even a licensed plumber, he may even be less of a risk packing heat than he'd ever be wielding a toilet plunger!
But apparently Mr. Wurzelbacher can't bring himself to realize that this issue transcends his own selfish priorities. As Mr. Martinez eloquently stated, it was about his son's --- and everyone else's right to live.
In regard to the Constitution, if my memory serves me, the final sentence of the Preamble specifies something about "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." Here's my response to "Joe the Plumber" 's strident declaration:
As humane and as reasonable as this may
sound, everyone's constitutional right to
live trumps his allegedly constitutional
right to bear arms.
I am sooo weary of idiots like Joe the "Plumber", getting the media to further promote his spewing stupidities abroad. There is precious little understanding by Americans of their own constitution, especially the First and Second Amendments. You've done a fine job here with your explanation of the 2nd; allow me to explicate the 1st: Free speech rights with this amendment states our GOVERNMENT will not limit, proscribe or prescribe speech--but there is NO free speech right given by law for speech in homes, schools, businesses, etc., which the NBA rightly understood when banning Mr. "Sterling".
ReplyDelete"Joe" has no thought for others, an alarming and growing tendency in this country--chaos coming, perhaps?
DeleteI am happy to find your distinguished way of writing the post. Now you make it easy for me to understand and implement the concept. Thank you for the post. blocked drains perth
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you for your feedback. Your response to a nearly-seven-year-old post is tragically timely. It seems as if you and your Australian compatriots have a genuine reverence for life that's lacking here in the US --- at least among our most powerful lawmakers. Unless I'm wrong, Australia's Parliament enacted the National Firearms Agreement, banning automatic and semi-automatic firearms four days after the tragic carnage at Port Arthur in 1996. Four days! Unfortunately, we have in our midst a vocal, self-serving minority of legislators and their constituents with piping hot fetishes for things that go "bang!!!" --- as well as "rat-a-tat!!!" As you probably know, we in the US has recently experienced a spate of mass killings committed by deeply troubled men with unfettered access to rapid-fire weapons. Every major poll shows that the majority of us want them banned. But we don't have a voice. Kudos to you all Down Under. All my best!
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