Required to bear arms? Not really.

Here’s an example of reductio ad absurdum from a gun hater who claims that some gun owners are responsible, and then there’s us:

Then, there are the others — the gun advocates who assert their right to purchase and own guns in order to defend our Second Amendment rights. They argue that the founders of this nation crafted this statement so that the people could defend the Republic against tyranny. They argue that they have not only the right, but the duty to bear arms as a defense against a government that would threaten the core principles of freedom and democracy for which America stands. As Charlton Heston once said, “the right to keep and bear arms is the one right that allows rights to exist at all” and that guards the “sacred flame that lights the American way.”

Let’s assume for a moment that this assertion is true. Wouldn’t it stand to reason, then, that our civilian population should not only have the right to keep and bear arms, but should be required to do so? After all, as citizens, we are required to pay taxes. We are required to abide by laws crafted to keep us safe from criminals. In times of war, we have been required to ration supplies and recycle materials. In this ever-present threat, does not every citizen have the obligation to stand ready to defend our liberty against our own repressive government?
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Yes, in times of war we’ve had presidents that have violated the Constitution and brought back slavery (also known as “the draft”), that doesn’t make it right. In fact, a right is not a requirement but a choice.  Free Speech doesn’t mean you have to speak, Freedom of Religion doesn’t mean you have to attend church services. If a cop is interrogating you, you have the right to say “I would like to speak to my attorney” and the cop is supposed to stop interrogating you, unless you waive that right.

A lot of people think rights come with responsibilities, but that’s not so. Crimes come with consequences, if I’m not a responsible gun owner and shoot my weapon while cleaning my gun, and the round ends up hitting a neighbor, I go to jail. However, my right to bear arms doesn’t die because I made a mistake, I’m no different than a writer who writes a bad book, bad books may be boring, but writers have the right to write them. They don’t have the right to publish them, although with self-publishing on Amazon pretty much anyone can be a writer.

If that is the case, then defenders of the Second Amendment should not only oppose restrictions to gun purchases and ownership (as they do already), but they should be advocating for a fully armed citizenry. By the age of 12, every budding young adult should have passed mandatory gun training and be issued a weapon so that they can stand united to defend the ramparts of our nation against the evils of communism, of creeping socialism, and the over-reaching arms of an out-of-control government in Washington, D.C. Just as we provide food stamps to the hungry and inexpensive housing to the poor, our nation should be committed to arming every citizen so they can adequately defend America.

Unlike liberals, we’re not slave-masters. We don’t demand everyone live like us, we’re not the anti-GMO radicals or the wage war against obesity nuts. If my mother thinks gun ownership is shooting a rifle in summer camp when she was 12 and never again, that’s her right. I’m not going to kidnap my parents and force them to do what I do.  Furthermore, destroying freedom to defend America is counterproductive.  You do not destroy Capitalism to save it, and you don’t get rid of freedom to preserve it.

“…how can you defend your right to keep and bear arms without also guaranteeing that every citizen have the right and the unabridged ability to stand by your side in defense of the United States? Every person on your block should have the capacity, regardless of their financial means, to guard the barricades of your street by your side. If you only defend your own right to keep and bear arms, and use the Second Amendment merely to justify your own personal desires, then you not only ensure the victory of  totalitarianism, but you violate the sanctity of the vision of our founders.”

Do we guarantee the right of every citizen to have Cable TV, a church to go to, the books he likes? And before you say “public library,” realize those places only have the books librarians like. Patriots aren’t interested in creating more moochers. Besides, if someone can’t afford a gun there’s the Armed Citizen Project to provide them with one, there are also gun for sale, some used guns aren’t that expensive. It’s a question of priorities, we let people choose between going on vacation, getting a tattoo, or getting a gun. We also fight laws that make gun more expensive, such as “Saturday Night Special” laws.

So to all the anti-gun nuts out there, if you don’t want a gun, don’t buy one. Simple as that.