Why Gun-Control Activists Can’t Have Intelligent Discussions

by
posted on March 2, 2023
Hogg
Lorie Shaull courtesy Flickr

David Hogg, co-founder of the March for Our Lives gun-control group, recently tweeted what he thinks the Second Amendment means.

“After reading about the history of the second amend and talking with a lot of hist & law professors- I believe the second amendment has been intentionally misinterpreted. It was never meant as an individual right it was created to protect state militias like the national guard,” read Hogg’s tweet.

That legal theory he is parroting has been debunked by historians, by many legal scholars and by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s majority opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) clearly said, “The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home.”

What Hogg tweeted next further demonstrated his ignorance.

“It says well regulated militia for a reason. The ‘shall not be infringed’ part means the federal government is not allowed to forcibly disarm state militias. I’m not alone in this interpretation. Over 100 years of jurisprudence back me up on this,” read Hogg’s follow-up tweet.

“Hogg mentions ‘jurisprudence,’ but it seems he does not really understand the term. When contemplating the philosophy of law in the United States as it relates to the Second Amendment, the longest held view of what it protects is an individual right; a view that goes back more than 230 years. There are countless quotes from our Founders—many of whom were deeply involved in the process of writing, debating, and ratifying the Second Amendment—referring to the right of individuals to possess firearms. Even those quotes that mention a ‘militia’ do so in the context of it being comprised of individual citizens who are expected to supply their own arms,” reported the NRA Institute for Legislative Action (ILA).

NRA-ILA also cited several other cases in their analysis, before summing up Hogg by saying, “Ultimately, David Hogg is simply another anti-gun activist, and like most others, he is prone to making false claims about a subject for which he has little understanding.”

This militia argument has been so thoroughly debunked that it is disappointing, brain-numbing and counterproductive to have to again refute it, but such is the anti-intellectualism of today’s gun-control movement; unfortunately, this includes, in this case, David Hogg, a student who Time says is now “studying the history of conservative political movements” at Harvard. Given these tweets, he isn’t getting much of an education.

Latest

Toy Cap Gun
Toy Cap Gun

Now They Want to Use Toy Gun Control as an Excuse for Actual Gun Bans?

Some gun-control “experts” really want to ban young adults from lawfully possessing firearms by citing old state laws that include regulations on toy guns.

This Olympian Has Something Important to Say

Vincent Hancock has a lot to say, but most people just want to know how he accomplished all he has.

From the Editor | The Bullseye

We all need range time, but this day at the range brought more than expected.

Standing Guard | The NRA Comeback

The backbone of the NRA is its millions of members.

What Will 2025 Bring?

The future should hold more victories than defeats throughout the courts.

President’s Column | Sneaky Ways Cities Are Trying To Stop Constitutional Carry

Constitutional carry has taken the country by storm in recent years.



Get the best of America's 1st Freedom delivered to your inbox.