Writers of 2nd Amendment would be appalled

The men responsible for the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution created something unique. These were intelligent men, visionaries, but men of their time; they saw the world through their late 18th century eyes. As history has shown, these men tried their best but made mistakes. Some of those mistakes were colossal. For example, rather than settle the question of slavery, they punted the problem down the road to secure the Southern states’ ratification of the Constitution. We know how that turned out. They also failed to recognize the need to include female citizens as anything more than chattel. That mistake still lingers today. Their mistakes with the Second Amendment were repugnant but even harder to see through ignorant, unseeing eyes. Eyes unable to see the future tragedies they had set in motion. Few, if any, of these leaders lived beyond 1836; the most advanced personal weapon they could have seen was the percussion rifle. The rifle had a fire rate of two to three shots per minute.

Today, in service to our country, we have the M134 Minigun, capable of 6,000 rounds per minute, 100 rounds a second. Such a rate of fire should astonish anyone of any era. But, hopefully, we do not have any miniguns in private hands in this country. Instead, we have 20 million A-15-style weapons capable of 45 rounds per minute and easily modified to a much higher rate of fire.

These writers of the Second Amendment would be appalled how their lack of vision, as impossible as it was to comprehend then, has caused such bloodshed, such sorrow. They would not let it stand. They would change it. Why can’t we?

“There is something deeply hypocritical about praying over a problem you are unwilling to resolve.” — Miroslav Volf

— Jim Davies, Longmont

Not indicted

I like people that weren’t indicted. (I just wish I could claim originality for that comment.)

— Richard Juday, Longmont