Author Archives: kenjdistefanosr

"A Government resting on a minority, is an aristocracy not a Republic, and could not be safe with a numerical (and) physical force against it, without a standing Army, an enslaved press, and a disarmed populace."  These are the words of James Madison and capture the reason for the Constitution and Bill of Rights, which he himself helped draft.

What are the origins of the Second Amendment and why are these origins important? Most Americans know that our founding fathers were educated men who were familiar with British common law and specifically the writings of Sir William Blackstone. Sir William Blackstone (10 July 1723 – 14 February 1780) was an English judge / jurist and professor who produced the historical and analytic treatise on the Common Law entitled Commentaries on the Laws of England, first published in four volumes over 1765–1769. Those years (1765-1769) were times of upheaval and unrest in the American colonies as Britian instituted numersous taxes and prohibitions on the colonies which contradicted some of the principles of Blackstone's Common Law. What made is so ironic and annoying to the founding fathers was these very principles were adaped by the English Parlament for the English people and the colonists were British subjects supposedly entitled to the same rights.

 But we're getting a little ahead. Blackstone's Common Law were not something Sir William thought up on his own. His writings are based on the the English Bill of Rights passed by Parliament in 1689 after the "Glorious Revolution" – the overthrow of monarchy rule of King James II. It can be argued that James's overthrow began modern English parliamentary democracy; never since has the monarch held absolute power, and the Bill of Rights has become one of the most important documents in the political history of Britain. The Bill of Rights was passed by Parliament in December 1689. It was a re-statement in statuatory form of the Declaration of Rights presented by the Convention Parliament to William and Mary in March 1689, inviting them to become joint sovereigns of England. It enumerates certain rights to which subjects and permanent residents of a constitutional monarchy were thought to be entitled in the late 17th century, asserting subjects' right to petition the monarch, as well as to have arms in defence. It also sets out—or, in the view of its drafters, restates—certain constitutional requirements of the Crown to seek the consent of the people, as represented in parliament. The English Bill of Rights 1689 inspired in large part the United States Bill of Rights.

Let's get back to the Pre-Revolution colonies. Below I quote from a great book titled "The Founder's Second Amendment" and subtitled "Origins of the Right to Bear Arms" by Stephen P. Halbrook. Below is the link to Amazon for more information on Mr. Halbrook's book.

http://www.amazon.com/Founders-Second-Amendment-Origins-Right/dp/1566637929/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1281642912&sr=8-1-catcorr

"In an article he signed "E.A.", Samuel Adams published perhaps the most remorable analysis of the right to keep and bear arms in the pre-Revolutionary era. He recalled the absolute English monarchs, with their doctrines of nonresistance and divine right…"

Note: The Divine Right of Kings is a political and religious doctrine of royal absolutism. It asserts that a monarch is subject to no earthly authority, deriving his right to rule directly from the will of God. The king is thus not subject to the will of his people, the aristocracy, or any other estate of the realm, including the church. According to this doctrine, since only God can judge an unjust king, the king can do no wrong. The doctrine implies that any attempt to depose the king or to restrict his powers runs contrary to the will of God and may constitute heresy.

"Quoting freely from William Blackstone, Adams assessed the results of the Glorious Revolution of 1688:

At the revolution, the British Constituion was again restor'd to its original principles, declared in the bill of rights; which was afterward pass'd into a law and stands as a bulwark to the natural rights of subjects. "To vindicate these rights, says Mr. Blackstone, when actually violated or attack'd, the subjects of England are entitled first to the regular administraition and free course of justice in the cours of law — next to the right of petitioning the King and parliament for redress of grievances – and lastly to the right of having and using arms for self-preservation and defence." These he calls "auxiliary subordinate rights", which serve principally as barriers to protect and maintain inviolate the three great and primary rights of personal security, personal liberty and private property": And that of having arms for their defence he tells us is "a public allowance, under due restrictions, of the natural right of resistance and self-preservation,  when the sanctions of society and laws are found insufficient to restrain the violence of oppression." — How little do those persons attend to the rights of the constitution, if they know anything about them, who find fault with a late vote of this town, calling upon the inhabitants to provide themselves with arms for their defence at any time; but more especially, when they have reason to fear, there would be a necessity of the means of self preservation agains the violence of oppresion.

The individual right to have arms for self-defense was a bulwark to guarantee personal security and liberty. This right extended not just to individual preservation but also to collective resistance to oppression." End of quote from Mr. Halbrook's book.

When the government does not listen to the will of the people who elected them, then the people have a natural right of resistance for self-preservation. We are, I believe, at a critical juncture in our nation's history. This government ignores the voice of the people just as the English Parliament ignored the unjust taxes and restrictions imposed on the colonies.  It is very obvious that this government is pushing our nation toward solicalism. Ours is a democratic nation and it is time for the people of this land to take back their government as "the sanctions of society and laws are found insufficient to restrain the violence of oppression."

The NRA course "Refuse to be a Victim" effectively covers what we must do to protect our physical body. This article briefly discusses what we could do to protect ourselves from psychological abuse.  Few would dispute the fact that just as the principles of our great nation are being attacked daily, there are perpetrators in our government, entertainment and media attacking us psychology.

There are many things that our eyes and ears take in during the course of a day — some of which adversely affect us.  Just as we need to be cognoscente of the various levels of awareness for our physical safety,  we need also to be diligent for our psychological well being.

The electronic media (TV, commercials, movies, News, Internet) is full of information.  Much of this information we need and positively use in our lives.  A good deal of this information, however, is meant to persuade and influence our thinking and subsequently our actions.  Many ideas propagated are in direct opposition with the core values and principles that made our nation great. Often we and, especially our children, are not aware of the subtleties.

None of this is new news. Anyone over the age of 40 is aware of a book titled "The Hidden Persuaders". Published in 1957 and now back in print to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary, the book is Vance Packard's pioneering work revealing how advertisers use psychological methods to tap into our unconscious desires to "persuade" us to buy their products.

But advertisers are not the only ones trying to persuade. The mainstream media, publishers, Hollywood, and many internet sites propagate lies, half-truths and misconceptions they want us to believe. Refuse to be a victim!!

Mature parents fully understand the importance of identifying and propagating guiding principles for their family. And it's nothing but an understatement to say that executing these principles in daily life is a huge challenge. It is, however,  something that must be done as the results are well worth it. Children are the future.

Refusing to be a victim requires the identification of right and wrong and some shades in between. It requires constant effort, diligence and oversight. Clearly identify and discuss with family the core principles which you believe, value and from which there are few, if any, deviations. Identify and allow only the TV programs, movies, news and internets sites which are in sync with your values. As simple and basic as this sounds, I wonder how many families do it? And, as we know, children pay much more attention to what their parents do and not so much to what they say.

It's impossible, I've been told, to monitor children constantly especially when both parents work.  Perhaps, but your frank family discussions will at least familiarize the children with key principles and beliefs. They will clearly know what they are supposed to do. There will be mistakes but they will have a core set of values to fall back on when assaulted – physically or psychologically.