Hi Keith, long time no hear… from both of us! I am busy with another site and post here only occasionally. Hope to change that, but time is limited.

Well, don’t want to get into a discussion of the Revolution, but George III was hardly a tyrant. He might have been insane. But not a tyrant.

As to the topic at hand, I’ve been thinking about it a good deal lately, since it is in the news. I may write another piece on this, but in short, my thoughts are going more towards licensing of individuals rather than banning guns. Americans may not like that idea given their history and constitution, but we license the use of cars, why not the use of guns?

Maranatha!
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

Keith

heh, heh, you are a funny man.

Maranatha!
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

That’s ok, I refuted them for you, so you don’t have to retract them. What are friends for, anyway? :)

heh, well, I don’t retract my words! I think it is what the second amendment is all about, but that’s really another topic, so I’ll leave it alone.

Maranatha!
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

I understand, Don. We’d have to have a really good handle on the history to evaluate some of the arguments that I’ve heard on the war for independence. I was just quibbling over your words “right of revolution” because that isn’t what the second amendment was about.

I agree entirely with your article. This is a sin problem, not a gun problem. Western societies have never been holy places, but the further they get from living (and being governed) by Biblical principles, the more tragedies of sin there will be.

Hi Jon

Well, I don’t want to get into American political theory, though I understand and appreciate some of its points. I will just say that it is pretty hard to find a biblical defense for the revolution and some of its ideas.

My main point in this piece is that gun control (though not an unreasonable concept) is unlikely to achieve the goal of reducing mass murders like the one at the Sandy Hook school. Something else needs to happen if we hope to actually reduce such tragedies.

Maranatha!
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

Don, the American approach was based on the assumption that people are sinners, and that people in power are sinners, too, and will use their power sinfully to do even more damage. Thus, their power must be restricted.

It wasn’t about the right of revolution — in America, the ultimate authority is the people, not the President, Congress, or courts. They divided powers among the branches so that none could be too powerful, but ultimately, they intended power to reside with the people.

Thus, the right to bear arms was a last resort, a final check / balance, not to enable people to revolt, but to enable the people, the true authority, to put down usurpation of power.

If the only people who have the effective means of warfare are those who are under the orders of government, you’ve removed any real check on government’s ability to usurp the authority of the people.

Yes, the right to bear arms comes at a cost. The lack of effective restrictions on governmental authority comes at a cost, too, as Stalin, Mao, and others have demonstrated. And repeated instances have shown that the three branches of government may serve to limit the power of any one individual, but they are certainly not stopping the ever-increasing intrusion of statism.

It won’t be the end of the Republic if restrictions on weapons becomes law. But it will make it more possible for a dictator to take power some day if such a law passes and is actually consistently enforced / obeyed — which I doubt.

I agree, Jim.

In light of these events, I have been thinking about the whole issue in the states. I understand the background of the 2nd Amendment and the American notion of the right of revolution, but I have a hard time reconciling it with the Scriptures. There really is nothing wrong with limiting access to deadly weapons and requiring some kind of competency testing.

However, having said that, I don’t think increased gun control will solve the problem of mass killings. If changes come as a result of this, it will make the liberals and bleeding hearts satisfied that they have done something, at least until the next one comes along.

What is needed is a change of culture, but that isn’t likely to happen without a major revival.

Maranatha!
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3