Crazy

The right to bear arms is enshrined in the US Constitution. At the time of its creation the nation had been born of revolt from an overseas power. The role of a militia had been crucial in the move to independence. Given a degree of prescience, would a rational, intelligent, founding father, knowing what we know now,  still include the fatal clause - the right to bear arms - in the final draft? How would they react to some accurate crystal-ball gazing?

Would they approve of over-the-counter sales of assault rifles and automatic guns? Would they feel that the situation existing today is unsupportable and actually constitutes a threat to the health and well-being of the society? How would they react to the knowledge that half of the world’s guns are in the US with a population barely 5% of the total in the world? What would they think about the inertia at the heart of government as shooting massacre after sniper massacre after school massacre follow each other. Would they not look at each other in disbelief that a movement created in struggle should end up with a licence for crazy people to do maximum harm?

Would those sane scions of the enlightenment welcome the way that so many sleazy politicians have been bought off by a powerful gun lobby thereby enabling even more massacres to take place? 

Would those supporters of secular governance approve of fundamentalist baptists holding a ‘thank you God’ ceremony at the site of the latest massacre? And would they approve of the way the mainstream church denounces the evil but does not condemn

 rampant gun ownership? 

Knowing what we know now - wouldn’t these intelligent rational and sane citizens go back to the drawing board and rip up sections of the Constitution?

In particular, the madness that is the right to bear arms. 

Barmy beyond belief.

And these irrational, inadequate, sleazy, so-called democrats, dare to lecture the rest of the world about values. 

Time to take a long hard look in the mirror.