The Founding Fathers of our country – those
wise, principled and courageous men who
pledged their lives, their fortunes and their
sacred honor to the cause of liberty and the
creation of the greatest nation ever conceived by
men – were they alive today, would be appalled
and angered at the widespread, malicious attack
on one of the most basic American freedoms –
the right to bear arms. Here is what those great
American patriots said:

Thomas Jefferson: “No free man shall ever be
debarred the use of arms.”

Patrick Henry: ”The great object is that every
man be armed. Everyone who is able may have a
gun.”

James Madison: ” Americans have the right
and advantage of being armed – unlike the
citizens of other countries whose governments
are afraid to trust the people with arms.”

Samuel Adams: “The Constitution shall never
be construed . . . to prevent the people of the
United States who are peaceable citizens from
keeping their own arms.”

Alexander Hamilton: “The best we can hope
for concerning the people at large is that they be
properly armed.”

Honest Americans will objectively note that in
each of the above quotes reference is clearly
made to the right of the people, not to the right or
authority of either state or federal government.
Furthermore, nothing is said about the preemptive
or collective right of the army, national
guard, state police or any federal agency to –
possess and/ or control all weapons instead of, or
for the good of, the people. Clearly, the men who
established this Republic, and who wrote the
Constitution and the Bill of Rights, intended, and
stated beyond doubt, that the people, i.e.,
individual Americans, have the right and duty to be armed.

WHAT IS THE MILITIA?
But if it is the people who are to be armed, then
what is the “militia” which is referred to in the
Second Amendment? What was it when the
Constitution was written, and does it still exist
today?

By definition of our Founding Fathers, those citizens
who were not in the “Organized Militia”
(the standing army), were considered the “Unorganized
Militia” (which included all males
18-45 who were subject to call for the organized
militia). All other citizens, e.g:-;- those neitheT
organized nor subject to call (i.e., all men under
18 and over 45) were known as the “Militia of the
Residue” as defined by Alexander Hamilton.
The militia is all the people!

George Mason: “I ask, sir, what is the militia?
It is the whole people, except for a few public
officials.”

Elbridge Gerry: ” I ask what is the purpose of
the militia? To offset the need of large standing
armies, the bane of liberty.”

James Madison: ”The right of the people to
keep (to have and to hold, openly or concealed)
and bear (carry, transport and use) arms
(weapons of self defense, including the handgun
which predated the rifle and has existed for self
defense since the 1500’s) shall not be infringed
(invalidated, limited, abridged). A well regulated
militia, composed of the body of the people,
trained to arms, is the best and most natural
defense of a free country … “.

The Militia Act of 1790; Article 1. Section 8 of
the U.S. Constitution; and the Federalist Papers,
pages 24-29 state: “It will become necessary to
organize and regulate a certain portion of the
militia (i.e., the people).”

Clearly, the militia is the people – all the
People! It was so in 1776 when we declared our
independence and fought for our freedom. It was.
so in 1787 when the Constitution was approved.
It was so in 1791 when the Bill of Rights
(including the Second Amendment) was added.
And it is true today.