At the outset of the American Republic, our Founding Fathers were not idealists. They certainly believed in noble ideals, but they understood that those ideals would amount to nothing if the sovereignty of the people was merely written on paper documents. High-falutin language could be used with good intention, but if society was not constructed in a way that cast aside tyranny and put forth republicanism, all of their philosophizing would amount to nothing.
Thus, they attempted to set up a government that would protect the natural rights of the citizenry, fulfill its necessary functions, and be kept within its proper limits. The philosopher Montesquieu, a great influence on the American founding wrote that
To form a moderate government, it is necessary to combine the several powers; to regulate, temper, and set them in motion; to give, as it were, a balance to one, in order to enable it to counterpoise the other. This is a masterpiece of legislation, rarely attained by hazard, and seldom attained by prudence. On the contrary, a despotic government offers itself, as it were, at first sight; it is uniform throughout; and as passions only are requisite to establish it, this is what every capacity may reach (Montesquieu 62).
Taking his advice the Founders established the separation of powers, federalism, and eschewed pure majoritarianism in favor of limited government.
Another, less discussed limitation on government power was the ratification of the Second Amendment. Today it is mainly justified in terms of individual self-defense, but when it was ratified, it was meant to be a means for citizens to secure their rights through violence if necessary. The modern mind is often repulsed by this sentiment because our civilized time has seen a reduction in violence.
However, millions of people living under tyranny throughout the world would probably prefer to be armed. The Nazis were brought to power in a democratic state and vigorously suppressed private gun ownership after they had attained power. It is arrogant for us to think that our Western country will inevitably bend towards progress. In 2020, sometimes working with the blessing of radical figures in government, roaming mobs burned down entire cities, attacked senators, and broke into gated communities.
Today many people on the left enjoy claiming that the Second Amendment is antiquated, and the Founders could not have foreseen the creation of assault style weapons. In short, they argue that the Founders could not have known the risks of gun ownership.
This contention is verifiably false. The “harmless” muskets that are compared to modern rifles were actually used in rebellions that could have overthrown the state. Shays’ Rebellion which was initiated before the adoption of the American Constitution had to be personally put down by George Washington himself. In Federalist No. 6 Alexander Hamilton describes Massachusetts as having been “plunged into civil war.” Yet even after this event, the Founders still found it necessary to put the Second Amendment in the Constitution.
Hamilton believed that the government needed to be strong enough to quell insurrection and violence, while also protecting the rights of the people. In a republic, the right to be armed is a recognition that individuals have a right to secure their liberty from oppressors.
Keeping guns out of the hands of bad people is obviously something to focus on. However, infringing on a just principle because its application is imperfect is foolish and shortsighted. After the BLM riots that shook the nation last year people should be more jealous of their rights than ever. Can we truly expect the people in power who excuse these violent events to protect us?
The right to defend oneself extends beyond individual circumstances. It is an important principle that recognizes a person’s right to protect themselves from all threats, great or small.
