"There are five boxes to use in the defense
of Liberty: The Soap Box, the Mail Box, the
Ballot Box, the Jury Box, and the Ammunition Box.
Please use them in that order."
It is the right for the citizens of this country to keep and bear arms, a right which is guaranteed to us in the Second Amendment:
Amendment II
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
"I ask, Sir, what is the militia? It is the whole people. To disarm the people is the best and most effectual way to enslave them."
The Founders felt, as we do here at FiveBoxes, that turning to arms is the last resort when dealing with a tyrannical government. But it is essential that We the People retain the right to keep and bear arms so that we never have to confront a tyrannical government. As Thomas Jefferson said: "When the people fear the government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty."
Throughout history, the first step to tyranny is to disarm the people. The result is always bad, and always involves the death of millions of people under the brutal hand of dictators like Stalin, Hitler, and Pol Pot.
There are those that say that the Second Amendment refers to the "militia" which should mean that only the National Guard should have guns. This was clearly not the Founders' intent. That would mean that the Founders, having just fought and won a war using personally-owned firearms to overthrow a tyrannical government, intended for the people of this new nation to only allow possession of firearms by the new government. Incomprehensible. This flawed belief also flies in the face of the writings and speeches by the Founders, all of which indicate that they believed that our liberties are intrinsically linked to our abilities to defend them from the government, which will always try to take our liberties away.
Remember: the Constitution does not grant rights, it guarantees rights that we already have.
Our Founders gave us the Second Amendment to secure our freedoms and our liberties. It is our duty to their memories and to our future generations that we preserve and protect our freedoms by using the right to bear arms.
To preserve and protect your liberties, you have a duty to:
The Ammo Box
It is the right for the citizens of this country to keep and bear arms, a right which is guaranteed to us in the Second Amendment:
Amendment II
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
"I ask, Sir, what is the militia? It is the whole people. To disarm the people is the best and most effectual way to enslave them."
— George Mason,
Co-author of the Second Amendment
during Virginia's Convention to Ratify the
Constitution, 1788
Currently, under
federal law, the "militia" consists of all
able-bodied males of an age to serve, and some
females and older men. (10 U.S.C. 311 and 32
U.S.C. 313)
Why the Founders gave us the Second Amendment
The Founders felt, as we do here at FiveBoxes, that turning to arms is the last resort when dealing with a tyrannical government. But it is essential that We the People retain the right to keep and bear arms so that we never have to confront a tyrannical government. As Thomas Jefferson said: "When the people fear the government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty."
Throughout history, the first step to tyranny is to disarm the people. The result is always bad, and always involves the death of millions of people under the brutal hand of dictators like Stalin, Hitler, and Pol Pot.
There are those that say that the Second Amendment refers to the "militia" which should mean that only the National Guard should have guns. This was clearly not the Founders' intent. That would mean that the Founders, having just fought and won a war using personally-owned firearms to overthrow a tyrannical government, intended for the people of this new nation to only allow possession of firearms by the new government. Incomprehensible. This flawed belief also flies in the face of the writings and speeches by the Founders, all of which indicate that they believed that our liberties are intrinsically linked to our abilities to defend them from the government, which will always try to take our liberties away.
Remember: the Constitution does not grant rights, it guarantees rights that we already have.
Our Founders gave us the Second Amendment to secure our freedoms and our liberties. It is our duty to their memories and to our future generations that we preserve and protect our freedoms by using the right to bear arms.
Your Responsibilities
To preserve and protect your liberties, you have a duty to:
- Own at least one firearm and ammunition for it
- Know the safe handling and storage of firearms
- Know the proper operation and maintenance of your firearm
- Join the National Rifle Association
- Learn -- then spread -- facts about firearms and dispel common myths
- Share your knowledge and experience by taking others shooting
- Encourage others to take gun safety classes and purchase their own firearms
- Write or call your representatives at all levels about legislation involving gun rights
- Regardless of party, only vote for candidates that support the Second Amendment
- Write or call newspapers, magazines, TV shows, and websites to correct errors and fight anti-gun bias
External Links
- National Rifle Association
- Gun Owners of America - political action updates and many references, facts, and figures
- National Shooting Sports Foundation
- USA Carry - Concealed Firearm Information and Resources
- LegallyArmed.com
- GunCite: gun control and Second Amendment issues - many references, facts, and figures
- National Center for Policy Analysis - Policy Report 176 - Myths About Gun Control
- Keep and Bear Arms.com
- GunBroker.com Online Gun Auction
