Should Gun Owners Have to Join the Reserves? IE "A well regulated militia".

[jmg257]

127. THE Militias are (or were) well-defined entities. They pre-dated the Constitution.

They were NOT defined in the constitution because they did not need to be.

By definition, THE Militia (of the several States) existed, as they were declared mandatory in the Articles of Confederation:

"but every State shall always keep up a well-regulated and disciplined militia"

The Constitution recognizes these (and only these state (today there would be 50 of them) well-regulated entities, and gives them very vital roles in securing our freedom:

"To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
...
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress"
...
The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States;"
...
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State,..."

They certainly WERE meant to be semi-professional - hence the new powers of Congress in regulating them! And the Militia Acts in just how they would be regulated. The State Militia were vital!!!
And within certain guidelines, we were "all" meant to be part of them:

"That each and every free able-bodied white male citizen of the respective States, resident therein, who is or shall be of age of eighteen years, and under the age of forty-five years (except as is herein after excepted) shall severally and respectively be enrolled in the militia, by the Captain or Commanding Officer of the company, within whose bounds such citizen shall reside, and that within twelve months after the passing of this Act."


i.e. you and I are NOT 'the militia'...not the constitutional ones anyway. Since the Dick Act the definition of those Militias has changed = National Guard. You and I are thrown a bone by being in the UNorganized militia, which, by definition is NOT well-regulated as required by the 2nd, nor as referred to in the Constitution and resultant Militia Acts:

"VII. And be it further enacted, That the rules of discipline, approved and established by Congress, in their resolution of the twenty-ninth of March, 1779, shall be the rules of discipline so be observed by the militia throughout the United States, except such deviations from the said rules, as may be rendered necessary by the requisitions of the Act, or by some other unavoidable circumstances. It shall be the duty of the Commanding Officer as every muster, whether by battalion, regiment, or single company, to cause the militia to be exercised and trained, agreeably to the said rules of said discipline.


No, my rights exist with or without the Bill of Rights which serves to help secure them.