In another “now where have we heard this before” moment, the Salt Lake Tribune published a letter to the editor recently about how the Second Amendment is totally outdated. Yes, it’s the “but muskets!” argument again:
When the Second Amendment was ratified in 1791, we should remember that a musket could fire one to three or four rounds per minute, requiring the gunman to stop between each shot and reload gunpowder, add a patch and a ball, use the ramrod to clean the barrel, and then seat the round bullet properly. Oh, and fill the flashpan with gunpowder.
We then move briskly to “ARs are assault weapons” portion of our program:
…should it be legal in this day and age that anyone old enough to buy a weapon can flaunt and potentially fire an AR-15 (which fires 45 or more rounds per minute) in a public setting? Or carrying current day arms at a public event? Really, the Second Amendment was not meant for assault weapons.
Finally we inevitably arrive at how all gun owners are really on an ego/control/power trip:
Perhaps the issue for the assault rifle proponents is to possess all that power.
The person who wrote the letter took the time to also mention that James Madison was a slave owner and how that’s why he wanted the Second Amendment to exist. Because of course he did.
Seems legit….