"The Patriot"

I have the great fortune to have an exchange roommate from the Lithuanian Military Academy, and we have taken him under our wing this semester to show him what "Badass American culture" is all about. His name is Tomas Mecelis, and part of his American experience comes from us selecting and showing certain "Badass crazy movies of America" to him to show him the movies we like to watch. He had never seen "Saving Private Ryan," so needless to say we had some work to do.

Tomas and I on a field exercise, we were also given the privilege of being in the same squad for FTX.

One of these movies we showed him was Mel Gibson's "The Patriot." For those that aren't familiar with "The Patriot," it is the story of a man's fight against Great Britain as a militia Colonel while also trying to juggle being a father during the war for our independence. I had a truly remarkable moment when Tom asked me during the movie "where do these guys get the guns from?" I instantly knew what Tom was asking. In Lithuania, the citizens are not allowed to own guns and in order to even go hunting they must go through strict, thorough, and almost impossible government red tape to be authorized to use a firearm for any reason, let alone own one.

Tom was asking where the people were allowed to get their guns from, and I told Tom the truth. In the early days of this nation, right up till we were actually a "nation," our Founding Fathers and other colonists possessed and used personally-owned firearms for protection and as a means to provide food. Firearms were a common part of everyday life, and I didn't realize it until now but in "The Patriot" you can see traces of this fact in the movie. In the movie, colonists are always carrying firearms or have one by their side, even in non-military situations. From standing watch on the porch at night, to driving a carriage into town to go to church, you can see right away that firearms were a common part of everyday life. In fact, Thomas Jefferson once remarked that whenever he went for a walk he packed a pistol for personal protection to keep his mind at ease. Firearms were regarded as protection devices and tools, and used correctly they could save your life or provide for it.

This brings me back to Tom's original question. Tom was amazed that the citizens were able to resist their tyrannical government and he was especially surprised that the citizens all had guns. Obviously "The Patriot" is a movie, but even with the special effects and dramatic plot line I believe the movie captured the concept of firearms and the citizenry. Not only did our Founding Fathers have guns, they used them against their tyrannical government to earn something greater than themselves: FREEDOM. This all sounds like patriotic rhetoric, but ladies and gentlemen we cannot forget what has been done for us so that we may live.

We have firearms so that we can protect ourselves from any threat or threats that would try to take our freedoms, our safety, or our lives from us. I am always amazed that people debate whether the 2nd Amendment was intended for private citizens to own firearms, do those people not know the history of this country?

I love my country and I am proud of our history. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a unique history unlike the history of any nation on earth. No joke. For the first time in all recorded human history, men came together and agreed on how to be governed, and they decided to be governed by themselves. No aristocracy, no king, no queen, no divine right, no monarchy. FREEDOM. We have something to be proud of fellow Americans, remember our history.

I rarely bring God into anything political, but I do have several key beliefs with God in terms of this great country. A group of colonists got together, took a stand against tyranny, and went to war with the most powerful nation on earth at the time. We had almost no chances of success whatsoever. As much as we all claim to hate the French, we undoubtedly could not have survived the fight without France. At the time, France was a rival with Great Britain in terms of military superiority and power, and at the time they assisted us with supplies, material, and personnel so that we could win. But with the tenacity and resolve of freedom-deprived colonists and French support, I believe there was also something else at work during the American Revolutionary War.

This is one of my most favorite paintings of all time. General Washington is praying at Valley Forge. I love this painting because it shows the inseparable marriage of God and the founding of our country along with possibly the greatest man of power to ever live.

Luckily through circumstance and what I recognize and believe to be divine intervention, we WON and not only did we defeat the most powerful military in the world, we set up a government ran by the people and for the people, and this country became the most powerful and charitable country on earth today. It is my profound belief that God ordained the creation of this country, to be the nation to carry his banner, to be the most-perfect country humanity could possibly create.

Now back to reality, I will admit we are not perfect. "One Nation under God" does not always seem so, especially in these times when everything must be politically correct. But I do believe that God had a hand in the creation of this country, the more I look into the desperate chances of success we had during the American Revolution, the more I believe it to be so. We have something special here, we have FREEDOM. I urge you to enjoy your freedoms, but also importantly I want you to remember the sacrifices made so that we can have these freedoms. All in all it is not a piece of paper that secures our freedoms, it is the sacrifices and horrific suffering of those that came before us that have allowed us to live as we do. Enjoy your freedoms, take pride in your country and citizenship, and GOD BLESS AMERICA.

The BS of the Week

Here at the blog of an American Rifleman, I will do a no-BS assessment of the biggest BS of the week. What's the BS for this week?

Here's the Bull Shit of the week.

The Situation:
A small group of Live Oak High School students decided to wear patriotic clothing on the 5th of May (2010) at their school in Morgan Valley, CA. Some had American flag shirts while everyone was dressed in red, white, and blue. They decided to do this because the 5th of May is Cinco de Mayo for Mexicans, it is a holiday celebrated by the Hispanic community across the nation.

What Happened:
The vice principal approached the students and told them they had to turn their flag shirt inside out and take the patriotic bandannas off their heads. The students refused, and were taken to the principal's office. The students were told their shirts were "incendiary" and could lead to fights because a great majority of the school is of Hispanic origin. They were told they could wear their patriotic clothing any other day, but not on the 5th of May because the large Hispanic student body at the school might take offense during "their" holiday. The students were sent home because they were told if they returned to class with their patriotic clothing, they'd be suspended.

The Bull Shit:
First of all, this is a violation of the 1st Amendment. The students have freedom of expression and can wear patriotic clothes to express their pride of being Americans. Any Constitutional lawyer could have a field day with this.

Second, we do not display and hide our patriotism depending on what day it is for the sake of others. We are AMERICANS. I encourage everyone to show their pride of America every day and we will not stand for being penalized for doing such.

Thirdly, some Hispanic students are outraged for the students' actions and are calling for an apology to be made to the Hispanic community. This is probably the biggest load of crap I've ever had to see.

Fourth, what exactly is a "sensitive day?" Using this slippery slope, the principal and his staff could decide that any day is a sensitive day to wear patriotic clothing, there is no limit to the restrictions that could be made. The worst case scenario is that the staff decides every day is too sensitive to broadcast one's patriotic ties.

Fifth, nobody asked this but what about "American days?" What about the 4th of July during summer school at Live Oak High School? Would a complaint be made if a bunch of Hispanic students wore Mexican paraphernalia on the 4th of July? I don't think so by any means.

Damage Control:
After nearly dying from a heart attack, the Morgan Hill Unified School District told the parents and the media that they do not agree with the actions of the Morgan High School administrative staff. This is great because it is unneeded confirmation for the students, their parents, and the rest of the world that what happened is in fact BULL SHIT.

What Can We Do?
We can write letters! Don't think that your letter does not count, because it does and the more they hear from Americans about this outrage the better the chance is that this will not happen again at Live Oak High School or any other school across the nation. To write a letter, here's the address: Nick Boden is the Principal.

Mr. Nick Boden
1505 East Main Avenue
Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Leadership from the front
I'm not going to ask you to write a letter if I didn't write one myself, so here's my letter. If you choose to write a letter, please try to keep it somewhat respectful and please keep the swear words out of it. I hope you all got something out of this particular post, there is a point to where we as a society can get so liberal and concerned over every single unique person's feelings that we loose our own identity. In this case it wasn't only lost, it was punished. NEVER be ashamed to be an American, always be proud of who you are and what you are doing with your life. Speaking of "who you are," one of the patriotic students is of Hispanic-American descent. Thanks for looking, take care.

VMI Box 209
Lexington, VA 24450
6 May 2010

Mr. Nick Boden... See More
1505 East Main Avenue
Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Mr. Boden:

My name is Ryan Buell and I am a native Californian and an Army ROTC Cadet at the Virginia Military Institute. Usually I look out for my home state in the news, but it is days like today I cannot be proud of my state. I just read the news reports of the incident that occurred on 5 May 2010 on your school campus and I could not be more angered and horrified. From what I understand, several students who were wearing shirts with American flags on them were asked to turn the shirts inside out or face suspension. This was asked of them by your administration staff, and the intent was to supposedly minimize the possibility for fighting or conflict on the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo.

I thought it would not be necessary but I believe your staff needs to be informed that this is the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. We may cherish our colors whenever we please, and we do not hide our patriotism or suppress our freedom of expression on certain days to avoid offending certain cultures. I ask of you, what has happened to your school? What has happened to your administration? When I read the news reports I thought this was some sick joke but apparently that kind of un-Americanism does in fact exist, and in my native state! People have died so that we may express ourselves freely and that we may fly the flag and cherish its presence whenever we please. What happened on your campus is an outrage and a slap in the face to all those Americans that have given the ultimate sacrifice at the altar of freedom to secure our personal liberties. I am truly angered, outraged, and offended that such a thing occurred in my country.

It is my greatest hope that these supposed “qualified professionals” get relieved of duty. It is my sincerest wish that they will no longer be able to serve in the education field where their haphazard influence can infest and pollute the youth of our nation. I also hope that you had nothing to do with this and I write this to express my outrage over what has been committed under your leadership and those responsible under you. I don’t believe I will get a response back, I hope your school gets flooded with letters so that you cannot respond. Freedom is not free, and being proud to be an American SHOULD NEVER BE SUPPRESSED, most especially on our own soil.

With no respect for your administration,

Ryan Buell

Interpretation of the 2nd Amendment

This must be my first post because firearms philosophy is created based off an individual's interpretation of the 2nd Amendment. First of all, what is the 2nd Amendment? And how do I interpret it and apply it to our modern society?

Quick Background Information
The Constitution was ratified in 1787 by the Constitutional Convention, replacing the Articles of Confederation. Americans, remembering the tyranny that was imposed on them by Great Britain, were worried about the new government abusing or taking advantage of its citizens, so the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution. In fact, the 13 states only agreed to ratify the Constitution if and only if a bill of rights was made soon after ratification; it was that important to the new Americans. The Bill of Rights consists of the first 10 Amendments to the US Constitution and they detail and expressively prohibit certain actions the government cannot do against its citizens while also granting certain rights to citizens that cannot be taken away or obstructed.
The 2nd Amendment Itself
"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."

-2nd Amendment, Bill of Rights, United States Constitution

What does that all mean? Well we have several problems from the start:

1) It was written in an older style of English writing, so there is a slight gap between modern and 18th Century English.
2) The punctuation of the sentence is called into question, why does this one sentence require three commas?
3) Its only one sentence! Why was such an important topic handled with just one quick sentence?
Three Statements Being Made?
I believe that we have something at work in this text that is not apparent from a quick glance. I believe these three statements are being made:

"A well regulated Militia,"
1) States and groups of citizens have the right to organize and operate their own militias. They must be well-run/well-trained.

"being necessary to the security of a free State,"
Ending statement one: These militias must be well-run and effective in order to provide for the protection of a free nation. Beginning statement two: In order to maintain a free country the people must be allowed to own and possess firearms.

"the right of the people to keep and bear Arms,"
2) Individual citizens must be allowed to own and possess firearms.

"shall not be infringed."
3) These rights shall not be violated or obstructed.

How Did I Come Up With All Of That From Just One Sentence?
"A well regulated Militia,"
1) "Well regulated" doesn't mean today what it meant then. With an 18th Century context, "regulated" means ["well"] trained, experienced, or maintained. The actual text does not say who is allowed or not allowed to organize or operate a militia, nor does it say what a "militia" actually is. To fill this gap I look at the example of the Founding Fathers, who employed both state-run and local community-run militias. Note that the Founding Fathers employed many different militias from all 13 colonies and countless local communities, yet the actual word in the text is singular, not plural. Again, apply the context and the word "militia" is not referring to just one single militia but rather a corps of militias across the country. Also, this same issue was brought up with the creation of the first national bank. Alexander Hamilton argued that the Constitution didn't expressively disallow or allow such a thing, and so the bank was created on the grounds that it was not forbidden and if it had been something that the Founding Fathers wanted forbidden, it would have been strictly forbidden in the text.

"being necessary to the security of a free State,"
I see this clause as the end of one statement and the beginning of another, and the commas allow for the ending and beginning of two separate ideals in one "sandwiched" conjunction clause. More simply put, this is what I believe it is saying:

Statement #1) A well-trained and maintained militia is necessary for the security of a free state.
Statement #2) For the security of a free state, individual citizens must be allowed to own and possess firearms.

What do we need security from? It’s in reference to security from both "foreign and domestic" threats. Foreign threats as in other nations attacking us and domestic threats as in internal threats such as our own government.

We're talking about men that defeated the most powerful military on earth, created a nation, invented electricity, the printing press, founded a college, and amassed countless important achievements. I think it's safe to say that they had the ability to make a compound sentence.

They knew from firsthand experience that threats can come from abroad and from their own government that has gone too far and become a threat itself.

"shall not be infringed."
3) This is probably the most straight-forward part of the 2nd Amendment itself. At least it should be. At first glance this seems like a water-tight statement that has no ambiguity, but questions emerge from this wording. What exactly does "infringe" mean? Do background checks and waiting periods "infringe" on our right to own firearms? What about a law that bans ammunition but allows citizens to own firearms? The questions are endless. I believe that the Founding Fathers in essence didn't want legislation or governmental red tape to get in the way of citizens owning firearms and being able to use them in self defense.

What about the National Guard as a Militia?
Many people of the opposing view argue that the National Guard is what the Founding Fathers were talking about when they were using the word "militia" in the text of the Amendment. Time to pull out the good old history book:

2nd Amendment: Ratified with the rest of the Bill of Rights in 1791
The National Guard: Officially organized as the "National Guard" in 1903

How can someone say that the word "militia" from a 1791 document is referencing a to something created in 1903? In their defense, the Congressional act was named the "Militia Act of 1903." But what did it do? It officially put the non-uniform state militias under Federal regulation and control. That's going in the opposite direction, wouldn't that be an Army? What if the Crown had enacted similar legislation on the Colonists leading up to the Revolutionary War? The same militias and citizens that were fighting the British would have been under control of the Crown. This doesn't make any sense. Militias protect their communities, not get deployed to foreign battlefields and fight nationally-headed wars. I believe part of this misconception comes from the lack of understanding with Americans today about what exactly a home guard is all about. In the Revolutionary War era communities and colonies had to worry about Indian attacks and other threats on their own soil, and many of the men of every town owned their own firearms and had to be part of the militia to answer the call in case their community was under threat. These men were ordered to have personally-owned firearms by the way.

AK47s To Go Hunting?
Many opponents of the 2nd Amendment argue that you don't need an AK47 or AR15 to hunt deer. I would agree with them completely. An AK47 isn't very accurate, the AR15 shoots a weak round, and both have 30 rounds of ammunition in one magazine; way more than required for one deer that doesn't even shoot back. But hold the phone for a second...

The 2nd Amendment wasn't put in our nation's Constitution so we could go hunting! It was put in there because the Founding Fathers wanted to ensure future Americans had the means to take down a tyrannical government, exactly like our Founding Fathers did themselves. It wasn't just the Founding Fathers that believed in this, it was all 13 states, as I said before the states WOULD NOT sign off on the Constitution unless this was written into the Constitution. Remember the context of history, we are talking about a nation that just fought its way out of oppression under the grip of tyranny and governmental abuse, these people admittedly wanted to make sure that future Americans had the ability to rise above tyranny in the future, should it exist like it had existed over them.

My favorite argument in this regard is 2nd Amendment opponents saying 'these guns belong on a foreign battlefield, not in our own streets.' What are they supposed to do when the battlefield IS in our own streets? During the LA riots people were running out to gun stores to buy guns to defend themselves against suburban anarchy and chaos. The problem was that California had passed a waiting period, which meant a gun purchaser had to wait over a week from the purchase date to actually pick up the firearm. More simply put, these people were screwed. This draws back to my belief that Americans have lost the concept of self defense and personal responsibility and have taken for granted the security and tranquil domestic life of America today. Americans today take for granted that there will always be electricity to power their house, gas (although expensive) to fuel our cars, food in the grocery stores to buy whenever we please, and we will never get shot at while just trying to run daily errands around town. Most Americans today have no concept of how the most anarchic and chaos-ridden corners of the world are forced to live, and have become complacent and narrow-minded because of our own tranquil lives.

So to end this part of it, you don't need an AK47 to hunt deer but it would come in handy if you needed to defend your own life and/or family from riots or some other threat. This "life or death" threat is rarely experienced in modern American society. An exemption from this is the Hurricane Katrina situation.

Hurricane Katrina
Overnight, whole neighborhoods were flooded and cutoff from all authority, medical services, and aid for weeks at a time. It was complete anarchy, and that in itself is a shameful understatement. It was Hell on earth. Imagine for a second;

A family made a signal for airborne rescuers to let them know they were still alive. Can you image living like this for several weeks on end?

The hurricane has passed; your neighborhood is under water. The bottom half of the first floor of your house is under water, all of your neighbors are taking refuge upstairs on the roofs of their houses. You don't have many supplies, food is going to run out in several days, and you have almost no water. Stagnate water that has flooded everything is full of dead bodies and polluted with fuel and toxins and is of no drinking use, it burns your skin to even touch it. There is no electricity, no utilities, and no help or law enforcement. And there are thousands of people in your area, and these people all need supplies to survive. When the water subsides, looting and rape gangs roam throughout the nights, taking advantage of whomever they want with whatever weapons they can get their hands on. The weak and defenseless are pillaged, raped, and left for dead. This is Hell on earth, there's no mistake about it. This is the kind of situation a militia and armed citizens are for. And in fact that's exactly what happened. Citizens that owned guns banded together and formed local home guard brigades who rationed supplies, helped those in need, and stood watch day and night to protect their fellow citizens until law and order had been restored. Those are the true Americans, and that's the kind of situation we have the 2nd Amendment for. Yes, it's an extraordinary situation, but it happens, even in our modern day.

You see, what I just described is the shattering of this modern American idea that our safety and tranquility is guaranteed, and our personal protection is the responsibility of someone else. WE are responsible for our own self defense and protection, not the police or the government. WE are the first line of defense at protecting our own lives. WE were afforded the ability to own firearms in the Bill of Rights to enable us to carry out these things we know (and our Founding Fathers knew all too well) to be true.

That's It
I think you all know where I stand on the 2nd Amendment. It wasn't a misguided rambling talking about a government's right to defend itself from its citizens (that doesn't even pass the 'laugh test'). It was the underlying principle that the Founding Fathers understood was paramount, insomuch that it's 2nd in order out of the 10 Amendments to the Bill of Rights, second only to the basic human right of self expression. The 2nd Amendment is the shadow watchdog of the other 9 Amendments. Corrupt and tyrannical governments don't crumble from lobbyists, demonstrators, protesters, politicians, or reporters. They come to an end by their own citizens coming together as patriots and realizing enough is enough. I am not advocating for the toppling of our government or any other, I am advocating for the remembrance of our own history and recognition as to why we have the things we have today. I love my country, "I was born an American; I will live an American; I shall die an American." God Bless America.

The Overview

Hello everyone, welcome to the Blog of an American Rifleman. I am a Soldier, self-described Patriot, and Cadet at the Virginia Military Institute. I am a proud American and I believe there are certain things in the world worth defending and fighting for and against.

I am also a student of the doctrine and ideals of the Founding Fathers of our country and I am also interested in the interpretations and commentary on the U.S. Constitution. I believe the founding of our country was a unique event in the history of human civilization, unlike anything that has ever occurred before or since. I believe that every person has unalienable rights that are (or should be) self-evident, that every person has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I also vehemently believe that every person has the right to defend these rights against those that would take them away.

I believe that the ability of a citizenry to "keep and bear arms" is the true mark of a free society. When all ability to resist tyranny and defend freedom has been taken away, there is none. I am a member of the National Rifle Association and I am proud of it. They work hard to fend off and shut down those that have tried, are trying, and will try to take our rights away and I will always support the NRA for this reason.

I promote and endorse responsible firearms ownership and firearms-related activities. I want to stress to people that owning a firearm does mean that a person is "crazy" or a threat to a peaceful society. Firearms ownership is an American tradition, a sport, a hobby, part of our heritage, and an individual right imbued within the very fabric of our nation itself.

I align myself with neither Democrat or Republican party, I am a traditionalist viewing the world with a modernized lens. I view the world as it is and look up to what I'd like it to be and try to make it so. I do not believe in voting for the unpopular "middle of the road" candidates, so I do pick a side between the two and vote accordingly and I do this because I vote for results and not for making statements.

Much of my description of myself sounds propagandist and rhetorical but I truly love my country and firmly believe every individual has the right to firearms ownership. God Bless America!