If this was “about your First Amendment rights, would you still have the same opinion that we don’t need that any more either?”

Anne posted this report and video back on January 22, 2013, Veteran stands up for 2nd Amendment at Chicago anti-gun forum.

In light of open calls by The NY Times and others to confiscate guns from law-abiding citizens, it seems worth running again.

The event was an anti-gun forum organized by the New Trier (Illinois) Democrats as a “space for real conversation.”

When panelist Lee Goodman of the Stop Concealed Carry Coalition responded to a question about the original reasons for including the Second Amendment in the Bill of Rights by saying “it didn’t matter [what their intentions were],” and that it no longer was needed, combat veteran Kevin Tully spoke up:

The video taken by Anne, embedded below, has over 700,000 views so far.

Here is the key exchange:

Veteran: Sir, sir. While you’re standing up. I’ve sat here [inaudible] and I’d like to agree with the professor. Everyone standing in this room right now, especially the veterans in the room right now, know, that we are all Americans. The problem with this country right now is it’s us and it’s f***ing them. We need to stop this crap. Now, the thing I would like you to answer, sir. And I did go to war for this country. Whether it was for everyone in here’s ability to have oil and gas in their cars, or the banks, or whatever. I went to war for my country. And I went to war for your ability to have the First Amendment, to say what you stood up there and said today, to write what you want to write in your newspaper, and have whatever opinion you want to have. You can practice whatever religious freedoms you want. I would like you to answer the question, since you just said that one of the rights that I went to war over to defend, that is inalienable, to every American citizen. If this discussion was going on, about your First Amendment rights, would you still have the same opinion that we don’t need that any more either. Goodman: You didn’t hear my answer….that’s not what I said…I said it doesn’t matter what their reasons are, what matters is whether or not it’s relevant today. Audience member: It’s an eternal truth, an eternal truth…. Goodman: When they consider any part of the Constitution, any law, they’re going to say, “what does it mean today?” Audience: NO! Veteran: The threat of tyranny, today, is no less than at the turn of the century in 1900, in 1800, or in 1700!



