Supreme Court Rules that Individuals Have the Right to Bear Arms

By a 5-4 majority the supreme court has upheld an individual’s right to keep and bear arms by ruling the 30+ year Washington DC ban of all handguns unconstitutional. This is a major although slim ruling by the supreme court as it is the first time in this country’s history that the supreme court has ruled that the second amendment applies to individuals and not just militias.

Justice Antonin Scalia said for the majority the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with militia service and to use it for traditional lawful purposes, such as self-defense in the home.

The court did rule that some restrictions were okay however.

He said the ruling should not be taken to cast doubt on long-standing prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill or on laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in places like schools and government buildings or laws imposing conditions on gun sales.

So while I am celebrating the fact that the supreme court actually upheld the constitution for a change, there is still work to be done. No, I am not talking about rescinding the above prohibitions on felons owning guns, but the slim majority of this decision does leave the door open for future cases.

We were just one vote away from the supreme court ruling that the second amendment didn’t apply to individuals. One Ruth Bader Ginsburg vote away from the supreme court ruling that the second amendment didn’t apply to individuals. In other words, one Barack Obama supreme court nominee away from ruling that the second amendment didn’t apply to individual. Catch my drift?

If the next president has a supreme court seat to fill this whole decision could be thrown out the door. Hell, I don’t trust John McCain with this process either. Neither of these men as president will nominate a John Stevens or Sam Alito to the supreme court. This is where my concern lies. By the supreme court ruling that SOME restrictions are okay it leaves the door open for MORE restrictions.

This issue will be brought before the court again and with a McCain or Obama supreme court all bets are off on this issue. More and more restrictions could be found to be constitutional. So while I celebrate the supreme court upholding the constitution today I fear for the constitution tomorrow under either a President Obama or President McCain.

This ruling makes me feel good, the margin of victory leave my stomach just a little queasy.