In the wake of the Colorado and San Bernardino shootings, the debate over gun control and what should be done about gun violence continues. Some people, typically of the liberal persuasion argue against the validity and necessity of the right to guns. Essentially, they argue that there is no contemporary need for it or even a right to it in modern America. However, this argument could not be further from the truth, or further from reality. In fact, gun rights are an essential and integral part of our country and the principles upon which we were built. The second amendment was created to build the last check against the proliferation of tyrannical government. Essentially, the right to self-defense was a citizen’s imperative in instances when petitions were no longer acknowledged or when speech was being ignored or oppressed. The weapons could provide an avenue to revolt against that tyrannical and guard liberty. Not only would I say that a right to gun ownership is essential to the freedom of an enlightened people, but I would argue that it is as important as any other right, especially free speech.

Allow me to briefly outline an example to explicitly illustrate my point. Without the ability to defend liberties, such as free speech, it's almost like such liberties do not exist in the first place. For example, imagine a society made of 100 individuals. One person to represent the government, one to represent an armed military who owns a firearm to “protect” the other 99 from foreign entities. Now in this society, imagine that there is a constitution that grants everyone the same rights that are delegated throughout the U.S. constitution except the right to own arms. In this theoretical society that we created, who truly owns the authority? Who carries the final say? The distribution of power clearly favors the man with the gun? How significant are rights to free speech, due process of law, or other privileges without about a proper way to protect them? Without the sword, a pen merely puts ink on paper; an unprotected liberty is equal to no liberty.

Now there is no doubt that gun violence is a clear moral and ethical issue that must be stopped. So how do we do it, while ensuring that there is still a defense of the second amendment? A simple way is to close several of the silly loopholes that are still in our current legislation and to strengthen the background checks and programs to ensure that the wrong people don’t get a gun. Regardless of what is done, however, we must ensure that we don’t ignore the constitutional foundations upon which the second Amendment was created. Let’s never forget the words of Alexander Hamilton, who once said, “the constitution should never be construed…to prevent the people of the United States from keeping their arms.”