There is a rather pervasive notion among Americans that the best protection of their rights and liberties lies in the right to bear arms. Simply put, this is not true and in fact represents a fundamentally dangerous delusion. This delusion is predicated upon both an ignorance of history and a misconception of how dictatorships work. The real safeguards against tyranny lie not in the strength of arms, but in the strength of civil liberties.

For those of you not following the news, allow me to bring you up to speed about a disturbing event that happened recently. In the Montana special congressional election, the Republican candidate, Greg Gianforte, assaulted a reporter asking him a question and then proceeded to lie about it until his victory. In the course of politicians doing insane things, this is not an unthinkable event. What sets this event apart from other such ones is the response to it. The response from the political establishment was mixed, what should have been a universal condemnation was met instead by tepid rebukes, confusing justification, and worse yet, supportive humor. However, what is perhaps most disquieting about the incident is not merely the politicians prattle, but the reactions of the voters. In short, they saw no problem with it, some even thought it made him more attractive as a politician. What it represents is not just a willingness to tolerate a breakdown in our expectations of good political behavior, but a growing hostility to one of the most essential institutions of our democracy.

Democracy is a fairly recent development as a global force in the world. Almost since the moment it was reintroduced to the world, its enemies have been conspiring to eliminate it from without and from within. The American founders as students of history, keen observers of the world around them, and survivors of a tyrannical monarchy knew this very well and sought to craft within their new republic numerous safeguards against tyranny. To this end they created separation of powers, trial by jury, and, most importantly, they created the first amendment to act as the keystone of their defenses.

The First Amendment is the backbone of the Bill of Rights. Most of the essential freedoms that make American life possible, free speech, free press, freedom of worship, free assembly, and the right to petition the government, are found in that single paragraph of parchment. However, it is the first two freedoms, free speech and free press, that make it such an effective tool to defend democracy. A free press is vital to upholding a democratic state. The ability of the people to have truthful information about their government and society is crucial to being able to make informed decisions in that society and to keep leaders accountable to the people they are supposed to represent. Free speech is necessary to allow people to communicate ideas and advocate viewpoints and provides the catalyst for change in a democratic society. It’s this ability for people to choose what to believe and what to say without the fear of government coercion that is is the essence of a free society.

With the passage of time, another critical prop of democracy has emerged beyond what the founders envisioned and that is the universal right to vote. The idea of one person, one vote, and that the right to rule comes from the consent of the governed, is what makes us a democracy. This sounds like an exceedingly simple concept, but in the grand scheme of human history, it is revolutionary. No other right has been more bitterly contested because it gives not only power, but also legitimacy and representation. The effect of voting is what makes democracy the most stable form of government because a clear majority of votes brokers no argument and provides a sense that the system is fair. As for representation, voting carries a significant symbolic weight, in that being given the right to participate in the electoral process means being given the status of an equal member of the community. It means being valued and trusted to make decisions that will affect everyone.

A growing segment of Americans, however, no longer hold faith in these things to hold back tyranny and instead look to the second amendment and the power of hot lead to uphold their freedoms. This is frankly impossible for a number of reasons not least of which is that the balance of power between these ‘patriots’ and the government is almost ridiculously tipped in favor of the government. To recognize this fact, one only has to look at the difference in capabilities between the two. On one side you have a bunch of poorly trained civilians using a range of commercial available firearms and perhaps some improvised explosives. On the other you have the largest and best-equipped professional army in the world with nearly limitless resources and everything from armored vehicles, to drones, to WMD’s. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out who wins in that fight, Hollywood movies aside. Beyond just material reasons why guns are ineffective at defending against tyranny, there is also the fact that believing they are belies ignorance as to how tyranny arises and operates.

If one takes a look at how dictators arise from Hitler and Stalin to Duterte and Erdogan, to see a few common threads emerge. When a tyrant rises the first place they strike is the systems of citizen information, the journalists and intellectuals who are usually the first to recognize the beginnings of a tyrant and try to raise the alarm. Dictators discredit the press by turning the people against them; they accuse them of being corrupt elites and of being a system of liars to sow distrust and suspicion. Once the system of information has been dismantled, they turn to political opponents and begin to discredit, if not outright attack, them. They accuse them of being enemies of the ‘true’ people and use much of the same rhetoric they did with the press. From there they begin to start purging society of groups that are opposed to them. This can take the form of direct violent action or the much more common political action with civil rights and liberties stripped away until at last they are bereft of even their status as citizens.

While the would-be tyrant is engaged in this, they frequently enjoy the support of armed groups. These groups provide a form of power projection by intimidating opponents and giving a sense of strength to the dictator. Indeed while the dictator is coming to power, the right of citizens to bear arms are often expanded in order to give these groups more support while dissenters are slowly stripped of their citizenship and left out of these liberalizations. By the time a member of one of these groups realizes what’s gong on, and that they live are living under a tyrannical government, it is already too late. The leader already has too strong a grip on power and any attempt at rebellion would be swiftly crushed or turned to give the leader even more power.

A modern dictator’s power is built upon the ability to control reality, to decide what the facts are and what the dominant narrative is. Tyrants will do what ever it takes to destroy the freedoms and institutions that block their ability to control reality. We must recognize these signs and immediately act against it; we cannot delude ourselves into thinking that some fictional rebellion will be able to save us. Now, it’s hard to uphold the things that keep us safe from tyranny and sometimes it feels like a worthless task, but we must remember it is easier to prevent a dictator from rising to power in the first place than to attempt to overthrow one.