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You're totally taking that section of USC out of context. It specifies only the criteria for membership in an organized or unorganized militia. What either is a

You're totally taking that section of USC out of context. It specifies only the criteria for membership in an organized or unorganized militia. What either is allowed to do is determined by state constitutions and laws. As already noted, every state has significant restrictions on those actions. For example, here's some information on those laws in my own state of Massachusetts. https://www.law.georgetown.edu/icap/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2020/09/Massachusetts.pdf https://www.law.georgetown.edu/icap/wp-content/uploads/sites... Some choice quotes: === Massachusetts Constitution: The Massachusetts Constitution forbids private military units from operating outside state authority, providing that “the military power shall always be held in exact subordination to the civil authority, and be governed by it.” Mass. Const. pt. I, art. XVII. Massachusetts Statutes – Prohibition on private military units: Massachusetts law makes it illegal for groups of people to organize as private militias without permission from the state. ... Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 33 §§ 1, 130–31. === Phrases like "exact subordination" and "permission of the state" are not just window dressing. They're legally binding. You might consider yourself a member of such a militia, but to operate as such - notably to perform any military or law enforcement function - you must be under state or federal command. As the above document also mentions, every state has similar restrictions. They might differ in details, but the message is the same: without state or federal command, your "sovereign militia" can do no more than cosplay (and sometimes not even that) without getting into legal trouble.

notch656a 5y ago
It's not just telling you the criteria for membership, it's telling you who's in it. Again, most military age male citizens of US are in a militia, whether you like it or not. >You might consider yourself a member of such a militia You can consider yourself in or out the militia or not. That doesn't make it fact, from a legal perspective. For government's purposes though I would use government's law, which tells us able-bodied military age males, generally, are in a militia. > notably to perform any military or law enforcement function - you must be under state or federal command. Um, the thread we're both replying to was about 'every state has laws making it illegal to be a member of a private armed militia.' You're arguing about something entirely different here, that is about state laws (not under purview of DoJ) that limit uses of militia.
- notacoward 5y ago
  > It's not just telling you the criteria for membership, it's telling you who's in it Pedantic comment of the day, and on HN that's quite a contest. There's no functional difference between those two things. > You're arguing about something entirely different here No, I'm arguing the same point you were originally, until you were conclusively proven wrong and moved the goalposts.
  - notch656a 5y ago
    >Pedantic comment of the day, and on HN that's quite a contest. There's no functional difference between those two things. Yes there is. If the criteria for membership in a club is that you have to be an able bodied male, that doesn't mean every able bodied male is a member of the club. It means an able bodied male could potentially choose to join the club. The US Code says they're in the club whether they want to or not. >No, I'm arguing the same point you were originally, until you were conclusively proven wrong and moved the goalposts. My point was never that a militia could perform same actions as military or law enforcement, YOU were the one who moved the goalposts. You didn't prove jack shit wrong.

notch656a 5y ago

It's not just telling you the criteria for membership, it's telling you who's in it. Again, most military age male citizens of US are in a militia, whether you like it or not. >You might consider yourself a member of such a militia You can consider yourself in or out the militia or not. That doesn't make it fact, from a legal perspective. For government's purposes though I would use government's law, which tells us able-bodied military age males, generally, are in a militia. > notably to perform any military or law enforcement function - you must be under state or federal command. Um, the thread we're both replying to was about 'every state has laws making it illegal to be a member of a private armed militia.' You're arguing about something entirely different here, that is about state laws (not under purview of DoJ) that limit uses of militia.

notacoward 5y ago
> It's not just telling you the criteria for membership, it's telling you who's in it Pedantic comment of the day, and on HN that's quite a contest. There's no functional difference between those two things. > You're arguing about something entirely different here No, I'm arguing the same point you were originally, until you were conclusively proven wrong and moved the goalposts.
- notch656a 5y ago
  >Pedantic comment of the day, and on HN that's quite a contest. There's no functional difference between those two things. Yes there is. If the criteria for membership in a club is that you have to be an able bodied male, that doesn't mean every able bodied male is a member of the club. It means an able bodied male could potentially choose to join the club. The US Code says they're in the club whether they want to or not. >No, I'm arguing the same point you were originally, until you were conclusively proven wrong and moved the goalposts. My point was never that a militia could perform same actions as military or law enforcement, YOU were the one who moved the goalposts. You didn't prove jack shit wrong.