5 ms·
Moreover, what if the tyrant has the support of the people and that support is drawn rather plainly down political lines? What if, then, the 2nd amendment is ac
by ljm 3y ago
Moreover, what if the tyrant has the support of the people and that support is drawn rather plainly down political lines? What if, then, the 2nd amendment is actually used to defend the tyrant?
At best the 2nd amendment will just lead to another brutal civil war as the weapons are turned away from the government and to the people on the ‘wrong side’. Like the average Joe would ever stand a chance against a militarised police force anyway.
Philosophically pure, maybe, but philosophy needs to be messy if it aims to cover edge cases. Otherwise, too much is open to interpretation.
- true_religion 3y agoThere are various levels of tyranny. The county I am in (Ghana), had a spree of military dictators for over 30 years but the military didn’t go on a killing spree. Guns are available and the military had the weakest amount of influence in the countryside where many farmers had weapons. Having the half the population armed with handguns would have been a huge restraint on the army since they wouldn’t have been able to operate safely in cities either. While it’s true that it wouldn’t stop indiscriminate genocide committed by the government, most counties are factional and the military is made of people who have relatives in the general pop.
- vasco 3y agoThanks for illustrating the point I was trying to make. Sure any government could "nuke itself" or kill you in easy ways, but if you look at Vietnam or Afghanistan or Iraq I think you realize what an armed resistance that believes is fighting for their home can do, and how long they can last. Without guns this changes the balance quite a bit.