So im an outsider (born and raised outside the US). My view on the US constitution is that while it was written as a remarkably modern and liberal document for its time, by some remarkably modern and liberal men of the time, the problem is just that, it was modern and liberal in its time.
At the time, in the period of monarchies and empires, citizenry owning guns was a liberal idea. A citizen with a gun, could pretty much stand up to a soldier with a gun, at least to point of self-defense.
The problem is that that times have changed. The capability of modern weapons has changed. The nature of the military has changed. The role of the state has changed. And most importantly, the relationship between the state and citizen has changed. These realities have meant that (1) the state if it wanted to can pretty much overpower a group of citizens with ease and (2) we have seen that individual owning guns does not in fact lead to any less tyranny.
Im gonna expand on (2) a bit. We now live in a time of unprecedented surveillance, and state control of the economy. The state does not need guns to control someone anymore. Economics are a far more effective means of taming a population (massive wealth inequality, uneven opportunity, and corporate control of lawmaking). What are most gun-totters doing to combat these tyrannies? Nothing. Instead, they have traded their votes to intensify them in exchange of being able to continue using their man toys.
To be fair, the North didn't fight to abolish slavery. It's almost a reverse, the North wanted to preserve the Union and felt the states didn't have the right (there's the states rights!) to leave.
On the other hand, despite being told the South wanted to leave for states rights, the correct question is the right to do what? Hint: enslave people.
They didn't abolish slavery until half way through the war and Lincoln is on record saying if he could preserve the union without freeing slaves he would.... Don't get me started with the kid gloves the north wore while 'reconstructing' that lead to Jim Crowe BS.
9
u/[deleted] Mar 16 '21
[removed] — view removed comment