At what specific point in time or society milestone (% of population who live in rural areas for instance)
Ron, list of,,,,,,,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTr-CSND0RY
Anonymous
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"To invade the mainland United States would prove most difficult because behind every blade of grass is an American with a rifle."
busterwasmycat
roughly around the Civil War is when the role of a standing army became both obvious and the national policy. It is at about this time frame when the traditional role of the militia became obsolete, although we still have the "Militia" in terms of the National Guard.
It isn't exactly a case of the 2nd amendment being a remnant of its time so much as serving little purpose for its original intention, along with the advancements in technology which rendered guns into efficient killing machines that are used primarily for anything and everything EXCEPT what the 2nd amendment defined as the purpose for the "right".
I don't have a problem with guns of themselves, but any realistic observer can see that the murder and mayhem that guns permit to happen are not beneficial to a democratic society, so some controls on guns is the only sane solution.
Gypsyfish
No one says it has no meaning today. What we say is that the full amendment refers to a "well-regulated militia". Regulations are what we want, and the Constitution permits them.
Mr. Smartypants
I'm glad you asked! It became such when the Constitution was ratified. 1789.
The Constitution replaced state militias with a federal 'standing army'. This was a controversial decision and there was a lot of argument about it. In the end a compromise was reached. We would still have a federal standing army but states would be allowed to keep their militias to put down small local insurgencies ( like Shay's Rebellion) and to deal with Indian attacks. That's what the 2nd Amendment was originally about.
When did the 2nd Amendment become about everyone's right to own as many guns as he wanted, of whatever type? And to carry them to school and church and Walmart and Starbucks? Much later.
Ron
I need a list or you just made that statement up