What I think - The Second Amendment

To get the ball rolling, I thought it'd be a good idea to let you know where I currently stand on issues that I consider to be of importance. I'll take one at a time and try to lay out my thoughts on the issue. As always, I'm open to the possibility that I could be wrong about anything, but these are conclusions that I've come to based on what I know. Feel free to convince me otherwise.

First up - The Second Amendment. I know that's a big one to start on, but it's an easy one to explain. The text:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

Download a scan of the Bill of Rights here.

Rather than getting all grammatical on your ass, let me just lay to rest a few assertions by those who would say this has nothing to do with an individual private citizen's right to posess and use firearms.

• Myth number 1 - The amendment only protects the right of the Militia to have guns, and the Militia is the National Guard. My favorite way to counter this point (although not my idea) is to look at it this way: If the amendment stated, "A well-schooled electorate, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and read Books, shall not be infringed" do you think that would mean that only VOTERS should be allowed to own books? The first part of the amendment is just an observation; A militia (composed of regular citizens and "well regulated" meaning that they get together and practice) is necessary to keep a country free. It is certainly not a restrictive phrase.
• Myth number 2 - The amendment guarentees a "collective" not an "individual" right. The First Amendment uses similar wording; Do you think does not apply to individuals?
• Myte number 3 - The founders couldn't have envisioned the weaponry available today. The 2A must only apply to muskets. That one is pretty silly, but I've heard it. If that were the case, I guess the 1A must only apply to Gutenberg printing presses and not the internet.