Constitution wording

[Fn-P9]

SO, trolling the internet for Fukushima stuff I ended up here

http://rt.com/usa/news/riots-us-minorities-london/

It is a Russian news agency in English. They do alot of alternative stories. Anyways they were talking about riots in London and what America thinks or what might do. My question revolves around this paragraph:

[CODEArticle I, Section 8 of the US Constitution allows Congress to employ the military if necessary to keep order in America. Explicitly, the legislation states that "Congress shall have power… to provide for calling forth the Militia to execute laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections, and repel Invasion.” Though the lingo contained within the US Constitution is by 200-some-odd years, in today’s terms “militia” would apply to the US Armed Forces.][/CODE]

In talking about the 2nd Amendment in the militia clause meaning: militia = general population. The militia was 18 plus year old males generally speaking (correct me if I am wrong), does this section also apply the militia as the original meaning of the 2nd Amedment did? Does this mean the normal people were supposed to defend their town from protesters/rioters/activists. Does this mean that if "the militia" (not modern military) cannot or chooses not to fight the dissenters that the country should adopt what they are asking/rioting for?

btw, we maybe looking at some protests here soon. A couple of groups have gotten together and are wanting to do a sit-in at wall street and at other nations capitols this Sept 17th. Would in the old days people might bring weapons to these sorts of things?

 

[Cearbhall]

I just KNOW I'm going to get flamed for this, and I have been before on other forums, but here goes:

The way the Militia is "well regulated" is to have an armed populance to keep said Militia in check. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GNu7ldL1LM&feature=related

Also see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presser_v._Illinois

 

[AlexanderA]

Title 10 of the United States Code defines the militia as follows:

§ 311. Militia: composition and classes

(a) The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.

(b) The classes of the militia are—
(1) the organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval Militia; and

(2) the unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.

So, essentially, a large chunk of the population is the "militia," not just the National Guard. At the time of adoption of the 2nd Amendment, the "militia," if anything, was even more broadly inclusive.

 

[Unistat]

I would not be surprised if a Russian news agency doesn't understand the finer points of the U.S. Constitution when we can't even count on our own news agencies to get it right.

If you read foreign news services often, you will find they often have what we would consider bizarre interpretations and analysis of U.S. culture and events. And that is even if you leave out when they are purposefully misrepresenting the story for some specific political agenda. My favorite is the North Koreans, it is so far from reality and obviously propaganda, it really makes me laugh.

They just don't "get" us.

 

[oneounceload]

Would in the old days people might bring weapons to these sorts of things?

Not in current-day NYC - that will get you a longer visit there than you would want - Riker's Island is not for the faint of heart

 

[TexasBill]

Presser was overturned by the Supreme Court in McDonald v. Chicago which said the Second Amendment was binding on the states.

As to armed protests, I am reminded of the time in 1967 when the Black Panthers went to the California capitol and marched in on the Assembly while carrying various weapons, which was not illegal at the time. The result was the Mulford Act, signed into law by Ronald Reagan, that stripped Californians of the right to open carry a loaded firearm without a permit. Now Californians can only open carry unloaded weapons.

Historically, people at most protests have not carried weapons outside of a few who would have been carrying them anyway. These were protests, not armed confrontations. Imagine if the World War I veterans who marched on Washington in 1932 had come with their rifles and defied MacArthur and his troops. There were 20,000 former doughboys in the "Bonus Army" and they were desperate for a service bonus they had been promised. That's a division's worth of veterans. Any armed confrontation could have turned real ugly, real fast as soon as somebody fired the first shot.

 

[Danb1215]

For those that aren't familiar RT is substantially more accurate/less biased in its reporting than any American news agency.

 

[Loosedhorse]

The meaning of "militia" was discussed in US v. Miller, and therefore also in Heller. The militia was expected to show up if called out, bearing there own weapons (ones "in common use at the time").

We should note that the age, physical ability and sex limitations on militia are probably now outdated.

It is also very unlikely that Congress would ever "call out the militia" these days. Even if a particular crisis exhausted the reserves of the National Guard, Congress has pretty much forgotten that average citizens are expected to fight if needed. Many in Congress(most?) think the National Guard IS the militia...and most private citizens probably think so, too.

The use of the National Guard (and the Armed Forces) to "enforce" civil law and maintain order is limited by the Posse Comitatus Act.

 

[Art Eatman]

"Does this mean the normal people were supposed to defend their town from protesters/rioters/activists."

Before there were police departments and then the National Guard, yes.

Now? Far more complex. In general, action would come from LEOs and NG. Mayors and Governors would be unlikely to call for help from THR folks.