The 5000 Year Leap is a fantastic book, and has been at the front of this sudden jump toward Ayn Rand's works once again. I too would highly recommend this book. Not understanding the 5000 Year Leap is essentially an acceptance that mankind will revert back to the early city state collectivists who sacrifice human beings to the sun gods out of a stupid belief that their crops will be better this year than last.

Wrong, the point of study is on the case laws, not the actual laws. Law schools teach their students how to navigate around legal meanings, not how to live within them.

The article says "a strict constructionist could say that since the Founding Fathers were protecting the right to muskets, it is only the right to muskets that is currently protected. Not modern muskets (think AR-15 or M-16), mind you. Literal muskets."

But the Second Amendment says "the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed",—not "the right of the people to keep and bear muskets..."

Clearly the Founding Fathers understood that muskets would eventually be superseded, just as flint arrowheads and copper axes had been superseded before them. If the Founding Fathers wanted to restrict the right to bear arms to the technology of their time, then they would have used specific terminology in order to make that explicit. But instead, they deliberately used the term "arms", which is a general term. And thus, "the right of the people to keep and bear arms" refers to any arms that are potentially suited to being kept and borne by people.

Hello overmanwarrior,
I have a friend that took a course recently sponsored by a local Tea party. It is a good sign, but I hope it isn't just preaching to the choir. about four years ago I read the 5000 Year Leap by W. Cleon Skousen. He ran a travelling course of this nature decades ago. For those who don't have the time for a course and haven't read it I would highly recommend it. If you have read it I would value your opinion.
Always good to hear from you,
O.A.

We should all pray for the health of the current Supreme Court Justices. If any of the "conservative" wing of the court should die or retire we are really fucked.

If only we could add this kind of insanity to other documents, like mortgages, car loans, etc. Adjustable payments (lower of course), on a whim, no rhyme or reason...just cause you feel like it. Must be nice.

Absolutely, however there is hope. I have been invited to take a ten week Constitution class that I'm not sure I have time for. The fact that such things are being offered these days are small little rays of hope. Nobody spoke about these kinds of things 4 years ago.

Yes, but compared to some of the others on the bench and the justices we are likely to see appointed in the next four years he may look like a champion. Sad isn't it.
Regards,
O.A.

possibly, but some of his recent decisions boggle the mind. for instance the land dispute case with the EPA. and anything IP

Quite right. We can certainly do worse than Scalia.
Regards,
O.A.