CNN's Toobin: 'Preposterous' to Believe in 2nd Amend. Right Back at Harvard

NewsBusters.org ^ | 7/15/2009 | Matthew Balan

[Pyro7480]

...On Wednesday, legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin implied that the Supreme Court’s 2008 decision to uphold the Second Amendment was revolutionary: “When I was in law school...the idea that you had a Second Amendment right to a gun was considered preposterous....But the Supreme Court [in Heller]...said that...individuals have a personal right to bear arms.”

...Anchor Wolf Blitzer raised the Second Amendment issue with Toobin, a graduate of Harvard Law School, and the others on their panel analyzing the hearings.... [and] asked...what were the nominee’s “positions, specifically on the federal obligation to support the Second Amendment, as opposed to local communities..?”

The CNN...analyst harkened back to his law school days...and possibly revealed a bit of his formation as a liberal:

TOOBIN: You know, it’s funny, the way that this hearing goes, you would think that Supreme Court precedent is some unchanging thing- that is just the law that is changed. But if you look at the Second Amendment, that’s something that’s changed dramatically over the last- for 50 years, including when I was in law school, which was more recently than 50 years ago- the idea that you had a Second Amendment right to a gun was considered preposterous. The text of the Second Amendment, I believe we have it- we have it in our system- you know, speaks of a well-regulated militia and the right to bear arms.

Well, courts used to say, well, this only affects the rights of state militias. But the Supreme Court, two years ago, in the famous Heller decision, said that when it comes to the federal government, we- individuals have a personal right to bear arms, and the D.C. gun control law was thus unconstitutional....

[NFHale]

“I am not a fan of guns. Hate them, actually...”

Personal Responsibility:
I wonder just how many of the 1930s/40s European Jewish population “hated guns, actually” and then had sudden epiphanies as they were being herded together for one-way rides into boxcars by that particular brand of socialism?

Or how much of the Christian population of Russia that was slaughtered by Bolshevik/communist/socialism??? Or the Christian population of any country that these socialist pigs took over?

You may “hate” guns as you say; but a gun in your hand when your family is threatened, when your life is threatened, when all that you hold dear is threatened, counts a hell of lot more than an irrational emotion.

I HATE the circumstances we’re forced into by the scumbag ideology and schemes of some people, who make it necessary for us to even have to CONSIDER using a firearm - for even finding it necessary to have the Second Amendment in the first place.

But we don’t get to choose the way the world works; we’re born into it, it’s already been screwed up by other people, and we learn to improvise, adapt, and hopefully overcome. We don’t have that particular choice - we either learn to survive or we don’t.

We DO, however, get to choose how WE personally react to the evils we encounter - either by standing the hell up like American MEN when it is necessary, or by running away and letting better men handle it and possibly die because of something lacking in our own character.

If a person doesn’t value their own life enough to be willing to defend it, how can they reasonably ask someone else, who values THEIR own life, to risk theirs?

Guns are necessary for the continued existence of liberty and freedom. This is not an abstract concept - it is the very real difference of outcome between shuffling off into the concentration camp/gas chamber, or leaving the thug trying to force you there lying on the ground with a bullet hole where his forehead used to be. The fact that a large percentage of the population possesses the means and the will to resist is a wonderful behavioral modification tool.

There’s three types of people in the world - sheep, wolves, and sheepdogs.

Your choice.

[2harddrive]

Sonia S!
She’s the one!
That lying bitch is Anti-gun!

[<1/1,000,000th%]

Outside of New York City, gun grabbing laws only began in 1968.

So this “50 years ago” thing is preposterous.

[Waco]

But you surely have a right to stick a gerbil up your axx, it shall not be infringed, and marry a queer etc.

[hiredhand]

I quite like firearms for a number of reasons...some practical, while some have pure entertainment value.

I think anybody who doesn't agree that the default state of the world is currently evil has a serious case of disillusionment going on! This directly coincides with God's Word as well. We can ask Him WHY things were this way when we see him I suppose. I strongly suspect it has a LOT to do with the recorded events started at Genesis 3:3. But right NOW, we can read all about it in our Bibles, and simultaneously observe it with our own eyes. It's VERY visible!

I like firearms because I can carry something that has a greater ability to transfer force than a big baseball bat, and unlike the bat, if the threat is 50 feet away, I don't have to throw it and hope beyond bad odds that I hit the target! :-) But concealing a baseball bat isn't so easy! So given that the state of the world is evil, and we simply have to contend with this (within God's Laws of course!), firearms are QUITE useful! I like knowing that either of the women in my house can hold off a LOT of bad guys with the AR-15s that they own. Of course I'd rather be there to provide protection! But until I master that time-space-continuum "thing", I can only be in one place at one time!

Aside from that, firearms come in very, VERY handy when it comes to the task of killing critters for FOOD. I don't know about you two, but I'm just not up to spearing medium sized food, or using a knife, or even a bow and arrow for that matter! Bows and arrows are good, but I have the unfortunate experience of having been encroached upon while in the woods alone by a pack of feral dogs when I was a teenager and if NOT for a Browning HP (9mm) pistol that I was carrying (and a couple of spare mags!), they probably would have eaten me alive!

To say that we like firearms really doesn't give credit to the philosophy. I think it's not so much that we like, or dislike them, but rather that we like TOOLS and firearms are indeed the BEST TOOLS at what they do in the environment they're suited for! Firearms are GOOD TOOLS in the hands of good men. But in the hands of bad men, all they do is multiply destruction and enable them to carry out evil! Besides, anti-gun laws are first and foremost LAWS, but lawless bad guys don't abide by laws for the most part. It makes so little sense when legislators attempt to disarm EVERYBODY and then naively expect us to believe that the criminals are going to abide by THAT particular law! Lets not forget that Cain had to get up REALLY close to Abel to kill him! He either killed him with his bare hands, or a simple weapon such as a rock or a stick! Cain certainly didn't have a firearm! All he had was hatred and murder in his heart, and that was enough to carry him through the terrible act of taking his brother's life. Human nature hasn't changed a lot since then, but politicians would deceitfully have us believe otherwise! Then again, they also think we can avoid an economic depression by spending our way to prosperity! How's that working out for us?! That's right! NOT TOO GOOD!

But it's really only because of the present default state of this world (evil!) that firearms are such good tools! The Prophet Isaiah says that someday we'll beat our weapons into farm implements (paraphrasing here!), and honestly I think I'm looking forward to that!

Aside from what I covered above, I personally like firearms because it's just FUN to compete against 1000 yards of open air with a little breeze, against gravity, coriolis effect, wind density, sun shimmer...and other obstacles to accuracy. Call me a "nerd" if you want, but many people do many things as a hobby. I happen to like distance riflery.

I do find it disturbing that groups exist such as NAMBLA which openly states that their hobby is the sexual exploitation of young boys. Them and their ilk enjoy a certain level of protection from the liberals in government and the media. The same ignorant liberals label me and my types as snipers and members of some nameless, loosely organized militia and possibly put us on a watch list because we do something plainly afforded as a right guaranteed us by the highest law in our land. If this doesn't work, they go after lead, which is known to kill some freakin rare butterfly, or fish that's near where we usually shoot. Of course, nobody ever thinks that we would turn, organize, plan, and simply shoot the NAMBLA people and their sympathizers, but the thought DOES actually cross our mind on occasion. ;-)

But for the here and now, firearms are GOOD TOOLS and unless the overall socio-political environment changes for the better, neither myself, nor millions of others in this nation have any intention of parting with them...under any circumstances...irrespective of the laws passed by mere men.

But to say that a gun is something to be hated doesn't make much sense to me. A person might hate the thought of using one against another person...or might hate the noise... or the recoil... and I can relate to all of these things! But hating guns is like hating shop tools. Guns are simply the shop tools that are prudent to have, keep, and use under present circumstances in this world in its current state!

It's O.K. if you hate firearms... Really it is! I have a friend who hates them too! She went so far as to tell me this! But she is HAPPY that those like myself, her husband, and others are armed and willing to step up in the face of evil in this world! So hate them indeed! But be very careful about supporting those who would make those like myself an outlaw, because what most people don't understand is that we weigh the problems of being made an outlaw against the problems of being unarmed in this world, and whether anybody realizes it or not, we've already made our choice.

[dearolddad]

This man is either ignorant, stupid or he is a bald-faced liar.

Perhaps all three at the same time?

[Squantos]

Try to look at firearms for what they “really” are...... mere tools for a safer and more productive society. I do not like chainsaws yet they provide cord wood for our fireplace that augments our utility bills in the winter . The chainsaw can kill or severely injure me if I handle it wrong or allow someone to use it that has not been instructed on its proper safe use.

I don’t like insurance , first aid kits, spare tires for the vehicles or fire extinguishers as what they involve is costly, dangerous and usually painful yet they negate or reduce the risk to life and resources by their mere presence.

Don’t buy into the MSM fear mongering presstitutes and anti gunners. The firearm is a viable tool for today’s rural and urban citizen . They are well constructed and safe , instruction is available and better to have when ya don’t need it than need when ya don’t have it !

[Personal Responsibility]

I appreciate your well thought out response. If it ever came to the point where I needed defending, I don’t have a problem picking up a gun to do it. I’m a grown up. I can put aside personal dislikes when something needs to get done.

If it ever came down to a choice between getting shot or shooting for my beliefs, I’d do the shooting and worry about the aftermath afterword.

I am not saying I want to outlaw guns. In fact, I went out of my way to specifically state the opposite.

[SUSSA]

I guess he wasn’t smart enough to get into Laurence Henry Tribe’s class. Dr. Tribe knows, and teaches, that the Second Amendment protects a personal right.

[appleseed]

Had a lady a few weeks back tell me about 2 individuals that she thought was stalking her and her daughter in town. At one point I suggested she purchase a firearm for protection and learn how to use it. Holy Cow! You would have thought I was the one committing the crime judging by her reaction just for mentioning a firearm.

Late last week she came to me in tears. Someone had just broke into her vehicle (Actually she had left the door unlocked) ransacked the glove box and stole the stereo. Just a little up the road, was a dude walking away real fast, dark clothing, hoodie and a backpack. This was 0500 in the morning. If she would have come out to her vehicle just 2 minutes earlier, she would have come face to face with the thief and no telling what would have happened.

I didn't even bring it up - She told me maybe I was right about her getting a firearm. She lives in a really decent part of town and they're not used to things like this happening. Just my opinion but I believe we are seeing the beginning of the much talked about shtf scenario.

Excellent post by hiredhand #105!

[CSM]

Without the RTKBA, CNN would not exist. The 2nd protects the 1st.

[CSM]

“This man is either ignorant, stupid or he is a bald-faced liar.”

I’ll take all of the above, Alex.

[Bryanw92]

I was talking to a co-worker (who is notoriously liberal in our very-conservative office) and he was saying that he sees a SHTF scenario coming. I told him to buy a gun or two and learn to use them. He laughed and said that he’d just come to me for protection when the time comes.

I told him to bring comfortable clothing for plowing fields because he’ll be my slave at that point.

He laughed. I didn’t. Everyone else nodded their heads.

After a pause, he said, “Maybe I will buy a gun.”

[RobinOfKingston]

“When I was in law school...the idea that you had a Second Amendment right to a gun was considered preposterous....

I'm sure this is true among the people with whom toobin associated. D!psh!ts tend to reinforce each other.

[Gilbo_3]

bump you, as well as 101, 105 and 107...

pretty simple really...when I need brakes on the car, I break out one set of tools...

when I may need to put the brakes on mr BGs unauthorised access to said car, [or many scenarios better or worse] I use a different set of tools...

aint rocket science, and yes HH, the 'choice' was made a looooong time ago as to the outlaw question...

the first 'felony' will surely be the toughest...

[Gilbo_3]

BWAAAAHAHAHAHHAH for 'reality check' time...

[Squantos]

LOL Those eye opening moments just hit ya like a lightning bolt at times.....:o)

If we have no right to self defense then disband the secret service.....

[hiredhand]

I told him to bring comfortable clothing for plowing fields because he’ll be my slave at that point.

I've had people say the same thing to me! ...that when the SHTF that they're coming to my house! My daughter said the same thing you did! She said we'd put them to work!...plowing, pulling weeds, tending chickens, carrying water!

One time, about half a dozen of them where I used to work were seriously planning to come to my house, and I asked them if they truly expected to find us there?! They nervously asked WHERE we would be! I told them the truth (which certainly didn't make them feel any better!), which was the mountains of S.W. VA... and I told them if they survived the drive into our area, then maybe they'd be allowed to stay! But probably not. :-) I reminded them that we wouldn't be feeling very sympathetic to people who voted for anti-freedom politicians by that time. They stood there looking at each other nervously.