The Right to Bear Arms

by Spitzer, Robert J.

• ISBN13: 9781576073476
• ISBN10: 1576073475
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2001-11-01
• Publisher: Abc-Clio Inc

Summary

An objective examination of the Second Amendment, focusing on the intentions of its authors, its evolution from America's beginnings to the present, and the views expressed by the courts.

Author Biography

Robert J. Spitzer is Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science at the State University of New York, College at Cortland.

Table of Contents

Series Foreword	ix
Preface and Acknowledgments	xix
Introduction	1	(12)
What the Second Amendment Says	6	(3)
Outline of the Book	9	(3)
References and Further Reading	12	(1)
Origins	13	(36)
The British Heritage	13	(2)
The Colonial Experience	15	(5)
The Constitution	20	(3)
The Federalist-Antifederalist Debate	23	(1)
The Bill of Rights	24	(4)
The Decline of the Old Militia System	28	(4)
Supreme Court Rulings	32	(6)
Other Court Rulings	38	(4)
The Textbook View	42	(1)
Conclusion	42	(1)
References and Further Reading	43	(6)
Twentieth-Century Issues	49	(40)
Alternate Views	51	(8)
The ``Right of Revolution,''	59	(3)
Spreading Arguments in the Media	62	(2)
Seeking Shelter under the Fourteenth Amendment	64	(7)
The Second Amendment and Politics	71	(10)
Rights Talk	81	(3)
Conclusion	84	(1)
References and Further Reading	85	(4)
The Twenty-first Century	89	(42)
The Brady Law, the Assault Weapons Ban, and Beyond	90	(12)
The New Militia Movement	102	(8)
Recent Court Actions	110	(5)
Escalating Second Amendment Rhetoric	115	(11)
Conclusion	126	(1)
References and Further Reading	127	(4)
Key People, Cases, and Events	131	(24)
Documents	155	(80)
The Calling Forth Act of 1792	156	(3)
The Uniform Militia Act of 1792	159	(6)
United States v. Cruikshank (1876)	165	(24)
Presser v. Illinois (1886)	189	(11)
United States v. Miller (1939)	200	(6)
Quilici v. Village of Morton Grove (1982)	206	(12)
State Right-to-Bear-Arms Provisions	218	(9)
Major Party Platforms on Gun Control	227	(8)
Chronology	235	(8)
Table of Cases	243	(4)
Annotated Bibliography	247	(10)
Index	257	(6)
About the Author	263