Download PDF The Second Amendment A Biography Michael Waldman 9781476747453 Books
Download PDF The Second Amendment A Biography Michael Waldman 9781476747453 Books
Download As PDF : The Second Amendment A Biography Michael Waldman 9781476747453 Books
Widely acclaimed at the time of its publication, the life story of the most controversial, volatile, misunderstood provision of the Bill of Rights.
At a time of increasing gun violence in America, Waldman’s book provoked a wide range of discussion. This book looks at history to provide some surprising, illuminating answers.
The Amendment was written to calm public fear that the new national government would crush the state militias made up of all (white) adult men—who were required to own a gun to serve. Waldman recounts the raucous public debate that has surrounded the amendment from its inception to the present. As the country spread to the Western frontier, violence spread too. But through it all, gun control was abundant. In the twentieth century, with Prohibition and gangsterism, the first federal control laws were passed. In all four separate times the Supreme Court ruled against a constitutional right to own a gun.
The present debate picked up in the 1970s—part of a backlash to the liberal 1960s and a resurgence of libertarianism. A newly radicalized NRA entered the campaign to oppose gun control and elevate the status of an obscure constitutional provision. In 2008, in a case that reached the Court after a focused drive by conservative lawyers, the US Supreme Court ruled for the first time that the Constitution protects an individual right to gun ownership. Famous for his theory of “originalism,” Justice Antonin Scalia twisted it in this instance to base his argument on contemporary conditions.
In The Second Amendment A Biography, Michael Waldman shows that our view of the amendment is set, at each stage, not by a pristine constitutional text, but by the push and pull, the rough and tumble of political advocacy and public agitation.
Download PDF The Second Amendment A Biography Michael Waldman 9781476747453 Books
"When I look at reviews of books like this, I get depressed. Many people evaluate it in terms of preconceived political values. The author clearly has a perspective, but he is pretty much on target about the uncertainty of the meaning of the Second Amendment. For those of you unfamiliar with this part of the Constitution, one of the Bill of Rights, here is what it says: "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." So, what does that mean? Aye, there's the rub.
If you look at the debates of the time that this amendment was being developed and the politics of its approval, there is uncertainty. Some major figures expressly associated it with a militia--assuming, to some, that such bodies would meet regularly and practice their art. Others thought that it included hunting. And so on. The point: This amendment was born in circumstances where there were questions. The statement on militia cannot easily be avoided--but the actors debating the meaning were not of one mind. So, the amendment was founded in something of a fog. You don't have to take the author's word--read the discussion at the time. I have looked at some of that documentation (years ago and without reference to this book) and can say that only a fool would say that the meaning of this amendment is clear.
The book spends most of its time looking at the conflict over the meaning of the amendment and the process by which this passage in the Constitution went from little discussion to the Supreme Court rejecting an individual right to forearms (including non-liberal Chief Justice Warren Burger suggesting that an individual right to firearms was ludicrous). And that is the key for this volume, the evolving understanding of the Second Amendment. Regardless of the author's perspective, he does a fine job in outlining that evolution (albeit he has a critical take on that).
In the end--whatever one's views on the subject--the book provides an analysis of the evolution of a Constitutional doctrine that was murky at its inception."
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The Second Amendment A Biography Michael Waldman 9781476747453 Books Reviews :
The Second Amendment A Biography Michael Waldman 9781476747453 Books Reviews
- Very timely and interesting read. I strongly recommend it to anyone interested (or appauled) by Americans' obsession with guns and gun politics (for and against). It's well-written with clear prose, and it leans much more heavily towards the readings of the 2nd Ammedment, which means more of a focus on the last century.
As other reviewers have noted, the book reads as if the author has an implicit bias in favor of greater gun control. That said, I have yet to find a book that does not not have an apparent bias one way or other. As such, I recommend that anyone interested the subject read several books with varying opinions. - I learned a lot of specific history about the creation of America's constitution. The fears, the compromises, the visionary reach of its creators all led to an imperfect but wonderful compromise.
The sometimes tortured history since is covered through the very specific lens of the author, who allows his bias in favour of sensible gun control, and a judiciary that knows it's place, to run freely throughout. That colors, but doesn't distort the facts presented.
This is a worthwhile read for anyone curious to know what the second amendment actually says (it's one whole sentence!), and to understand how the society that founded it, and evolved around it has interpreted its meaning for over 2 centuries of changing times.
I recommend it. - The book is an excellent history of the writing of the 27 word amendment and subsequent coverage of the Heller Supreme Court Case that reversed 200 years of gun control legislation. A very good reference source to have.
- Waldman presented an excellent critique of the "originalism" as applied to the decide Heller. The history of the Second Amendment and the gun movement he put together helped me go beyond sound bites. I will likely reread this book in the future.
- whether you're Republican, Democrat, Independent, or other, you need to read this book. A great historical summary of the 2nd Amendment from the framers through current day. Think you know all about the 2nd Amendment's drafting, how it's been interpreted and used by the left and the right, and how the legal interpretation has change, or not? You'll be greatly enlightened by this historical account. An unbiased look at how the Amendment came to be, and how lawyers, judges, the Supreme Court, and various groups have interpreted it, and change interpretations, over the decades since adoption.
- When I look at reviews of books like this, I get depressed. Many people evaluate it in terms of preconceived political values. The author clearly has a perspective, but he is pretty much on target about the uncertainty of the meaning of the Second Amendment. For those of you unfamiliar with this part of the Constitution, one of the Bill of Rights, here is what it says "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." So, what does that mean? Aye, there's the rub.
If you look at the debates of the time that this amendment was being developed and the politics of its approval, there is uncertainty. Some major figures expressly associated it with a militia--assuming, to some, that such bodies would meet regularly and practice their art. Others thought that it included hunting. And so on. The point This amendment was born in circumstances where there were questions. The statement on militia cannot easily be avoided--but the actors debating the meaning were not of one mind. So, the amendment was founded in something of a fog. You don't have to take the author's word--read the discussion at the time. I have looked at some of that documentation (years ago and without reference to this book) and can say that only a fool would say that the meaning of this amendment is clear.
The book spends most of its time looking at the conflict over the meaning of the amendment and the process by which this passage in the Constitution went from little discussion to the Supreme Court rejecting an individual right to forearms (including non-liberal Chief Justice Warren Burger suggesting that an individual right to firearms was ludicrous). And that is the key for this volume, the evolving understanding of the Second Amendment. Regardless of the author's perspective, he does a fine job in outlining that evolution (albeit he has a critical take on that).
In the end--whatever one's views on the subject--the book provides an analysis of the evolution of a Constitutional doctrine that was murky at its inception. - Didn't seem too polemic one way or the other. Does highlight how little the Founding Fathers left regarding what they were thinking regarding the right to bear arms. Points out how conveniently the NRA leaves out the clause about "well regulated militia" and how NRA was largely responsible for the INDIVIDUAL right to bear arms.
- This is a great work for anyone trying to understand the background that led to the drafting of the Second Amendment. Those who are curious about constitutional law will also benefit by reading this book.
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