Are You Guarding the Guardian?
By Kirby Ferris
Copyright 2009, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership
There are two basic ways to destroy and remove a ten story building: From the top down … or from the bottom up. By blowing up the foundation, the entire building can be brought to earth in a huge heap. It’s a chaotic event, and leaves a grotesque pile of twisted rubble to clean up. But it works. Think of our Bill of Rights as a ten story building. Understand that the Second Amendment is the foundation of that building.
Think of our Bill of Rights as a ten story building. Understand that the Second Amendment is the foundation of that building.
A more meticulous and discreet destruction technique is a careful and methodical dismantling. Start at the top and work your way down, shipping off the wreckage in a more organized manner as it is brought, load by load, to ground level.
Dismantling is far tidier than demolition. It is also far less dramatic. You can gut the interior of each floor and, from the outside, it may actually look like nothing is happening.
Many gun owners have been diverted (albeit justifiably) by the incredible gall and arrogance of the gun prohibitionists over the last few decades. But we must not let ourselves be distracted to the point that we embrace solely the Second Amendment (“The Guardian”). Embrace it we must, with an iron willed and fierce determination, however, JPFO has always asked Americans to remember the full scope and breadth of freedom’s guardianship. Every facet of the Bill of Rights is under steady attack. This is not a single issue battle we are fighting. If it were only so simple.
This is not a single issue battle we are fighting. If it were only so simple.
To return America to a Bill of Rights culture, and to its rightful place as a beacon of liberty, we must first halt, and then reverse, present trends. So let’s get a closer look at the present dismantling of that “Freedom Shelter” we call our Bill of Rights.
Had our forbearers known where we would be today, they might have mended the breaches as they first occurred. But, for many reasons, this did not happen. Sadly, the task of reversal and restoration lies at the feet of this generation. It will all be decided, for better or worse, over the next dozen years. This is a somber realization, but who among you would attempt to deny it?
It will all be decided, for better or worse, over the next dozen years.
THE OTHER AMENDMENTS
Civil Libertarians usually have a “pet” Amendment (or portion thereof) that they tend to champion. Is freedom of religion more important than freedom of speech? Is protection against unreasonable search and seizure more important than not being forced to testify against one’s self? Is freedom of the press more important than the right to peaceably assemble? Advocates of each perspective on these issues make logical and persuasive presentations.
But there is one inarguable hierarchy present in the construction of our Bill of Rights.
No matter how you look at it, the Second Amendment is the most important of our personal rights. It cannot be said too often: 2A, the mandate for a widely armed citizenry, is the very foundation, the final protector, of every other right that Americans must incessantly defend. We must guard “The Guardian”.
2A, the mandate for a widely armed citizenry, is the very foundation, the final protector, of every other right that Americans must incessantly defend.
Slaves cannot own guns. A disarmed citizenry is, by its very definition, a populace of potential slaves. Why can’t people comprehend this? Seriously, what part of this don’t they understand?
The English are slaves. The French are slaves. The Japanese, Germans, Australians, New Zealanders, and Spanish are all functionally slaves to their governments. Get this, and get it clearly: the slave masters have simply not yet chosen to crack the whip across the backs of their unarmed subjects. But history teaches us: That time always comes.
…the slave masters have simply not yet chosen to crack the whip across the backs of their unarmed subjects. But history teaches us: That time always comes.
Why? Because all that stands between the unarmed citizens of any of these nations and tyranny is the fickle good will of the politicians and military leaders in power.
Political honesty and morality are ominously tenuous matters. To my knowledge, only the Swiss and Americans retain the right to a level of personal firepower that would pose a serious impediment to a police state takeover. Every other nation that embraces Western values floats on the airy promises and the amorphous mood of its political and military upper crust.
It is a valuable exploration to analyze how the right to keep and bear arms is deeply intertwined with our other fundamental rights. It is all connected. Each protects the other. And one cannot dismiss this to coincidence. The Founders knew what they were doing.
It is all connected.
JPFO’s main focus has always been 2A, but let’s carefully examine how other facets of the Bill of Rights can support, and potentially defend your right to keep and bear arms.
YOUR FREEDOM OF RELIGION (The First Amendment)
How does freedom to exercise one’s religion relate to firearms ownership? As explained in JPFO’s “2A Today for the U.S.A.” , both Jewish and Christian teaching supports the morality of justifiable self defense and defense of the helpless. A very detailed examination of this spiritual tenet is available in “The Ten Commandments of Self Defense” .
Minority branches of both Judaism and Christianity may take pacifistic stances, but no one is forcing pacifists to possess firearms. Let the pacifists in any religion choose to be disarmed. They’ve made their nest, and now they can sleep in it.
But when these folks start working overtime to take away your guns, especially using political manipulation, then it is time for you, bolstered by your own religious beliefs, to stand your ground. Have you ever noticed that there’s always a misguided rabbi or pastor or priest at any major anti-gun rally.
Be aware of their insidious emotionalized manipulations: “The world will be safer”, “do it for the children”, “responsible gun ownership”, and “if just one life is saved”. Additionally, observe their twisting and distorting of statistical data. When confronted by these distortions, demand to see their research.
Use the free exercise of your religion to morally and philosophically strengthen your understanding of your unalienable G-d♦ given right to self defense. Additionally, even to the atheist, this right can be defended as simple common sense.
YOUR FREEDOM OF SPEECH (The First Amendment)
JPFO, from its inception, has emphatically pointed out how vitally important the Internet has become in preserving all of our freedoms. Your personal computer is perhaps almost as important a freedom weapon as your firearm. Think about it. At this time in America it is still possible to communicate with fellow gun owners with an almost instantaneous, and more or less private, immediacy. Paul Revere would have been green with envy.
Can you imagine what our nation would be like now if young and rebellious “geeks” like Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs, Paul Allen, and Bill Gates (aided by an army of independent minded cyber geniuses) had not pioneered the hardware and software of the personal computer? IBM would still rule the roost with vast array of centralized (a key word in the glossary of totalitarianism) mainframe computers. Your work station would be monitored every step of the way. All information would be spoon fed to you, pre-approved by whatever “oversight” committee ruled the information flow on the centralized mainframes. (For some very unsettling information about IBM’s history go to: here and here.
One of the most fundamental tenets of warfare has always been the disruptions of the enemy’s communication lines. Make no mistake, we are at war with the egalitarians and elitists who would disarm us. These duplicitous traitors to American freedom see gun owners as their enemies. They are not stupid opponents. But thankfully, they did not see, and did not plan for, the advent of the personal computer. They are now playing “catch up”. To our benefit, the personal computer and the civilian evolution of the Internet slipped in under their radar. In some ways, the Internet scares the authoritarians nearly as much as your guns.
These duplicitous traitors to American freedom see gun owners as their enemies. They are not stupid opponents.
And this is why the Internet is under such persistent political attack today. Using the red herring exaggerations of “child porn”, “sexual predators”, “hate groups”, “racists”, “anti-Semites”, and “terrorists”, the thought police would brazenly mold the now wild and wooly Internet into a centralized and censored arm of The State. It’s already been done throughout all of the Muslim world and in Red China. Do you really want your information “Government Approved”?
The world is growing, for lack of a better phrase, a “brain”. It is called the Internet. But it isn’t the “brain” the globalist egalitarians and elitists want. At times it will be an uncomfortable, and sometimes tasteless, development. But deeply rooted in this dramatic expansion of information (and, yes, misinformation as well) is a fundamental instinct for personal freedom. Any gun owner who advocates Internet censorship is harming the Bill of Rights, and is a threat to your personal freedom.
Any gun owner who advocates Internet censorship is harming the Bill of Rights, and is a threat to your personal freedom.
Furthermore, it is simply common sense to want to be at least as well armed as your enemy. The enemy is gaining ground with their use of the Internet. We must fight fire with fire.
Don’t kid yourself. The Overlords would rather shut you up (and then disarm you), than stop pornography or “sexual predators”, or stifle anti-Semitism or racism.
You must use the Internet’s potential for expanded freedom of speech to protect your unalienable right to self defense. JPFO has been at the leading edge of this strategy for years.
OUR FREEDOM OF THE PRESS (The First Amendment)
Newspapers are dying off. Non-fiction book readership is withering away. What “the press” effectively means today is radio, television and the Internet. Look at what the egalitarians and the elitists are up to within each of these systems of information communication.
“Equal time” for radio talk shows? This is simply censorship and “Government Approved” manipulation of your access to information and opinion. Where was the “equal time” when a certain pro-gun Congressman from Texas started blasting other Republican candidates off the debate floor with his emphatic and common sense calls for a return to the Constitution and the Bill of Rights?
The Mainstream Media (except, thank goodness, the Internet itself) is owned by corporations that are effectively the propaganda arms of the egalitarians and the elitists. Oh how the authoritarians and their ilk must long for the salad days of just ABC, CBS, NBC, and a crypto Marxist PBS. It was so much easier to fool some of the people all of the time. When upstarts like CNN and Fox broke into the game, look how quickly they were co-opted.
And even now, who in the mainstream media really speaks up for the Second Amendment, “The Guardian”? Which of these mainstream networks has ever given gun ownership the honest examination it deserves?
Seriously, how often have you observed Glen Beck or Sean Hannity or Rush Limbaugh point out the irrefutable connection between genocides and “gun control”? See the JPFO Genocide Chart. When was the last time Michael Savage reminded Americans that the Gun Control Act of 1968 was modeled after Nazi law? See the book "Gateway to Tyranny". Only Lou Dobbs (now effectively driven off CNN) had the guts to point to the ATF and decry them for the goons they are. See "The Gang"
What is our only recourse to the thought control tactics of the mainstream media? Our recourse has become the Internet as an alternate source of information.
It is so obvious: Email and the Internet only evolved because the personal computer exists. Now, can’t you understand how you actually protect your guns with your computer? If you don’t, you’d better come to the party.
Take advantage of what’s left of a free press to defend your unalienable right to self defense.
OUR RIGHT TO PEACEABLY ASSEMBLE (The First Amendment)
Our opponents don’t like “Tea Parties”. Our opponents don’t like “militias”, shooting clubs, and especially gun shows. Our opponents don’t like being reminded that a slumbering giant (a potential of more than one hundred million gun owners) is being roused.
In modern times, the egalitarian left has used public demonstrations and disruptive street protests to promote their socialist agenda. And it worked. But notice how they respond when the tables are turned.
Observe their reactions to the “Tea Parties” or any criticism of their crypto Marxist idol, Barack Hussein Obama. The words “terrorists”, “bigots”, “racists” spew from their mouths. Don’t be a naïve fool. These collectivist social engineers would gladly shut down your parade and then march, jack booted, through your living room.
These collectivist social engineers would gladly shut down your parade and then march, jack booted, through your living room.
We must all be more outspoken. Don’t pretend that your gun ownership is truly a secret. In nearly all cases, it is not.
Many gun owners keep quiet, thinking that the government might find out that they own firearms. Get real. Did you ever buy a hunting or fishing license? You’re on the list. Did you ever subscribe to something as innocent as “Field and Stream”? You’re on the list. Do you own a Jeep, or a pickup, or an ATV? You’re on the list. Read about BATFE and eTrace.
Did you ever belong to the NRA? Don’t you remember? They sold the membership list! Did you ever buy just one handgun and pass a background check? You’re on the list. (An important aside: In many States there are still perfectly legal ways to purchase firearms that will not be registered to you. Or, you can make your own. Do your homework.)
In many States there are still perfectly legal ways to purchase firearms that will not be registered to you. Or, you can make your own. Do your homework.
To whatever degree is comfortable for you, get organized and get active. Old Ben Franklin said it perfectly at the signing of the Declaration of Independence: “We must all hang together, or assuredly we will all hang separately.”
There truly is strength in numbers. There are more than one hundred million of us. Don’t ever forget that. Because you had better believe that our domestic enemies have not.
Use your right to peaceably assemble to protect your unalienable right to self defense.
OUR RIGHT TO PETITION THE GOVERNMENT FOR A REDRESS OF GRIEVANCES (The First Amendment)
It’s hard not to become cynical of the electoral process when your so-called “representatives” so often pass laws that are a frontal assault on our freedoms. Let’s face it: By and large, the political shills of the egalitarians and elitists simply do not care what you want.
It’s time to get more “up close and personal” with our elected and appointed officials. Use JPFO’s electronic handbills as attachments to email to your Congressmen or Senators. Send them links to JPFO informational videos regarding the goons of the ATF, or the history of genocides, or the racially discriminatory roots of “gun control” in America - see "No Guns for Negroes". And, on top of that, every American politician must see “2A Today for the U.S.A".
Think about how a Senator’s or Representative's staff member reacts to this type of email “petition”. One or two and they shrug it off as the work of kooks. A dozen JPFO electronic handbills and they may start to wonder. A hundred? Now they start to pay a bit of attention. A thousand? At that point they will absolutely alert the Senator or Representative that there is a serious issue brewing in their state or district.
Should you seek your elected representatives out at public events and politely confront them on their anti-freedom stances? Absolutely. Twice, this writer respectfully confronted gun prohibitionist Senator Dianne Feinstein face to face. On the second occasion I placed JPFO’s genocide research directly into her hand.
Use your right to petition for a redress of grievances to protect your unalienable right to self defense.
A STANDING ARMY (The Third Amendment)
“No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.”
In the days of the Founders, a standing army was feared. It should still be feared. Armed agents of government are everywhere. Police forces are becoming more and more paramilitary. The National Guard is not the militia. It was concocted long after the Second Amendment was penned. The potential misuse of this pervasive domestic military and paramilitary presence is not something to be ignored.
In the days of the Founders, a standing army was feared. It should still be feared. Armed agents of government are everywhere.
We must embrace the brave young men and women who have put (or are willing to put) their lives on the line for us, even if some of us don’t agree with where and when they have done so, or more specifically, with those who ordered them there.
Maybe it is actually time to invite soldiers into our homes as our friends, serve them supper, celebrate their children’s birthdays. In short, remind them that we are not their enemy. When you see a man or woman in uniform make the effort to walk up to them and shake their hand. Buy them a beer, or pay for their lunch.
When you see a man or woman in uniform make the effort to walk up to them and shake their hand and thank them. Buy them a beer, or pay for their lunch.
The day may come when American soldiers and police are ordered to go house to house to confiscate our firearms. Can you think of a better preemptive strategy than to have previously demonstrated our deep respect for their loyalty and concern for their families.
YOUR GUARANTEE AGAINST ILLEGAL SEARCH AND SEIZURE (The Fourth Amendment)
By law, BATFE “fishing expeditions” are still prohibited. But that doesn’t mean that these government criminals aren’t consistently working to entrap you.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are ever visited by the BATFE remain silent! Say nothing. Call an attorney. Again, remain absolutely silent. These pseudo “cops” are not your friends! They WILL trick you! There is absolutely nothing to be gained by kissing up to these jack booted thugs.
If you are ever visited by the BATFE remain silent!
You might even want to call 911, and bring your local law enforcement onto the scene.
USE YOUR RIGHT TO NOT INCRIMINATE YOURSELF (The Fifth Amendment)
Self incrimination? Don’t be a fool. Take “the Fifth”. Don’t succumb to giving information about your firearms. Do not talk to BATFE or the police.
There are pro-gun attorneys in nearly every metropolitan area. Know the name and phone number of an attorney who is sympathetic to gun rights. But before you even do that, go watch this video. KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT! For an extremely informative explanation by an attorney and a police officer go to. No American, especially gun owners, should ignore this crucial information.
YOUR RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY A JURY OF YOUR PEERS (The Sixth Amendment)
The jury system in America is a potent freedom protector. If agents of the government have taken your guns, you can have your day in court. Familiarize yourself with the potency of a fully informed jury. Go to www.fija.org and realize the “secret weapon” that Americans can use against tyranny.
The amazing courtroom outcome of the Randy Weaver incident in Idaho should inspire any gun owner. Weaver was entrapped by BATFE, his son murdered by U.S. Marshals, and his wife murdered, while holding her infant child, by an FBI sniper. The Idaho jury did its job nobly, and the BATFE is still rattled from that thoroughly deserved punch to the teeth.
And remember, alcohol Prohibition was actually repealed because the government couldn’t get convictions from juries. Wouldn’t it be great to send the gun prohibitionists and their schemes down the same drain?
YOUR RIGHT TO SUE (The Seventh Amendment)
The right to sue can protect your Second Amendment rights. The People can be plaintiffs as well as defendants. Hopefully, the time will come when BATFE or some other arm of the gun prohibitionists pulls a criminal stunt against an innocent adversary who is knowledgeable, well funded, and determined.
YOUR PROTECTION AGAINST CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT (The Eighth Amendment)
Having your right to personal self defense stripped away would seem, in all but the most egregious cases of social misconduct, a form of cruel and unusual punishment. We tend to think of the British and their maniacal tortures, but think about it, being rendered utterly defenseless in a dangerous world is a form of government sponsored psychological torture.
Courts have recognized this injustice in the instances wherein some people convicted of non-violent felonies have had their Second Amendment right restored.
THE UNDEFINED RIGHTS OF THE PEOPLE AND THE STATE (The Ninth Amendment)
A common sense reading of this part of the Bill of Rights was meant to mean: “Just because we don’t label and define some right in this document doesn’t mean you don’t have that right.” Nearly every encroachment on our right to keep and bear arms has violated the Ninth Amendment. Government has intruded into our lives and invented layers of limitation upon our personal liberties. As government grew, our freedom’s withered.
Hundreds of thousands of laws clog our comings and goings. Vast armies of “public servants” now believe they are our bosses. It has reached a level of insanity, but the encroachments have been gradual and incremental. So now is the time to really ask yourself: “What is theirs, and what is mine?” Your freedom is not their property.
Your freedom is not their property.
STATES RIGHTS (The Tenth Amendment)
This part of the Bill of Rights is getting new respect, a better understanding and appreciation in States like Montana, Texas, and Tennessee. You must demand that your elected representatives assert the Tenth Amendment limitations on federal power.
The Feds should have never been allowed into the issues of gun ownership. It isn’t even a State’s Rights. It’s a right retained to The People to secure the freedom of their home States. The prohibition is crystal clear: “shall not be infringed”.
The prohibition is crystal clear: “shall not be infringed”.
Centralization is the enemy of personal freedom. It is the mentality of the hive, the simplistic instinct of the herd. Fundamentally, centralized government is anti-human.
The Founders knew this and penned the Bill of Rights to dissuade, block, divert, or even crush centralized government. These men had been lorded over by a lunatic King. Help increase the power of your county and your state in relation to the federal government. And then diminish the power of your county and state in relationship to your own unalienable rights. Your very freedom, or your life, may depend on your effort.
THE BOTTOM LINE
This is a brief discussion of how the entire Bill of Rights is truly a unified structure: A Freedom Shelter. The Second Amendment is the “The Guardian” and foundation of this structure. The foundation must hold for the structure to stand. Raise your voice and become active in defense of “The Guardian”. Make your views known.
Use these JPFO Freedom Tools:
1. Make sure anyone you know who is not a native English speaker gets a copy of the Bill of Rights in his or her own language.
2. If you have or know a child older than eight years old, make sure they get a copy of “Gran’pa Jack” #3 and #5 for a thorough understanding of the Bill of Rights and how it’s endangered. See all Gran'pa Jack books.
3. Get a copy of JPFO’s “Bill of Rights or Bust” 22 min. DVD teaching aid to any and all junior high and high school teachers in your area.
4. Remember to celebrate Bill of Rights Day on December 15th , and remember it every day of the year. And learn more about “The Guardian”. Watch the free film “2A Today for the U.S.A".
5. Share this essay with others.
♦ Out of respect, Jews do not spell out the name of the Almighty in secular texts.
Frequent JPFO contributor and strategist, Kirby Ferris collaborated intensively with Aaron Zelman over the last two years. Ferris is now the Operations Manager of JPFO.
See all of Kirby Ferris’ articles.
© Copyright Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership.