JW Ross - President - Birthplace of the Nation Foundation
I am the purveyor of www.2ndAmendmentPA.com. The site promotes the origins of the 2nd Amendment often known as the "Right to Bear Arms". The site has been up for a year and has tens of thousands of "hits" or responses. Based as it is in Mercersburg, it covers the historical origins of our 2nd amendment rights which were "born"on the Pennsylvania frontier in 1765.
Interestingly 80% of the "hits" on my site are from countries where liberty and the freedom of speech are severely restricted - countries like Russia and China. Each of these countries also severely restrict the individuals "Right to Bear Arms" today and historically. Citizens of these countries understand what we take for granted, and that is, without the 2nd Amendment . . . there is no 1st Amendment.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Friday, July 29, 2011
The 2nd Amendment in a Nut Shell
"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote." -- Benjamin Franklin
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
U.S. Senate Stands with NRA in Strongly Opposing U.N Gun Control Efforts
Article from NRA - ILA 7/23/11
American Progressives, knowing that their chance of effectively repealing the 2nd Amendment is not likely in the near future, are increasingly turning to international law as a means to bypass the Congress of the United States and the Supreme Court. . .
For nearly 20 years, the NRA has worked tirelessly to oppose any United Nations effort to undermine the constitutional rights of law-abiding American gun owners. The latest attempt by the U.N. and global gun banners to eliminate our Second Amendment freedoms is to include civilian arms in the current Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), which will be finalized next year.
American Progressives, knowing that their chance of effectively repealing the 2nd Amendment is not likely in the near future, are increasingly turning to international law as a means to bypass the Congress of the United States and the Supreme Court. . .
For nearly 20 years, the NRA has worked tirelessly to oppose any United Nations effort to undermine the constitutional rights of law-abiding American gun owners. The latest attempt by the U.N. and global gun banners to eliminate our Second Amendment freedoms is to include civilian arms in the current Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), which will be finalized next year.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Save the Home of Your Gun Rights
Why Donate to Save the Justice William Smith House --
Save the Smith House, Inc., is dedicated to the preservation of the place where the Second Amendment was "born" and to the proposition that the Second Amendment (the "right to bear arms") is the keystone of our Liberty and the Republic.
So why does it matter that there is a place where Second Amendment was "born"? It matters because the critics of the "Right to Bear Arms" can deny the words on the Bill of Rights, but it is hard to look at "brick and mortar" and deny its existence. To anyone who has visited Independence Hall, the Alamo, Gettysburg, or the beaches at Normandy, this concept is easily understood. To be able to stand in a place and know that what they did there (to their extreme risk and peril), some 246 years ago, established the groundwork for one of the most important "rights" in the Bill of Rights.
It is one thing to read the 2nd amendment and its assertions, but it is quite another to stand where the very principles were argued and established.
What Will My Donation Be Used For --
Having purchased the property for the Justice William Smith House donations will be used to:
(1) Reconstruct the Justice William Smith House as it was in 1765 . . . groundbreaking is presently scheduled for Spring of 2012
(2) Secure adjacent space for a Visitors Center and 2nd Amendment Museum to house the artifacts taken from the house.
Who Am I Donating To --
Save the Smith House, Inc., is a non-profit corporation in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. Its founders are benefactors, historians, and accomplished community business and tradespeople. The founders receive no salary. The Board of Directors are donors themselves, and 2nd Amendment advocates. They receive no salary. The non-profit corporation is subject to state and federal regulations. The corporation has applied for 501c3 charitable status.
Save the Smith House, Inc., is dedicated to the preservation of the place where the Second Amendment was "born" and to the proposition that the Second Amendment (the "right to bear arms") is the keystone of our Liberty and the Republic.
So why does it matter that there is a place where Second Amendment was "born"? It matters because the critics of the "Right to Bear Arms" can deny the words on the Bill of Rights, but it is hard to look at "brick and mortar" and deny its existence. To anyone who has visited Independence Hall, the Alamo, Gettysburg, or the beaches at Normandy, this concept is easily understood. To be able to stand in a place and know that what they did there (to their extreme risk and peril), some 246 years ago, established the groundwork for one of the most important "rights" in the Bill of Rights.
It is one thing to read the 2nd amendment and its assertions, but it is quite another to stand where the very principles were argued and established.
What Will My Donation Be Used For --
Having purchased the property for the Justice William Smith House donations will be used to:
(1) Reconstruct the Justice William Smith House as it was in 1765 . . . groundbreaking is presently scheduled for Spring of 2012
(2) Secure adjacent space for a Visitors Center and 2nd Amendment Museum to house the artifacts taken from the house.
Who Am I Donating To --
Save the Smith House, Inc., is a non-profit corporation in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. Its founders are benefactors, historians, and accomplished community business and tradespeople. The founders receive no salary. The Board of Directors are donors themselves, and 2nd Amendment advocates. They receive no salary. The non-profit corporation is subject to state and federal regulations. The corporation has applied for 501c3 charitable status.
Sons of the Revolution -- Liberty Poles
Liberty Poles
by JW Ross
As the colonists grew weary of the increasing efforts by the Crown to forcefully quell their independence, groups like the Sons of Liberty (sometimes later called Sons of the Revolution) began meeting in town squares in open definace of British authorities.
An organization started by Samuel Adams in 1765 to protest British taxes, their membership grew rapidly in the colonies. The gatherings were often held under a large tree, which were present in most village greens, and these came to be known as "Liberty Trees". However, in towns that lacked a tree big enough, the patriots would erect a tall pole (sometimes over 100 feet high) instead, as a symbol of a Liberty Tree, which naturally, was then called a "Liberty Pole".
by JW Ross
As the colonists grew weary of the increasing efforts by the Crown to forcefully quell their independence, groups like the Sons of Liberty (sometimes later called Sons of the Revolution) began meeting in town squares in open definace of British authorities.
An organization started by Samuel Adams in 1765 to protest British taxes, their membership grew rapidly in the colonies. The gatherings were often held under a large tree, which were present in most village greens, and these came to be known as "Liberty Trees". However, in towns that lacked a tree big enough, the patriots would erect a tall pole (sometimes over 100 feet high) instead, as a symbol of a Liberty Tree, which naturally, was then called a "Liberty Pole".
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Sunday, July 17, 2011
...Let Them Take Arms
The "Right to Bear Arms" . . .or 2nd Amendment is one of the most discussed and contentious of all the amendments of the Bill of Rights. It is, in fact, the only amendment that contains not only the seeds but the actual instruments of the revolution itself.
Further, it gives real affirmation to Thomas Jefferson's quote . . .
"God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion. The people cannot be all, and always, well informed. The part which is wrong will be discontented, in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. If they remain quiet under such misconceptions, it is lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty. ... And what country can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned from time to time, that this people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to the facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
It is for this reason, if no other, that the Government and its functionaries vociferously assail and obfuscate the text of this simple assertion. More, it is for this reason, and in the face of the perennial onslaught that its defense and affirmation is essential to the survival of the republic.
Further, it gives real affirmation to Thomas Jefferson's quote . . .
"God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion. The people cannot be all, and always, well informed. The part which is wrong will be discontented, in proportion to the importance of the facts they misconceive. If they remain quiet under such misconceptions, it is lethargy, the forerunner of death to the public liberty. ... And what country can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned from time to time, that this people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to the facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
It is for this reason, if no other, that the Government and its functionaries vociferously assail and obfuscate the text of this simple assertion. More, it is for this reason, and in the face of the perennial onslaught that its defense and affirmation is essential to the survival of the republic.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
New Administration's Gun Restrictions Target Border State Citizens
Courtesy NRA - ILA- U.S. House of Representatives
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R Texas) today criticized the Obama administration's decision to impose new reporting requirements for gun sales in states along the U.S. Mexico Border. "It is the height of hypocrisy for the Obama administration to restrict the gun rights of border state citizens, when the administration itself knowingly and intentionally allowed guns to be trafficked into Mexico...This rule unfairly punishes citizens in Border States who have the right to purchase firearms to protect themselves and their families from dangerous drug traffickers and human smugglers."
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R Texas) today criticized the Obama administration's decision to impose new reporting requirements for gun sales in states along the U.S. Mexico Border. "It is the height of hypocrisy for the Obama administration to restrict the gun rights of border state citizens, when the administration itself knowingly and intentionally allowed guns to be trafficked into Mexico...This rule unfairly punishes citizens in Border States who have the right to purchase firearms to protect themselves and their families from dangerous drug traffickers and human smugglers."
Monday, July 11, 2011
"Right to Bear Arms" - It All Started Here
Frontier Mercersburg in 1765 was the "birthplace" of the right we now refer to as "the Second Amendment", or, "the right to bear arms". It was here that individuals for the first time, some would say divinely, embraced the link between "Life and Liberty". . . and struck the first blow for Freedom.
Historically the right to bear arms goes back even before our founding as a nation to the Glorious Revolution of 1689 when William III agreed to the English Bill of Rights. If one can look at revolution like a volcanic eruption in nature, you understand that often from the destruction come the seeds of new human values and beliefs. In this case the independence of the human spirit, the right to know God for oneself, and to trust your conscience was hard won in this revolution of the human soul.
One crucible begets the necessity for another and on the frontier in America the right to defend ones religious beliefs was becoming the right to participate in the decisions of government that impact my "self". Freedom of the soul was becoming freedom of the heart and mind. Smith's Rebellion began as an act they justified under the rubric of defending oneself because government had failed in its obligation to protect Life, Liberty and Property. This was the first assertion of this principle aimed directly at British Military Authority as well as the incompetent government of John Penn - anywhere in the colonies.
In the end, Smith's Rebellion was the first armed resistance against British Military Rule leading up to the American Revolution. It was the first American triumph over the best military force in the world. It was the first time upon defending oneself that Americans had proclaimed we can rule ourselves.
It would be ten years before the battles at Lexington and Concord.
Historically the right to bear arms goes back even before our founding as a nation to the Glorious Revolution of 1689 when William III agreed to the English Bill of Rights. If one can look at revolution like a volcanic eruption in nature, you understand that often from the destruction come the seeds of new human values and beliefs. In this case the independence of the human spirit, the right to know God for oneself, and to trust your conscience was hard won in this revolution of the human soul.
One crucible begets the necessity for another and on the frontier in America the right to defend ones religious beliefs was becoming the right to participate in the decisions of government that impact my "self". Freedom of the soul was becoming freedom of the heart and mind. Smith's Rebellion began as an act they justified under the rubric of defending oneself because government had failed in its obligation to protect Life, Liberty and Property. This was the first assertion of this principle aimed directly at British Military Authority as well as the incompetent government of John Penn - anywhere in the colonies.
In the end, Smith's Rebellion was the first armed resistance against British Military Rule leading up to the American Revolution. It was the first American triumph over the best military force in the world. It was the first time upon defending oneself that Americans had proclaimed we can rule ourselves.
It would be ten years before the battles at Lexington and Concord.
Digging for the Birthplace of the "Right to Bear Arms"
Soil from Mercersburg's Smith House searched for artifacts
By MARCUS RAUHUT Staff writer - http://www.publicopiniononline.com/
MERCERSBURG -- Standing atop a dirt pile in Mercersburg, historian Tim McCown believes he's on the spot where the American Revolution began.
After the Justice William Smith House was taken down piece by piece, it now awaits reconstruction at its new site, divided among several piles of brick, stone, wood and soil.
Supporters of preservation of the house say it is linked to the first settler uprisings against the British, years before the Boston Tea Party.
With McCown's help on Saturday, children sifted through the earth piles in search of pieces of the house's history.
"The American Revolution started in this dirt," McCown said, holding a piece of plate that was discovered.
By MARCUS RAUHUT Staff writer - http://www.publicopiniononline.com/
MERCERSBURG -- Standing atop a dirt pile in Mercersburg, historian Tim McCown believes he's on the spot where the American Revolution began.
After the Justice William Smith House was taken down piece by piece, it now awaits reconstruction at its new site, divided among several piles of brick, stone, wood and soil.
Supporters of preservation of the house say it is linked to the first settler uprisings against the British, years before the Boston Tea Party.
With McCown's help on Saturday, children sifted through the earth piles in search of pieces of the house's history.
"The American Revolution started in this dirt," McCown said, holding a piece of plate that was discovered.
Chappell Hill, Texas: Bank Encourages 2nd Amendment
By ARTHUR HAHN/Managing Editor - Brenham Banner Press
CHAPPELL HILL Any would-be robbers looking to walk into the bank here had best think twice.
There’s a new sign in town.
The sign, now prominently displayed on the bank’s front door, says, “Lawful concealed carry permitted on these premises. Management recognizes the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution as an inalienable right of all citizens. We therefore support and encourage the carrying of licensed concealed weapons.”
Smith said he made the policy change to send a warning to potential robbers, and also to express support to Americans’ right to bear arms.
“We had the sign on the window, the red circle with the pistol inside and a line through it. And I started thinking, ‘We’ve got this no gun sign up and the guy (robber) can come in and do what he wants.
CHAPPELL HILL Any would-be robbers looking to walk into the bank here had best think twice.
There’s a new sign in town.
The sign, now prominently displayed on the bank’s front door, says, “Lawful concealed carry permitted on these premises. Management recognizes the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution as an inalienable right of all citizens. We therefore support and encourage the carrying of licensed concealed weapons.”
Smith said he made the policy change to send a warning to potential robbers, and also to express support to Americans’ right to bear arms.
“We had the sign on the window, the red circle with the pistol inside and a line through it. And I started thinking, ‘We’ve got this no gun sign up and the guy (robber) can come in and do what he wants.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Illegal Aliens and the 2nd Amendment
Courtesy clovislegal.blogspot.com
Fifth Circuit: Illegal Aliens Have No Second Amendment Right to Bear Arms
The Fifth Circuit holds that "illegal aliens" are not part "of the people" as mentioned in the Second Amendment of the Federal Constitution. Strong concurrence and dissent by Judge Dennis.
This case seems bound for the U.S. Supreme Court and may be far broader than the specific issue (right to bear arms) addressed by the Court.
Fifth Circuit: Illegal Aliens Have No Second Amendment Right to Bear Arms
The Fifth Circuit holds that "illegal aliens" are not part "of the people" as mentioned in the Second Amendment of the Federal Constitution. Strong concurrence and dissent by Judge Dennis.
This case seems bound for the U.S. Supreme Court and may be far broader than the specific issue (right to bear arms) addressed by the Court.
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