Letter: My hope

Published 12:15 am Thursday, June 23, 2022

I would hope that Congress can do something about mass shootings.

There is a myth circulating that Thomas Jefferson stated that the Second Amendment was written to keep government tyranny in check. The quote, falsely attributed to Jefferson, is being used to justify the myth that we have the right to bear arms to keep our government in check.

Garrett Epps wrote: “If good government actually came from a violent armed population, then Afghanistan and Somalia would be the two best-governed places on Earth.”

Our founders would not have passed a constitutional amendment to liquidate a government that they worked and fought to create. Our founders, who fought in the Revolutionary War, had few illusions about the virtues of violence.

In 1787, the writers of our Constitution were aware of Shays’ Rebellion. This was a tax revolt against their state government. George Washington was so upset by this rebellion that he came out of retirement to help frame a new national charter to prevent this from happening again.

President Washington, himself, led a national army into western Pennsylvania to put down what has been called the Whiskey Rebellion. Washington, in a message to Congress, showed no sympathy for Second Amendment remedies.

The myth that the Second Amendment was passed to allow for the violent overthrow of our government is total nonsense. My hope is that other people will realize this, as well.

BILL EAGLE

St. Helens