A genuine, serious question for my American friends and colleagues: the Second Amendment gives you the right to bear arms (guns). Wasn't it written at a time long before powerful, modern military weapons were even invented? I can understand (even though I disagree with it) the reasoning from being a frontier, developing country with the need to have a pistol or a shotgun type weapon for protection or to hunt with but surely it is not reasonable for people to have machine guns, rapid fire weapons and other like that in their homes?
My question is why, other than the gun manufacturers wanting to sell guns, can't there be restrictions on the type of weapons that can be bought? I just don't understand how, or why, teenagers or young men (it seems to be males who do this not females) can go out and legally buy such military grade weapons which they then go out and use to kill so many innocent people, particularly young children.
I don't understand how banning the sale of military weapons to the public would infringe their Constitutional Right to bear arms. Why can't just basic pistols and rifles, of the kind that were around when the legislation was drawn up, be the sort that are sold to the public? I doubt many went out to buy Gatling guns when the second Amendment was first passed.