Right to Bear Arms

The central principle of classical liberal thought is that every human being has an inalienable right to self-preservation. One corollary is that citizens should have a right to the tools they need to defend themselves against threats to their lives, which may arise either from a failure of the government to protect them or from the government itself. Yet some restrictions on civilian access to weapons are manifestly necessary, especially in a world where the most lethal weapons have truly awesome destructive power. America's federal Constitution and most of the state constitutions have formalized a right to arms in general terms. The scope and nature of the right, however, have been subject to considerable controversy and doubt.

The 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides that ...