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In order to assess whether or not the second amendment is outdated, it is first helpful to consult the original text from the Bill of Rights. It reads: 'A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.'

In this context, you can see that the right to keep and bear arms was prefaced by the fact that this was for the purposes of collective defense of the 'free State'; hence, a WELL REGULATED militia.

We no longer have militias to protect ourselves - we have a National Guard. Is it reasonable to extrapolate, then, that the citizens who join this well regulated force have the right to keep their weapons at hand? Certainly. I am not convinced, however, that the wording of the second amendment grants carte-blanche gun ownership rights to every citizen, for any weapon.

What exactly constitutes 'Arms', as understood through the Second Amendment? At the time, the weapons of the day would have included muzzle-loading rifles and pistols, capable of firing 5-6 rounds a minute at best. Could Founders have forseen a time of automatic assault weapons? Of course not - but I don't think it is foolish to assume that they would have not wanted the average citizen possessing their period's more destructive cannons.

With modern weaponry, there have to be limits on what individual citizens are allowed to own. Even extreme gun advocates will admit that it is not safe to have individuals owning nuclear weapons. By admitting that there are at least SOME limits on what arms individuals may possess, the second amendment's power is already undermined: if there are some weapons that should not fall under protection of the second amendment, then the government must have that authority to decide which weapons approach that category of danger to the public.

The second amendment's scope is outdated; it still protects for certain types of gun ownership, but arguing that was meant to protect all types is ridiculous.

Learn more about this author, Erin St John.
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