The 2nd Amendment has been a very controversial topic over the last year with the recent open carry law introduced to the public. This has caused much confusion between the right to bear arms and the federal government's neglected role in policing what appears dangerous to the public. Our first eight amendments to the Constitution are direct restrictions on the federal government, and the 2nd Amendment does not specifically guarantee the right of the people to bear arms, in the sense that most would have believed. It does, however, prohibit the federal government from violating your unalienable rights to defend yourself, it specifically says you will not be violated. This targets Congress, the judicial and executive branches of government and means they cannot pass a law or sign anything that infringes on the right to bear arms or defend oneself. In McDonald v. City of Chicago, Illinois, the Supreme Court struck down the gun ban because McDonald went against the state by saying he couldn't defend himself even from his own neighborhood overrun with crime and violence. He wanted Chicago to have the same gun rights as any other state and won. The man realized that one of the robbers was his neighbor and felt helpless without the right to bear arms, he simply wanted to be able to defend himself and not become a victim in his own home. I think with proper gun regulation and enforcement with a possible requirement of a firearms safety course this was a definitive victory for our 2nd amendment rights and its ability to provide us with the right to bear arms. The case Columbia v. Heller, is a good example of how an interpretation of the 2nd Amendment can be misunderstood. Heller has arrived... middle of paper... will not stop fighting until firearms are completely banned and anti-gun control advocates will not stop fighting until all efforts to regulate the firearms industry they will not be finished. If gun control advocates intend to further argue for their “right” to eradicate firearms from the general population, it will be necessary to develop new arguments that stand up to scrutiny. Children don't die en masse at the hands of some armed maniac and the average citizen doesn't decide to keep killing. The Second Amendment will always mean that individuals have the right to own firearms. The only way to change this meaning will be to amend the amendment or remove it from the Constitution. In the future, public opinion may be influenced by the issue of gun control, but for now the American people continue to demand the right to own a firearm.