constitutional comma madness

Whoa, I actually never realized that was how it was written.

If you read it as not employing serial commas, it says we should not infringe a well-regulated militia, because a well-regulated militia is necessary to

(a) the security of a free state
(b) the right of the people to keep (i.e., not spoil)
(c) the arms of bears

lol constitution

Who cares?

--Hon. Antonin Scalia

I have a friend who says that law school made him realize he hates the constitution and wishes we just used common law. I started to feel the same after sitting in on a law school class on the commerce clause.

A well regulated militia, being an obsolete and irrelevant concept, in out society, the right to keep and bear arms, is something I have no idea what the fuck to do with honestly.

Comma = where you pause to pop a jello shot before continuing.

So this is a nonsensical way of reading it, but:

"The people's right to form a well regulated militia shall not be infringed, because a well-regulated militia is necessary to the security of a free state and the right of the people to keep and bear arms."

Militias exist to protect the people and their guns?

If your friend thinks the Constitution is TLDR he is not going to like "just" common law.

Stare decisis is a bitch.

I'm probably oversimplifying his opinion

do you people not know how people wrote in the 18th century

With ftyle and fophiftication, obvioufly.

Fops wrote it.

do you, people, not know how, people, wrote in the, 18th century

Fops wrote it.

Fopf, wrote it.

from Poor Richard's Almanack:

He that would be beforehand in the World, must be beforehand
with his Business: It is not only ill Management, but discovers
a slothful Disposition, to do that in the Afternoon, which
should have been done in the Morning.

Useful Attainments in your Minority will procure Riches in
Maturity, of which Writing and Accounts are not the meanest.

Learning, whether Speculative or Practical, is, in Popular or
Mixt Governments, the Natural Source of Wealth and Honour.

PRECEPT I. In Things of moment, on thy self depend, Nor trust
too far thy Servant or thy Friend: With private Views, thy
Friend may promise fair, And Servants very seldom prove
sincere.

PRECEPT II. What can be done, with Care perform today, Dangers
unthought-of will attend delay; Your distant Prospects all
precarious are, And Fortune is as fickle as she's fair.

PRECEPT III. Nor trivial Loss, nor trivial Gain despise;
Molehills, if often heap'd, to Mountains rise: Weigh every
small Expence, and nothing waste, Farthings long sav'd, amount
to Pounds at last.

do you, do you, want my, love

The Second Amendment, as passed by the House and Senate, 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. ”

The original and copies distributed to the states, and then ratified by them, had different capitalization and punctuation:
“ 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. ”

So it was some goofball clerk high on weed.

the House and the Senate apparently thought Militias and Arms deserved more emphasis than People!

Curtif Ftephenf

apparently people don't know how people wrote S's in the 18th century either

WTƒ

No, I just wasn't sure what key command people used to make an s in the 18th century.

The long, medial or descending s (ſ) is a form of the minuscule letter 's' formerly used where 's' occurred in the middle or at the beginning of a word, for example ſinfulneſs ("sinfulness"). The modern letterform was called the terminal or short s.

I get butthurt over obsolete semantics

oh, i fee

lolololololol nabisco

This amendment, was an homage to Machiavelli, badly botched, nor sensible in its parts and terms.

The Second Amendment, as passed by the House and Senate, 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. ”

The original and copies distributed to the states, and then ratified by them, had different capitalization and punctuation:
“ 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. ”

So the idiot clerk amender thought it meant:

"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state and the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."

but failed to follow through properly on his parsing by not changing the original comma to an "and", thus rendering it nonsensical?