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  http://www.dhonline.com/articles/2008/03/19/news/opinion/5edi01_rights.txt |
Rights always can disappear |
| March 19, 2008 |
| The
gun argument the Supreme Court heard Tuesday
tells us something about our Constitution that most of us don’t want to
admit: The Constitution is a piece of paper, and its words mean nothing
unless the government agrees to enforce them. And even when the words
seem clear, there can be a ferocious dispute about what they mean. The court is supposed to decide whether it is constitutional to ban the private ownership of handguns, as the District of Columbia has done for about 30 years. The Second Amendment certainly sounds as though owning firearms is among the many rights guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. But the awkward wording of the amendment has allowed opponents of gun rights to make a case that it was really meant to refer only to keeping and bearing arms for military service in the state militia, the way the Swiss apparently still do. Oregon’s constitution on the same subject is a little clearer: “The people shall have the right to bear arms for the defence of themselves, and the State, but the Military shall be kept in strict subordination of the civil power.” While the words seem clear, they are still open to interpretation. Over the years the Oregon courts have interpreted the right to bear arms to exclude certain people — former convicts, for instance, and the mentally ill. The attorney general has given an opinion suggesting that people in public housing projects do not have a constitutional right to own firearms, at least in Multnomah County. The words in our founding documents always can be seen several different ways. It is an illusion to think that any constitution can protect anyone’s rights. Whether the rights are secure depends not so much on the words as on the men and women elected and appointed to interpret them. So whether rights are protected — the right of self-defense or any other right — always depends on the wisdom of the voters and the people we elect. Elections happen every two and four years, and our rights are in the balance every time. |
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