No-gun you are welcome at my camp-fire any time. If a need arises I will have the tools to address that need.
You represent a large group of the American people who are tired of the senseless violence that plagues our nation. You are an educated, intelligent man who has been around the block, and the world a few times and knows that violence is a symptom of a systemic problem. We have many problems in this country that allow a dangerous sub-culture to prosper and grow. As an economist you understand many of these issues far better than I do. What I understand is this: Taking guns away from law abiding citizens will not cure the disease, and will put more innocent people at risk.
You have said a couple of times that you believe the 2A was written for a different time and does not apply to the world of cruise missiles, nuclear weapons, and other weapons of modern warfare. The Founding Fathers understood human nature, and that has not changed. The nature of government is to grow and control; they knew it then and we know it now. An armed populous is necessary to the security of a free state. I believe that principle is as important today as it was then.