United States – -(AmmoLand.com)- Technology has changed a great deal since the Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791. This is beyond dispute, and it is something that Second Amendment supporters have to deal with when trying to convince their friends, family, and neighbors to back our Second Amendment rights against certain assaults.
Anti-Second Amendment extremists often claim that the Founders had no clue that something like the AR-15 could exist and as such, it is not protected by the Second Amendment. Well, that argument is bullshit, and in a way, the Supreme Court has already said so. In Caetano v. Massachusetts, Massachusetts saw its ban on stun guns get thrown out on Second Amendment grounds.
One could argue that stun guns are/were even less likely to be predicted or anticipated by the Founders.
So, when we look at the 3D Printed Gun Safety Act of 2021, introduced by Representative Ted Deutch (D-FL) in the House as HR 4225 and by Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) in the Senate as S 2319, we see a clearly unconstitutional piece of legislation on Second Amendment grounds. It is hard to imagine this bill not being struck down by the Supreme Court, especially when one considers the current alignment.
Both Markey and Deutch have appalling records on Second Amendment issues, but with this bill, they are also attacking the First Amendment as well.
As the summary for S 2319 puts it, “This bill makes it unlawful to intentionally publish digital instructions for programming a three-dimensional printer to make a firearm.”
When AmmoLand News covered an earlier iteration of the bill, the major news then was about then-New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewel’s attempt to bully CodeIsFreeSpeech.com. A ruling out of the Ninth Circuit, of all places, seems to be putting the kibosh on that front. But the fight will go on in Congress and state legislatures.
One of the things Second Amendment supporters will have to confront is that 3D printing and programmable CNC machines are going to be game-changers in the field of firearms manufacturing. For one thing, it could be possible for manufacturers to put out-of-production guns back on the market via blueprints for a 3D printer – for instance, allowing someone to make a replica of a Smith and Wesson 1076, which has been out of production since 1993.
Second Amendment supporters need to contact their Senators and Representatives and politely urge them to oppose HR 4225 and S 2319. In addition, they need to support pro-Second Amendment organizations and work to defeat anti-Second Amendment extremists in office at the federal, state, and local levels via the ballot box as soon as possible.
About Harold Hutchison
Writer Harold Hutchison has more than a dozen years of experience covering military affairs, international events, U.S. politics, and Second Amendment issues. Harold was consulting senior editor at Soldier of Fortune magazine and is the author of the novel Strike Group Reagan. He has also written for the Daily Caller, National Review, Patriot Post, Strategypage.com, and other national websites.