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Antonin Scalia, a sitting U.S. Supreme Court Justice, has died:
US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia - one of most conservative members of the high court - has died. Justice Scalia's death could shift the balance of power on the US high court, allowing President Barack Obama to add a fifth liberal justice to the court. The court's conservative majority has recently stalled major efforts by the Obama administration on climate change and immigration.
Justice Scalia, 79, was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1986. He died in his sleep early on Saturday while in West Texas for [a] hunting trip, the US Marshall service said. Justice Scalia was one of the most prominent proponents of "originalism" - a conservative legal philosophy that believes the US Constitution has a fixed meaning and does not change with the times.
Justice Scalia's death is, unsurprisingly, now being widely reported.
From the San Antonio Express News:
According to a report, Scalia arrived at the ranch on Friday and attended a private party with about 40 people. When he did not appear for breakfast, a person associated with the ranch went to his room and found a body.
[...] The U.S. Marshal Service, the Presidio County sheriff and the FBI were involved in the investigation. Officials with the law enforcement agencies declined to comment.
A federal official who asked not to be named said there was no evidence of foul play and it appeared that Scalia died of natural causes.
A gray Cadillac hearse pulled into the ranch last Saturday afternoon. The hearse came from Alpine Memorial Funeral Home.
Most major news outlets are covering this story, including CNN [video autoplays], The Washington Post, The New York Times, and NBC.
(Score: 1) by Francis on Sunday February 14 2016, @01:55PM
At the time it was written they were using flintlock rifles, they had no standing army and most of the country had no full-time police force. They were also likely to be deputized or expected to take part in military operations as needed.
The requirements were lower because the weapons were less dangerous, not because they intended for those to be the requirements forever.
At any rate, if they meant to create an individual right to have firearms, they should have said a person's rather than the people's.
(Score: 1) by Fauxlosopher on Sunday February 14 2016, @03:31PM
I guess Francis is a-okay with licenses being mandatory for Internet access - after all, all the founders had at the time was mechanical presses and ink quills.
Francis may not have heard of 10 USC 311 [findlaw.com]: are you a male able-bodied US citizen between the ages of 17 and 45? Congratulations, you are part of the official US militia! Now, where do I pick up my Stinger and Javelin missile launchers and M4A1 rifle?
Even if it weren't for 10 USC 311, the authority US government has is given to it by delegation derived from the authority of the individual citizen. If the individual citizen can't do a thing, neither can the person delegate such authority to any other [soylentnews.org].
(Score: 2) by sjames on Sunday February 14 2016, @05:47PM
The requirements were lower because the weapons were less dangerous, not because they intended for those to be the requirements forever.
I see no expiration date or other exit condition. They did provide a mechanism to change the Constitution should it become necessary. We haven't followed that procedure yet WRT the 2nd amendment.