My recent article for America’s 1st Freedom traces the rise and fall of the theory that the Second Amendment is not an individual right, but instead is a “collective right,” which, like “collective property” in a communist country, supposedly belongs to everyone collectively, but in fact belongs to no-one. The theory was created by a […]
Author Archive | David Kopel
Remember America’s Labor Heroes
This essay, which I wrote in 2000, celebrates the brave men and women of the Colorado labor movement, who in the coal fields of southern Colorado early in the 20th century, stood up against murderous company goons and against the soldiers of the Colorado National Guard who perverted their organization. Labor Day is a day to remember that labor […]
Could President Perry carry a gun?
Chris Moody attempts to analyze the issue for The Ticket. The analysis could have been improved by reading the laws of the District of Columbia. Moody describes D.C. as “a city that bans carrying firearms.” That’s not exactly correct. The D.C. Code generally prohibits carrying a firearm “without a license issued pursuant to District of […]
Reagan’s infamous speech in Philadelphia, Mississippi
By David Kopel on August 16, 2011 6:18 am in Elections, History, Housing, Political Ignorance, Racism, Tenth Amendment
In 1980, one of the major party presidential nominees opened his general election by delivering a speech in a small town in the Deep South that just by coincidence happened to be the national headquarters of the Ku Klux Klan. That same candidate had previously complained about federal housing policies which attempted “to inject black […]
Rifle Golf: America’s newest shooting sport
If you’re interested in long distance rifle shooting, or in hunting with a rifle, I highly recommend that you check out the Spirit Ridge Rifle Golf facility, in Utah. The “golf” part of the name is really just part of the rules for how your shots are scored. Other than that, it’s all rifle and […]
Scotusblog essays on Obamacare’s constitutionality
By David Kopel on August 3, 2011 11:46 am in Constitutional Law, Federalism, Health Care, Taxing and Spending Clause, Tenth Amendment
This week Scotusblog is running a series of essays, “The Constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.” Contributors so far are Dawn Johnson (Indiana U.), Bradley Joondeph (Santa Clara U., and manager of a very useful blog on the ACA litigation), Bob Levy (Cato), Charles Fried (Harvard), and me. There are many more essays still to […]
Comedy of Errors at Univ. of Colorado not very funny
Among the offerings at this summer’s Colorado Shakespeare Festival, at the University of Colorado at Boulder, is the Comedy of Errors. The show is clearly a crowd-pleaser, provoking many laughs from most of the audience. The people with whom I saw the show, who generally have pretty good taste in theater, thought it was hilarious. So […]
Natelson on the 14th Amendment and the debt ceiling
In this iVoices.org podcast, Rob Natelson explains why unilateral presidential creation of new debt is: 1. Utterly contrary to the Constitution’s structure of limiting executive power. 2. Directly contrary to the text of the 14th Amendment. President Obama, to his credit, declaimed any unilateral power to raise the debt ceiling. But many people–some of whom […]
A threepeat for the Emmy Awards!
The annual “time machine” episode of Colorado Inside-Out garners a threepeat, winning the best documentary award for the third year in a row, from the Heartland Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. This year’s win is also a Triple Crown, with Emmy awards for best sound, and best program. Watch the […]
Blegs: Polling on Guns and Israel. The disarmament of the Welsh.
1. Does anyone know of any polling data which has data on whether Americans who have favorable, or strongly favorable, views of Israel are more likely to support Second Amendment rights, own guns, etc.? I suspect that this is case for non-Jewish Americans. Even for American Jews (who tend to support Israel, and to favor gun […]
Cert. grant in Millender v. LA: Qualified immunity for an unconstitutional general warrant to seize firearms?
By David Kopel on July 10, 2011 6:00 pm in Constitutional Law, Fourth Amendment, Guns, Qualified Immunity, Sovereign Immunity
The Supreme Court recently granted certiorari in Millender v. Los Angeles. Here are the background facts: Bowen shoots at his ex-girlfriend with a sawed-off shotgun. The police obtain a search warrant for the home of Bowen’s 73-year-old former foster mother. The warrant application does not disclose that Bowen last lived with his foster mother 15 […]
Ezell’s doctrinal rules for the Second Amendment
By David Kopel on July 8, 2011 2:08 am in Constitutional History, Constitutional Law, Guns, Originalism
The Seventh Circuit’s decision in Ezell v. Chicago is a tremendously important case for Second Amendment doctrine. The key rules from Ezell: use originalism from both 1791 and 1868 to determine if an activity is within the scope of the Second Amendment right. If it is, apply First Amendment doctrine, and make the standard of […]
Suggestions for your periodical reading list
Although on-line reading continues to grow, many people still enjoy old-fashioned printed periodicals. In the spirit of gratuitous advice, here are some suggestions for print subscriptions. First of all, if you’re conscientious about registering for the frequent flyer program every time you step on an airplane, you may accumulate a few thousand points on various airlines which […]
Natelson’s reply to Time magazine’s essay on the Constitution
Time magazine managing editor Richard Stengel has penned a cover essay about the Constitution, One Document, Under Siege. My Independence Institute colleague Rob Natelson wrote a response addressing some of the many illogical or inaccurate claims therein. For example: Stengel: “The framers . . . gave us the idea that a black person was three-fifths […]
Brown v. EMA casts doubt on the “weapons effect” justification for gun control
By David Kopel on June 27, 2011 9:38 pm in Child Protection, Constitutional Law, Expert Evidence, First Amendment, Freedom of Speech, Guns, Supreme Court
The State’s evidence is not compelling. California relies primarily on the research of Dr. Craig Anderson and a few other research psychologists whose studies purport toshow a connection between exposure to violent video games and harmful effects on children. These studies have been rejected by every court to consider them,6 and with good reason: They […]