Second Amendment threatened, Barr warns in law school speech By Chris Megerian
Former Georgia Congressman Bob Barr defended the constitutional right to bear arms against what he called an anti-freedom philosophy in a speech about the importance of the Second Amendment at the Emory School of Law on Monday.
Barr, a Republican, told the audience of about 30 people that Americans must do everything in their power to ward off intrusion from the U.S. government and preserve what privacy and other civil liberties are left to us.
He warned that many people in America and the United Nations engage in actions to diminish ones God-given, constitutionally- guaranteed rights.
As evidence of mounting pressure on the Second Amendment, Barr cited the San Francisco city councils consideration of banning the sale of handguns and handgun ammunition within the city and U.N. officials engagement in the regulation of the international sale of weapons.
Without weapons, Barr joked, Americans would be forced to defend themselves with duct tape, an item that former Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge encouraged citizens to purchase in case of a terrorist attack.
I wouldnt want to try, he said. Id rather shoot the son-of-a-gun.
Barr represented the 7th District of Georgia in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003. He served as manager of former President Bill Clintons impeachment proceedings.
Barr, who once worked as a U.S. attorney and a CIA official, currently has his own weekly radio show called Bob Barrs Laws of the Universe, which airs every Sunday at 6 p.m. on Radio America, WGKA 920 AM.
In a question-and-answer session following the speech, one audience member asked about Barrs opposition to the Assault Weapons Ban, which was passed in 1994 but was recently not renewed.
Barr pointed out that guns that are classified in the assault category, meaning that they are capable of automatic fire, have been illegal since the 1930s.
He said the law only succeeded in banning weapons that look mean, such as weapons that are not capable of automatic fire, but can be fitted with a bayonet.
Barr told the Wheel that he personally owns more than one firearm for the purpose of hunting and target shooting.
When asked about his opinion on the registration of weapons, he said that he felt registration is the first step to confiscation.
Second year law school student Igor Birman, co-president of the Emory Federalist Society, was excited that Barr was able to speak at Emory.
Bob Barr has been a firm supporter of ideas that the Federalist Society believes in, such as limited government and strict constructionalism in judicial decision making, Birman said.
In his introduction of Barr, Birman described him as a great and honorable gentleman and a fellow patriot.
The event was sponsored by the Federalist Society in conjunction with Emorys chapter of the College Republicans.
College sophomore Jenna Gallagher said that Barr was an engaging speaker and that she thought he had a lot of interesting points. She was divided on the issue of gun control.
I understand that its important to defend yourself, she said. But I wouldnt want a gun in my house.
http://www.emorywheel.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/01/28/41f95f6f425f3
