An unregulated militia

by | Nov 22, 2021 | Editor's Blog | 15 comments

The Kyle Rittenhouse incident illustrates so many of the problems we’re facing in this country right now. I knew from watching the video that he would be acquitted of any charges related to shooting those people. I hoped that some law would hold him accountable for wading into a volatile situation armed with an assault weapon. I guess not.

Rittenhouse clearly feared for his safety. But that doesn’t account for why a person would travel to the scene of a riot, unprovoked and armed. And it doesn’t answer why a 17-year-old wandering the streets with a rifle is considered a hero. We have people in the country cheering on senseless deaths. There’s something wrong with us. 

Kenosha exploded after police shot another unarmed Black man in the wake of the George Floyd killing. Peaceful protests took place during the day and then rioting erupted at night in the days following the shooting. Right-wing vigilante groups called on people to go to the city to protect property. Kyle Rittenhouse responded. He should never have been there. 

On the left, people describing the incident as a Black Lives Matter protest do a disservice to that movement. Kenosha was a riot. Buildings and cars were being burned. If that’s a protest, then the right has every reason to fear BLM protests. Those making excuses for the riots that took place last year haven’t learned the lessons of the 1960s. The Burn, Baby, Burn mentality hurt the Civil Rights and anti-war movements by galvanizing sentiment against them and giving authorities cover to abuse their power. 

Nothing illustrates the Second Amendment’s first clause better than this incident. “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” The Founding Fathers were talking about using an organized military made up of citizens to protect the country. Rittenhouse was not part of a well regulated militia. He was a loner, unregulated and unchecked, who is now a pawn of right-wing propagandists and a symbol of injustice to left wing propagandists.

I don’t think we’ve seen the end of this saga. I suspect Rittenhouse will face either federal charges or civil charges. He had no reason to go to Kenosha that night and, if he hadn’t, two people would probably still be alive. Until then, he’ll be paraded around right-wing shows and groups as a hero and he’ll be vilified by the left as a murderer gone free.  He’s the modern day Bernard Goetz.

The incident brings up so many of our national divisions. We have cops too quick to shoot. We have provocateurs who want violence and mayhem on both sides of the spectrum. We have people who fetishize guns and violence. And we have too many laws that protect people who shoot other people, encouraging vigilantism and extremism. It’s all a mess. 

15 Comments

  1. phoenix

    Interesting.

  2. cocodog

    Possession of a weapon, like an AR15 or handgun and knowing how to operate these weapons is not enough. In a military sense, any 17-year-old with proper training can achieve that level of skill. But what is lacking is comprehension of the responsibilities associated with possession and use. What is missing, and something that stands out is this kid had no training or awareness of laws and responsibilities associated with the use of deadly force.
    Granted he lucked out; a jury did not find he had the intent associated with murder when he took the life of another human being. He thrust himself into a situation, that experienced cops are trained to deal with to reduce the risk factors and minimize the loss of life.
    He went off on his own, some of the court testimony mentioned 4 blocks from his associates, inviting those inclined to engage in less then rational behavior to attack him. He became a one-man superhero. This may sound good to those who lack training and experience, but it is conduct that increases problems for the duly constituted authorities charged with the responsibility to deal with civil unrest.
    During the LA riots, we observed business-people on the roof of their buildings heavily armed. To a cop on the ground this creates a highly dangerous situation. They themselves can be accidentally shot by one of those well-meaning trigger-happy vigilantes in their efforts to restore order.. Folks have got to make a decision, either hire and train well regulated professionals or encourage untrained vigilantes to protect their lives and property.

    • Phoenix

      As I said earlier. Militia (which is from the entire body of the people) will step up to fill the gap that is left when the police cede the ground to lawlessness. The people don’t have a choice. In LA and Kenosha this is what exactly happened.

      Both places had well “regulated professionals” (i.e trained) but in both cases these well regulated forces left the citizens to fend for themselves. So as a consequence the Militia (i.e the people) had no choice but to step into the gap to protect their lives and property.

      If the police had not worried about optics and done their job None of this would have happened. If they had done it in Portland and Minneapolis It likely would never had spread anywhere. But they didn’t.

      Fortunately so far NC police are made of sterner stuff, at least so far.

      • cocodog

        Reading your postings disclose three clear observations: (1) you have little or no military training (2) you have never been a police officer and three your exposure to education does not include US Constitutional and legal principles. Every point you attempted to make is week and lacking in basic common sense. I might make another observation, comparing NC Cops to other Cops when you are a want a be is childish and demeaning to all cops.
        Here is a recommendation, confine yourself to internet trolling , leave the real issues to folks who have been there and done that.

        • phoenix

          I call it how I see it. The authorities ceded the ground to the mob in Minneapolis, Kenosha Seattle, and Portland. because their political masters told them to do so. The people owners of stores etc. stepped in.

          I watched it live. I’ve no idea where you were.

          • cocodog

            Where was I you say, as far away from any of the above cities as I could possibly be without leaving the country. Who in their right mind watches riots for fun? Believe me “dude” I have been on a riot line, and it is not fun. In fact, it would be safe to say none of the folks I worked with found any pleasure from the experience. But then a want a be, much like yourself would take pleasure from such an event!

  3. Frank McGuirt

    I am no expert on anything but I do know that when a minority within a society perceives mistreatment, abuse, discrimination it’s likely going to resort to violence. And BLM is not an organized organization, it is an assortment of autonomous local group of citizens. Having spent 32 years in law enforcement I have long advocated for less militarized training and more training in psychology and dispute resolution. Much of what we did was actually social work without the knowledge we needed. Additionally officers need detailed training in the state and federal constitutions. Protecting the rights of all, suspects, complainants, victims, witnesses, everyone is paramount. I used to refer my deputies to Ecclesiastics-there’s a time and a place for everything, a time to listen, a time to talk, a time to take names and kick ass. But too often officers think their job is punishment, it’s not. That’s for the court to do. Our job was to investigate, gather evidence, apprehend suspects and present to the prosecution.

  4. phoenix

    Sigh… So much wrong.. as usual I will parse.—–(me)

    …”He should never have been there.” —(That is a parental choice, it not clear his parent knew, regardless had every right to be.)

    …On the left, people describing the incident as a Black Lives Matter protest do a disservice to that movement….(But it was BLM they admit it freely and most of their gatherings are nothing but riots, Just look at the news. That why they are called Burn Loot and Murder everyone with a pulse knows BLM is ANYTHING BUT about black lives.)

    —-(What is needed is for the police and national guard to step up and stop this riots from happening. Its why society has police. Who helps all the businesses burned who had NOTHING TO DO WITH ANYTHING? and what is a business to do when the insurance company won’t write a policy for that area? Oh yeah BLM etc gets to whine about “food deserts (that they caused) Its this exact gap That Militia STEPS UP to fill because government is not doing one of the few things they are charged to do. That is, protecting the rights of the minority from the majority in this case an emotional mob. Its not hard to figure out)

    …”The Founding Fathers were talking about using an organized military made up of citizens to protect the country…..

    —( No they weren’t. The Militia has always been the people at large. They just wanted them to have some training. Ya know, be the scary militia the left wets their pants about. Here is a quote It took me a minute to find it

    ….”A militia when properly formed are in fact the people themselves… and include all men capable of bearing arms. . . To preserve liberty it is essential that the whole body of people always possess arms. Richard Henry Lee: Senator, First Congress”

    there are dozens of quotes like this and I am surprised you would take this old thoroughly debunked line. I expected better frankly)

    …”He had no reason to go to Kenosha that night…—(uninformed opinion. did you do ANY research? Its well known why he went there,what he was doing, and why he stayed. really you simply HAVE to do better.)

    …..If he hadn’t, two people would probably still be alive” .—( Speculation. What we do know is both deceased were complete scumbags both very likely to exit this earth quite soon, given how they lived their lives, likely even later that night. Who knows? Regardless, they were both career criminals so its not like society lost anything, The third guy Grosscurtz (sp) he is a felon and was in possession of a firearm and fortunately got shot before he could actually MURDER Rittenhouse. Grosscurtz(sp) CAME TO Rittenhouse, not the other way around. So why aren’t you asking to see him tried? He definitely should not have been there. As a felon, he is NOT supposed to have a gun. Shoot he’s not supposed to be NEAR PEOPLE WHO OWN GUNS.)

    …The incident brings up so many of our national divisions.—-(ok which ones? Self defense isn’t one of them unless you are stupid that is, every living creature has that right naturally)

    We have cops too quick to shoot.—-(On that we agree, but it has nothing to do with Rittenhouse,)

    We have provocateurs who want violence and mayhem on both sides of the spectrum.—(I see it only on the left really ANTIFA, BLM, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Louis Farrakhan and The Media and members of the Democrat party. (LIKE HARRIS) All making hay to make money or creating wedges for votes later. but mostly because members of BLM and ANTIFA are young, stupid, emotional, and easily steered.)

    …”We have people who fetishize guns and violence.” —(Namely?)

    …”And we have too many laws that protect people who shoot other people.”—-(such as?)

    ….”encouraging vigilantism and extremism.” —(again answered above. Militia and vigilantes only arise to fill that gap where those who society has empowered to handle those things does not do its job, For instance in Raleigh BLM (or its surrogate BOR (Build Our Revolution) tried its reindeer games. They did some damage but the police quickly shut that down (rightfully) as such with a strong presence of civil authority doing its job nothing got started and nothing kept going (as it did in Portland and other places where the civil authority stepped back)

    Its not hard to stop a riot. You just let people know that you are not going to tolerate it. Raleigh did, Portland and Kenosha did not. The results are clear.

    I give this paper a D- You really have to do your research its obvious you haven’t.

    • Henry Cecil Thomas

      That is a total lie. BLM has never encouraged anyone to burn or destroy anyone property, freedom haters have told this same lie about the Civic Rights organizations down thru the history this country. The people that burn and stole from those business were criminals looking for an opportunity, it had nothing to do with peace protest and you know that. Listen up white America this is a real easy fix to this problem of racism in America, stop being racist. You’ll are the master of riots and murder and mayhem with the destruction of black communities down thru the years. The article was right on point. These people are nothing but a bunch of whining, mean spirited throw backs who want to control everything and everybody, well that day is over, Nobody is a threat to the country except them, they’re causing all the hate and division in the country. Kyle Rittenhouse is a murderer, just like George Zimmerman and these 3 idiots down in Georgia, that was totally unnecessary. What is wrong you people, wake up and stop being so mean and self-centered the world is not just for you.

  5. cocodog

    Cops and fire personnel put themselves in high-risk situations because they are trained and paid to protect. An Untrained, juvenile, who is motivated by comic book story lines has no business doing so. The pictures of this child sporting an assault style rifle, falsely telling folks he had paramedic training walking around with a military style vest is an invitation to engage in violence. The jury found him not guilty of murder, and causing serious bodily injury to others, as the circumstances surrounding the killing mitigated his intent. But all this would not have happened if his mother had not transported him across a state line in possession of an assault rifle and dropped him into the middle of a riot. What kind of parent would consider placing her child in a position of extreme danger without reservation? For some republicans, like Rep. Mat Gaetz, and a talk show host like Tucker Carlson to extol this child’s conduct is cheap and flashy for personal gain. This nonsense has got to end, before more folks are needlessly killed and injured.

    • Joshua Horn

      You’ve got very basic facts wrong. I suggest listening to the trial before you comment on it.

    • phoenix

      A few quibbles.

      “But all this would not have happened if his mother had not transported him across a state line in possession of an assault rifle”—-(Wrong His mom did not take him there, and the rifle was already in Wisconsin he did not take it with him.)

      “and dropped him into the middle of a riot.” —–(Hyperbole on your part or you are uninformed Rittenhouse was there well before the riot working on removing graffiti and was invited to stay by another group to guard a car dealership”)

      “This nonsense has got to end, before more folks are needlessly killed and injured.”
      —-(Agreed and the best way for that to happen is for the civil authorities to do their jobs Then there will be no need for Militia, and store owners to protect property. Clearly it needs to be said protests are ok. Riots get you sprayed and beaten and possibly killed.(You bought the ticket so now you are going to ride) Personally, optics aside, I’d bring back water cannons. They are very effective and have never killed anyone. People hat to be wet. But the best thing is to make it clear that riots will be put down harshly and with extreme prejudice. And riots ARE NOT PROTESTS.)

      • cocodog

        Does this mean I get a D also? This paper grading personality is something new with you.

        • phoenix

          no I give you an B-

          I expect a person who runs a blog and publishes “scholarly” articles (or at least an attempt at a scholarly SOUNDING articles) as if they are some kind of authority to be up on all the facts.

          With you I don’t expect that lol.

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