Militia: Near Universal Membership

Membership in the Militia is not contingent or conditioned upon formal enrollment. Every “able-bodied” adult is required by law to serve unless exempted.

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Last Updated on August 20, 2022 by Constitutional Militia

Militia: Near Universal Service

For society to depend upon professional “police” and other “law-enforcement” and “internal-security” forces separate from, independent of, and perhaps antagonistic to the people would be irresponsible in the extreme. Although such forces might provide adequate support for a police state concerned only with maintaining an élitist leadership-class in power, the Constitution itself declares that they cannot possibly guarantee “the security of a free State”, to which instead “[a] well regulated Militia” is “necessary”.[1]

Militia: Near universal membership composed of every “able-bodied” adult required by law to serve.

“Awell regulated Militia” is neither a private organization—and therefore exclusive in character; nor a governmental entity in which only a few select members of the community may participate—and therefore élitist in character. Instead, it is the one and only governmental institution in which everyone who is physically able to perform a useful function is expected to serve in one way or another—and therefore near-universal in character. In this, the Militia differs from every other public establishment and institution. To be sure, “[a] well regulated Militia” is always smaller than the community as a whole. But the community as a whole performs no particular governmental function. The electorate, too, may outnumber the Militia, depending on demographic circumstances. But, as explained below, service in the Militia is compulsory, whereas voting almost never is. And in any jurisdiction the Militia is always much larger than the aggregate of all other governmental entities.[2]

Membership in “[a] well regulated Militia” must be near-universal, because the provision of “security [for] a free State”—in terms (say) of “execut[ing] the Laws * * * , suppress[ing] Insurrections and repel[ling] Invasions”[1]—must be everyone’s responsibility, everywhere, at all times. After all, in “a free State” the people govern themselves. A self-governing people exercise political power by and for themselves. “‘Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.’”[2] Therefore, a self-governing people in “a free State” must control all of the “gun[s]” necessary to maintain political power in their own hands against all conceivable enemies, both foreign and especially domestic—and, when necessary, must be willing and able to use those “gun[s]” at a moment’s notice, with neither hesitation nor compunction. In the normal course of events, public officials who have proven incompetent or otherwise unworthy of their positions can be voted out peacefully at the next election. But if an insurrection or an invasion succeeds, no new election may thereafter be possible. And if the laws are not enforced against aspiring usurpers and tyrants, upon their seizure of power such miscreants will substitute their own arbitrary dictates for the laws, to everyone else’s detriment.[3]

Footnotes:

1.) U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. 15.

2.) Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-tung (Peking, China: Foreign Languages Press, First Edition, 1966), at 61.

3.) The Sword and Sovereignty: Constitutional Principles of “the Militia of the several States” by Dr. Edwin Vieira, Jr., Multimedia CD, (2012), page 929-930.

For society to depend upon professional “police” and other “law-enforcement” and “internal-security” forces separate from, independent of, and perhaps antagonistic to the people would be irresponsible in the extreme. Although such forces might provide adequate support for a police state concerned only with maintaining an élitist leadership-class in power, the Constitution itself declares that they cannot possibly guarantee “the security of a free State”, to which instead “[a] well regulated Militia” is “necessary”.[1] For even if such forces did not prove to be too few in numbers, too deficient in training, or too bereft of equipment to put down insurrectionists or invaders, they could—and, as History repetitively teaches, probably would—treacherously cast their lots with, or themselves spawn, usurpers and tyrants. After all, “[t]he seizure of power by armed force * * * is the central task and the highest form of revolution”.[2] And armed force will likely be applied successfully by those who are best armed. In a self-governing “free State”, no matter how heavily armed they may be, the people will not conduct revolutions against themselves. But when the balance of armed force shifts decisively into in the hands of others, some “form of revolution” is at least empowered, if not invited, encouraged, and facilitated.

For these reasons, every “free State” throughout America—in order to remain free—must enlist in her Militia essentially every free adult citizen of any age who is physically, mentally, and emotionally capable of performing any useful public service in that respect. “A well regulated Militia” consists of every eligible man and woman within the community, completely organized, equipped, trained, and assigned to particular duties according to statutes that define the types of service for individuals may volunteer or to which they may be assigned.[3]

Footnotes:

1.) U.S. Const. amend. II (emphasis supplied).

2.) Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-tung (Peking, China: Foreign Languages Press, First Edition, 1966), at 61.

3.) The Sword and Sovereignty: Constitutional Principles of “the Militia of the several States” by Dr. Edwin Vieira, Jr., Multimedia CD, (2012), page 930.

Membership in the Militia is not contingent or conditioned upon formal enrollment.[3] Every “able-bodied” adult is required by law to serve unless exempted.

Every “free State” throughout America—in order to remain free—must enlist in her Militia essentially every free adult citizen of any age who is physically, mentally, and emotionally capable of performing any useful public service in that respect.“A well regulated Militia” consists of every eligible man and woman within the community, completely organized, equipped, trained, and assigned to particular duties according to statutes that define the types of service for individuals may volunteer or to which they may be assigned.[4]

1.) U.S. Const. amend. II (emphasis supplied).

2.) The Sword and Sovereignty: Constitutional Principles of “the Militia of the several States” by Dr. Edwin Vieira, Jr., Multimedia CD, (2012), page 929.

3.) Id., page 128.

4.) Id., page 930.

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