I'm curious, Kent... do you see no ambiguity in the 2nd amendment? Many, many people, including many legal scholars, believe that the 'bearing of arms', was to be connected WITH the need for the citizenry to be part of a Militia in order to 'keep' the State free. In the 1770s, that meant taking your musket and joining a local group, and possibly a larger 'state' organized group.

That concept has very little to do with the way a modern state, after the time of the Civil War, needs to go about defending itself. We don't send riders to call all able-bodied men to grab their muskets (hand made) and powder and hurry to fend of the British. We need trained soldiers, using **standardized weapons**, manufactured and issued BY the state. And we sure do NOT need those soldiers, after their service, to keep those weapons and try to maintain them and keep a supply of high power ammo at home.
You see what I'm getting at? The Founding Fathers saw no need to explain what a militia was, or to worry about what happened to those muskets after the war. They had very little concern with street crime and had very little way to get 'police protection' to your house. It made sense...then... for home owners to have a rifle of sorts to defend againt attack...or bears... or to hunt for food.

(Why am I typing all this?..it should be obvious)

Anyway, during & after the Civil War, the very nature and needs of a 'Militia' changed, even as guns were rapidly changing and becoming more powerful and standardized by manufacturers. By WWI, with automatic weapons and real 'armies', there was little need for the old concept of 'militia'....and a LOT less need for every household, especially in cities, to maintain a personal arsenal.

But....we still had that pesky 2nd amendment that 'seemed' to grant everyone some sort of 'right'...even though the basic reason for having that right had changed radically. But, oh my! Guys who just liked playing with guns sure didn't want to hear ANY ideas that suggested a more modern view of things! And guys who figgered out that a life of crime was lots easier with stuff like Tommy guns to put up against small town banks.

Now, as we see, that almost 300 year old idea of what a "free state" needed for "security" is being interpreted by those who like big toys that go BOOM to mean....whatever they want it to mean. They HAVE a goal, and by god, everything will be interpreted to fit that goal....and you get slogans about ..."when they pry my gun out of my cold, dead hands." And it sure happens that way a lot these days...after they shoot up some innocent folks who never saw 'em coming.

Gee Kent... you ask "... why not amend the Constitution?"
And you KNOW why...because the gun lobby ties KEEPING their guns to getting anyone elected to get everything else done! And the piles of hidden, unregistered guns grows larger....probably larger than all the 'legal' guns.

And folks start remembering old lines about "shutting the barn door after the horse is gone." And politicians, even the ones who understand everything I said above!, shrug and promise not to mess with guns, so they have half a chance of getting other things passed.

Funny thing about guns....they don't even need to be actually pointed at us in order to hold us up.