The right to bear arms is not granted by the Constitution; neither is
it in any manner dependent upon that instrument for its existence.
-- U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. v. Cruikshank
The conclusion is thus inescapable that the history concept, and
wording of the second amendment to the Constitution of the United
States, as well as its interpretation by every major commentator and
court in the first half-century after its ratification, indicates
that what is protected is an individual right of a private citizen
to own and carry firearms in a peaceful manner....