It is paranoia because, just as gun lobbyists already claim, those who want guns will get them, regardless of the law. Making any distinction between "good law-abiding people" and "evil law-breakers" is completely ideological and arbitrary. Those who appeal to the law whilst simultaneously admitting its flaws have no legitimate argument.
While I'll be the first to point out there's a difference between
malum in se and
malum prohibitum, this isn't what they are talking about and you know it.
And all I'm saying with the "constitutional" argument is that people appeal to it as some infallible document (as you well know); but if you read the actual text, it's incredible how much we actively reinterpret it. The majority of conservatives and pro-gun lobbyists appeal to the Constitution as some infallible, unquestionable piece of legislation; but the truth is that one of the most blatant and obvious moments of constitutional reinterpretation occurred when the NRA re-envisioned the second amendment for its own financial purposes. All I'm trying to do is expose the hypocrisy of those who claim the high throne of "inalienable rights."
I would argue that it's worse than actively interpreted, it's outright ignored except for the worst parts, excluding the 2nd Amendment. The 1st Amendment is already half dead.
When someone can show me where the emboldened idea came from other than the minds of people who write for publications like DailyKos, I'd love to see it. Some sort of NRA memo or statement or something from maybe the Reagan era, and some corresponding evidence of a generally accepted public opinion/SCOTUS decision before that time interpreting the 2nd Amendment in some less "libertarian" fashion. As it stands, I call bullshit.
That said, I have no use for the NRA. There are much better organizations, like Gun Owners of America. The NRA is a typical DC insider group. I've done some reading on how they work, and it's pure politics, not principled.
Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun. Based on some of your other statements, so do rights. So yes, rights are "alienable", particularly when you don't have guns. Isn't that the consistent historical point of gun control?
Edit:
All I'm trying to do is expose the hypocrisy of those who claim the high throne of "inalienable rights."
Here's hypocrisy: You know what it takes to ban or restrict guns? Guns. When someone proposes a ban or restriction that applies equally to
law enforcement and the military, I might take them seriously. Otherwise it's not gun control, it's ratio reduction. It's not because they don't like guns, it's because they don't like non-governmental gun ownership. Hypocrisy.
Loads of it (lolz).