We the people
Mr. Payne’s “A Historical Interpretation of the Second Amendment” (ODE, Oct. 16) really misses the target — he even misquotes the Second Amendment, which actually reads:
“Amendment II. 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 understood who “the people” were. The word “people” is used once in the Preamble to the Constitution, once again in Article I, Section 2, and five times in the Bill of Rights; once each in Amendments I, II, IV, IX, and X. If the word “people” is universally accepted to be the meaning described in a standard dictionary, that meaning must be applied consistently across all uses of the word as it appears in the Constitution, including the Second Amendment.
According to Merriam-Webster Online, “people” are defined as “the body of enfranchised citizens of a state.” If the definition of people is consistently applied, the Second Amendment cannot be interpreted in any way except as a fundamental right retained by individual citizens. No compelling reason can be offered why the Second Amendment should not be held on an equal footing to the other uses in the Constitution of the word people.

Sean Walston

graduate assistant

physics

What you don’t know can hurt you
Measure 9 doesn’t protect children; it puts them at risk.
HIV Alliance exists because we believe that HIV is preventable. Our mission is to provide HIV education to all levels of the community, including our middle-school and high-school-age citizens.
HIV Alliance believes that people make healthier behavioral choices with access to accurate information in a setting allowing for questions and responsible discussion.
HIV Alliance believes that programs like our Speakers in the Schools protect the lifelong health of our young people by arming them with facts about how HIV is contracted and transmitted. Research shows that the information and discussion the nationally recognized Speakers in the Schools program provides helps students make better choices about their behavior.
HIV Alliance believes that Measure 9, called the “Student Protection Act,” will have a chilling effect on our children’s ability to receive objective information about the transmission of HIV or any aspect of sexual health. We believe that Measure 9 may interpret health education as promoting sexual activity.
HIV Alliance believes that open discussion, coupled with responsible, factual information about the nature of HIV and the behaviors that can lead to infection, is the right of every citizen.
HIV Alliance believes that denying information and discussion to young people who are making decisions daily about their social behavior threatens the future health of the entire community.
Therefore, the Board and Staff of HIV Alliance strongly oppose Measure 9 as it protects no one ­ unless keeping people ignorant is considered protection.

Leslie Habetler

community relations

coordinator

HIV Alliance

Right to bear arms
I was appalled at Pat Payne’s recent column regarding the Second Amendment. Our country was founded for freedoms he seems eager to relinquish. Why? Following his logic, we have the right to free speech so long as it’s not over a telephone, on the radio or via a computer because these hadn’t been invented when the Constitution was written.
Will more gun laws deter criminals? Hello? They don’t follow laws. That’s why they’re criminals. More laws will only stop law-abiding citizens from protecting their lives. Does he think self defense is only justified with fists or words?
Heaven forbid that a woman (or any of us) should be allowed to defend her life effectively against a larger, more physical attacker.
“The police can protect
her.”
Right.
“She can talk her way out of it.”
Right.
“She shouldn’t have been there.”
Right.
Like it or not, a gun is one of the few things that can equalize a 110-pound woman in a fight with a 225-pound man. Rape happens. In Eugene.
If I were his friend, I wouldn’t want to depend on the self-proclaimed Captain Sensible’s pleadings for mercy as help in a crisis. While CS will, no doubt, count me among the “tanked-up rednecks,” as far as I’m concerned, if a woman is physically attacked, she should have the right to defend herself effectively and put a large hole through the [person] anywhere she chooses. I, for one, will applaud her when she does.

Mick Briscoe

graduate student

fine art