KeepAndBearArms.com -- Our July 8, 2002 Newslinks featured a submission by Don Hamrick, which he titled "Federal Propaganda for Kids". The submission featured a report by the CATO Institute, from which Mr. Hamrick quoted:

"In a section on the Bill of Rights, a children's Web site produced by the Government Printing Office mentions the right 'to Keep and Bear Arms in Common Defense'."

In his Newslinks Submission, Mr. Hamrick appropriately noted, "A quick look at the 2nd Amendment makes no mention of the common defense, but does mention the right of the people to keep and bear arms."

KeepAndBearArms.com reader Gordon Martin took the initiative and wrote the folks running the website -- after all, Benjamin Franklin's name is used to teach children about history, rights and other things important to the future of our society. "Ben's Guide to U.S. Government for Kids", as the website is known, needed correcting.

Following are Mr. Martin's email to the government's publishers and the email he received in response. Mr. Martin's email address below is a different one than one used, for privacy reasons...

From: Gordon Martin <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, July 08, 2002 8:56 AM

Reading your "Rights of Citizens" was quite disturbing. I have read the Bill of Rights several times and NEVER have I seen any reference in the 2nd amendment to "in common defense". You are doing a tremendous disservice to young people when you add your own interpretation to the plain language of the constitution. It should be the Right to keep and bear arms period. There is no other qualifying clause in there. Don't you think it would be better to present the constitution as it is written than the way some would like it to read? Ben Franklin would be ashamed to have his name associated with such duplicity.

From: Sieger, Karen E. <[email protected]>
On Behalf Of Ask Ben
Sent: Tuesday, July 09, 2002 3:47 PM
To: [email protected] 
Subject: RE: Bill of Rights

Dear Mr. Martin,

Thank you for your e-mail. Wherever possible, the language provided on Ben's Guide is derived from official Federal Government publications. In this case, the language provided on the Bill of Rights is derived from a Congressional publication called "Our American Government" (H. Con. Res. 221, 106th Congress). The language "in the Common Defense" with regard to the Second Amendment may be found on page 3 (Question 8); however, as you stated in your e-mail, this language does not appear in the language of the Second Amendment. Therefore, the language on Ben's Guide has been changed and now reads "To Keep and Bear Arms."

Sincerely,

Karen (on behalf of Ben)

NOTE: We did not add the "on behalf of Ben" -- she did.

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