Wirt writ (and lobs a nice frag grenade (the very last word) ): [....snip....] > I consider this text to be a quite reasonable and accurate > interpretation of the intent and historical context of the > adoption of the Second Amendment. It is certainly the > interpretation that I've always given to the Amendment. > Should this interpretation hold sway in a direct ruling by > the Supreme Court and thus become the law of the land, the > banning of the personal ownership of guns in the United > States becomes entirely possible and reasonable. > > Wirt Atmar Clearly what we have above (and in predecessors leading up to it) is *more* than enough fuel to start a potentially interesting but large-scale conflagration and all-out email shooting war. While I have enjoyed reading many of the "hot-button" OT threads as time has allowed, I can see it now: OT Hot Button (OTHB) on 3000-L: We could have: Right to Bear Arms (in US and for contrast in other countries) Centralized government versus local control (issue by issue) Abortion Politics (hey, the US "silly season" has four months to run) Religion or the lack thereof (endless opportunities) ..... there's more, but just the above should do for at least 10 years worth of back-and-forth argument and harangue..... NOW....: As per above, I actually find many of these posts ranging from mildly to very interesting.... but as the general volume of OT traffic (both so marked and "stealth") has grown while demands on my time do the same, I'm starting to wonder: Especially in consideration of our members who reside in countries OTHER THAN the US; to whom US politics and Constitutional debate may be of less than primary interest (but for time-challenged citizens of the 50 States too): Might it be time (seriously) for a separate 3000-LOT (hp3000-L Off Topic) list ??.... If 3000-LOT existed (*and* Jeff would not be overly put out time and management-wise) in setting it up, then all members who wished could subscribe to 3000-LOT in addition to 3000-L (I would !!). No archives (keep your own copies if you want 'em) and minimalist management. 3000-LOT could then be essentially anything and everything goes (within what I hope would be a generally automatic consensus minimum level of civilized discourse).... and posts that currently go to 3000-L that are entirely (or close to that) OT would *all* go to 3000-LOT (**minor** diversions into OT-land *within* on-topic threads on 3000-L would still be "allowed" (hey, there's got to be a little flexibility for the world to remain tolerable)..... Comments ??... bricks and rotten eggs ??.. Ken Sletten