Reply #177: we have reached the heart of the matter

[hansberrym]

This thread might be summed up as a referendum on what constitutes a morally and intellectually honest argument.

Mr.Benchley apparently believes that it is acceptable to quote a person out of context for the purpose of impuning that person's arguments and character. He also engages in making knowingly false statements (such as the claim made in this thread that an Individual Rights interpretation of the Second Amendment did not exist prior to 1975).

Those who agree with him stand on one side of a larger issue than the Second Amendment.

Does anyonwe remember the case of the TV "news" show that staged an exploding pick-up truck to highlight the dangers of side mounted gasoline tanks? What was not told to the viewers of this "documentary" was that the wrong gas cap was used and an incindiary device was employed to start the fire. This "news " show was forced to retract and apologize for thier dishonest reporting.
Had they simply disclosed the facts and presented the exploding truck sequence as a simulation of what might happen, instead of a documentary of what did actually happen, they would have been on firm ground.