NFA & Hughes Amendment

• October 12, 2023
• By Jared Daub

NFA & Hughes Amendment

“[T]he unlimited power of the sword is not in the hands of either the federal or state governments, but where I trust in God it will ever remain, in the hands of the people.” ~ Tench Coxe

Gun Rights are Human Rights

Gun Rights are Human Rights. They aren’t granted by man or government, and we do not need to ask permission to own firearms, regardless of the action or cyclic rate. Owning a rifle is an American Birthright; Yet somehow we continue to have this right attacked by the political class. So what gives? Why are our Human Rights under attack constantly. Further, why is this topic worth discussing? And what is the big deal with the NFA & Hughes Amendment? Let’s dive in.

History of Military Arms in Our Nation

As I think about framing the argument of the right to own military weaponry, my thoughts immediately go to our state of Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania had immense influence on the founding of the nation. It was a state rich in resources, rich in population, and diverse among the colonies. It is no surprise that some of the most radical founders resided in this great state. Pennsylvanians had a long history of firearm ownership and manufacturing. It is, indeed, a part of our DNA.

A Constitution Ratified PRIOR to the Federal Constitution.

Pennsylvania ratified its constitution on September 28, 1776. [Link to Full Constitutional Text from 1776]

I want to quote how our framers secured the right to own firearms over a decade before the US existed.

• Chapter 1, Section XIII: “That the people have a right bear arms for the defence of themselves and the state; and as standing armies in the time of peace are dangerous to liberty, they ought not to be kept up: And that the military should be kept under strict subordination to, and governed by, the civil power.”
  

It is interesting how there is no mention of the Militia. There is no mention of regulation, EXCEPT that the PEOPLE should hold the “standing armies” at bay through their civil power. The ONLY fear laid out in this early constitution, was a fear that standing armies will abuse the populace. Think on that for a minute.

In 1790, Pennsylvania adopted yet another revision to the states constitution. [Link to Full Constitutional Text from 1790] Let’s take a look at the right to bear arms in this later text:

• Article IX: “To bear arms.
  Sect. XXI. That the right of the citizens to bear arms, in defence of themselves and the state, shall not be questioned.”

Shall not be questioned is a POWERFUL statement. Let’s stew on that for a minute. Questioned. What does this mean? What is the context? How and why would they secure the rights in such a profound manner?

Let’s study a paragraph from Tench Coxe:

“The power of the sword, say the minority of Pennsylvania, is in the hands of Congress. My friends and countrymen, it is not so, for THE POWERS OF THE SWORD ARE IN THE HANDS OF THE YEOMANRY OF AMERICA FROM SIXTEEN TO SIXTY.65 The militia of these free commonwealths, entitled and accustomed to their arms, when compared with any possible army, must be tremendous and irresistible. Who are the militia? are they not ourselves. Is it feared, then that we shall turn our arms each man against his own bosom. Congress have no power to disarm the militia. Their swords, and every other terrible implement of the soldier, are the birth-right of an American. What clause in the state or federal constitution hath given away that important right. . . . [T]he unlimited power of the sword is not in the hands of either the federal or state governments, but where I trust in God it will ever remain, in the hands of the people.”

A belief that the PEOPLE own the rights, and the government MUST respect those Rights.

Our founders laid the principles of this Republic out so plainly, yet somewhere along the road we strayed. The historic documents point to “regulation” of armies and government bodies. But at the same time, when the founders write about the right to bear arms, they CLEARLY state that they mean carrying arms on ones person. They never reference hunting, they ONLY reference the dangers of uncontrolled governments and standing armies (regulated Militias).

In fact, historically speaking, the only reason to disarm people is to abuse them. Remove the firearms and abuses quickly follow. But what if we could convince the people to willingly give away their rights? Now there is a novel thought..

The 1900’s brought a new era of regulation and control.

The early 1900’s was an era of new abuses and new deals. The story of the first instances of gun control cannot be discussed without first discussing the Volstead Act. The 18th Amendment to the constitution was passed in 1919 and effectively made the US “dry”. Alcohol was illegal. Producing, transporting, or consuming alcohol would result in punishments or imprisonment. Yet the populace continued to consume alcohol, blatantly ignoring the demands of the government.

Regulations created crime. Crime created Criminals. Criminals Created Empires.

The term “organized crime” results from the prohibition era. This is the first time where rampant criminals became VERY organized. Mafias were born. Mobsters controlled entire cities. Violence spiked and territorial battles constantly made the news. Congratulations, government, you effectively created the crime wave. I wonder what your great idea will be to fix this mess?

Ratification of the 21st Amendment to the Constitution.

The 21st amendment to the constitution is the only amendment which removes a previous amendment. The 21st Amendment effectively ended Prohibition. The government admitted: Prohibition was a FAILURE in regulation. The people refused compliance. Speakeasies were rampant, the black market of alcohol was not only booming, it was INSANELY profitable.

But the problems surrounding gang crime were enabled and matured for the 14 years the volstead act existed. What to do?

1934: The year we lost our gun rights.

On June 26, 1934 the 73rd congress enacted what would be known as the “National Firearms Act.” This act created fictional terms out of nothing. Terms like “Short Barrel Rifle” and “Short Barrel Shotgun”. You know, fantasy terms to scare the populace. Sound familiar? The basis of this new legislation was NOT a ban on machine guns. No, that would have kicked off an entire constitutional debate that most likely would have lost. Instead, they settled on a “tax and register” scheme. Instead of telling you that you aren’t allowed to own the guns they hated, they simply “required” you to pay a $200 tax ($4000+/- at the time of enactment), register your gun with the government, and wait for your tax stamp like a good slave. Sounds fun, right?

The government created the enemy, enabled the enemy, removed the legislation that enabled the enemy, then punished the citizenry.

Rather than simply admit that the 18th amendment created the problems running rampant in our cities,

the government decided full tyranny was better. Almost like that was the end goal all along. You know: Something about never letting a good crisis go to waste.

Ironically, citizens picketed for the right to drink beer, but they were eerily quiet when the government said “YOU DON’T NEED MACHINE GUNS.” Americans wanted

to be intoxicated more than they desired to be free.

Further regulation that eroded our rights even more.

In 1968 the Gun Control Act further restricted citizens ability to register NFA weaponry. Further, Then in 1986 President Reagan signed the “Firearm Owners Protection Act” into law. This is where the REAL abuse was solidified. Representative William J. Hughes added an amendment to this legislation that effectively banned ALL new machine guns that were no registered prior to May 19, 1986. Want to know why you can’t own new machine guns? Thank Hughes. From 1934 through 1986, anyone had a pathway to manufacture and own NEW machine guns. After the FOPA was passed, that was ended. The era of being able to manufacture machine guns JUST like SBR’s and SBS’s was officially over. This had a detrimental impact on our rights.

Supply and Demand.

These officials were not stupid. The effect of the FOPA created a LIMITED supply of “legal” machine guns. What does this mean? If you WANTED one, you now had to purchase a LIMITED supply item that demanded a premium. Go look up a transferrable machine gun. Look at the prices. It is INSANE. You can EASILY spend $50K or more for a transferrable machine gun. You think this was an accident? Just like how the $200 tax in 1934 made it impossible for regular citizens to own machine guns, the price of transferable guns does that to this day.

Post Sample Machine Guns

The term “Post Sample” machine guns are guns manufactured by the military, government or licensed manufactured AFTER may 19, 1986. These machine guns can NEVER be sold to the populace. There is NO legal course to manufacture a NEW machine gun and transfer it to yourself personally. This is the true crime: A right you possess you cannot exercise without the risk of being arrested and charged with a felony.

The Human Right to Own all Arms

Our populace needs to solidify our stance on this issue. Our founders made it clear: the right to bear arms was NOT about hunting. It was NOT about personal defense. Those are BOTH natural rights, commonly known to man. What our founders feared the most was an abusive government. We need to answer a simple question: If we KNOW governments all dissolve into abusing their citizens, why would we ever allow the abusive government the ability to tell us what guns we can and cannot own? Food for thought.

Where do we go from here

We are passionate about this topic because we desire to see the government out of our gun rights. Additionally, Gun rights are HUMAN rights. The fact that we allow the government to make us meet “criteria” to own firearm is lunacy. The government has proven itself to be untrustworthy, corrupted, and full of evil, old, degenerate elitist pricks. You want them telling you what you can and cannot own? The most common argument for control is to limit crime, shootings, and other heinous acts. Let’s look at Chicago’s murder rate in 1930 and in 2021.

In 1930 Chicago had a population of 3.37 Million. The homicide rate was 14.6 per 100,000 people. In 2021 the population was 2.69 million. The homicide rate was 29.6 per 100,000. Oh yeah, that gun control is working GREAT.

Demand your rights, exercise your rights

The solution to topics like this is by US reviving our CULTURE first. Politics reflects our cultural realities. Live with truth and integrity. Be an example to the culture around you. At The Exodus Companies we OFTEN talk about the seven F’s of Culture. These seven ingredients of culture are:

• Faith
• Family
• Fitness
• Finance
• Fulfillment
• Freedom
• Fruition

Personal Excellence and a Life of Example

We need to be pursuing personal excellence in these categories. We need to DEMAND our government submits to US. No longer can we tolerate or accept the theft of our rights and freedoms. Afterall, our rights come from God, not man. And the government has no place telling us what rights we can and cannot exercise.

We MUST continue putting the work into our culture. A cultural revival is inevitable. Be a part of it. See you all next time.