A Simple Guide to the Second Amendment

by Katherine Schweit, John Miller (foreword)

Curious about the Second Amendment and its evolving meaning over the past two centuries? Looking for straight facts? Your journey begins here. Once dismissed as the "lost" Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, the Second Amendment now stands center stage in one of America’s most divisive issues, an increasing rate of firearms-related deaths. Claiming more than 45,000 lives annually, firearms-related deaths are now the leading cause of death for children and adolescents. Rural America suffers most when more than 50% of firearms deaths annually are suicides. And in urban areas, where more than 80% of our population lives, firearms homicides persist.

Easy-to-read and politics free, this book is packed with facts to clear away confusion and mountains of misinformation. Curious beginners and seasoned experts will find details to help everyone calmly discuss the history behind the Second Amendment, U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions, and so many other firearms-related issues, including red flag laws, background checks, semi-automatic weapons, AR-15s, ghost guns, firearms training, mental health matters, and the role domestic violence plays.

Join the army of those ready to take back our safety and solve one of the most divisive issues facing our nation today. Solutions don’t come from silence. This book is packed with information about dozens of practical solutions under discussion to stop the killing. Empower yourself to play a role in reducing gun violence.

Learn the facts. Read about practical solutions. End the violence.

Previously published under the title How to Talk About Guns with Anyone.

Genres: Politics, History

164 pages, Paperback

Published May 17, 2023

About the author

Katherine Schweit is a former journalist and Chicago prosecutor who spent 20 years as an FBI Special Agent. In her latest book, "Women Who Talk to the Dead," two women lead the largest FBI exhumation in history to give voice to 200 forgotten murder victims. True crime fans of "Mindhunter," "I'll Be Gone in the Dark" and "We Keep the Dead Close," will love how Schweit blends her expertise in law enforcement with her gift for storytelling, to bring readers this gripping true-crime story of social justice. In the spirit of award-winning writers Amber Hunt and Jana Monroe, "Women Who Talk to the Dead" chronicles the remarkable journey of Detroit Police Detective Shannon Jones and FBI Special Agent Leslie Larsen who assemble a team led by female forensic anthropologists, scientists, and investigators who methodically unearthed Detroit's painful past. The book is "especially and unreservedly recommended" by the Midwest Book Review, which calls the book "a simply fascinating read from start to finish," and "inspiring." The New York Times' Devlin Barrett calls it "a haunting account of what it takes to give victims’ families something more important than closure—to give them answers”.


Schweit is also the author of "Stop the Killing: How to End the Mass Shooting Crisis," and the dual titled, "A Simple Guide to the Second Amendment/How to Talk About Guns With Anyone." Honoring the book with its Ben Franklin Award, the Independent Book Publishers Association called the book a "comprehensive, non-partisan guide [to] equips readers with strategies to engage in informed discussions about guns in America."

Her FBI career centered on justice against all odds, earning her two U.S. Attorney General Awards for fighting for victims. Now, she offers hope to those impacted by violence on her podcast, Stop the Killing, with her London co-host Sarah Ferris. She is a founding member of the Bureau Consortium consulting group and owns Schweit Consulting LLC., providing crisis and communications guidance to schools, businesses, and government agencies. She sits as an expert advisor on several boards, including the University of Michigan’s National Center for School Safety. She earned a BA in journalism from Michigan State University and a JD from DePaul College of Law, where she is currently an adjunct professor. Based outside Washington, D.C., she continues to write, teach, and advocate for justice and a safer future for everyone.

Reviews

[Peter Z. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Can tell just from the description that this id s skewed , partisan take on a very important issue. The "number one killer of life" line has been thoroughly debunked, for starters. You know who the "children" are , who are getting killed by people with guns? 15 or 16 through 19 year olds. Yes they consider 19 year olds as children in that bogus statistic. And how are they dying? It's not guns stores improperly or stray gunfire or suicide. It's raw, person to person violence among gang members in the inner cities.

How are you gonna fix a massive social problem like that? Take away the guns so nobody can exercise and their right to defend themselves when someone breaks into their house? Yeah, no, it's been tried. They got rid of guns in England and the numbers just changed to "knife violence". Same numbers. Then they banned knives. And what happened then? Mob bearings and all other sorts of violent lynchings.

So don't call it "gun.violence" like a gun jumped up and decided to kill someone. Not any more than a saw jumped up on its own and decided to cut someone tree. The only difference is, you can take away a saw. We have a constitutional right to "arms" such as guns or any other common item that can be borne. Read that carefully, nobody is saying there's a right to own a grenade launcher or a fighter jet.

Oh, one other point on that "deaths among children"
Not only do you the INCKUDE 19 year olds to get to the number they wanted. They also EXCLUDE 0-1 year olds. Because the number of drownings and chokings in that age group, when added to all the other causes of death among kids, makes death by accidental gunshot a drop in the ocean..

Bit for some reason nobody is trying to shut down all the pools, which wouldn't have a single child drown if parents were being responsible. And think of all the lives that could be saved if you banned swimming pools and forced everyone to drain theirs and fill it in or go to jail. But we don't like that just be ause it takes away the fun? They're not constitutionally protected! Not by a long shot! And not a word about "common sense pool control laws" or banning pools that are too deep.

Which just proves that "gun control" is about one thing only. It's not the guns. It's about taking control. It's the same totalitarians who locked us inside our houses and decided who was essential and who wasn't, that want to take away the guns.

Sorry, but that's a no from me.

Every mad dictator and killer of millions of innocent, before they did their "cleansing", from Hitler to Mao to Stalin, first thing they did was take away everyone's guns. Same as they did right here in our country to keep the slaves in shackles. Guns for gosh people?!--no way we'll think of a way to stop that so we can keep them under control!

Here's your answer in a nutshell. When the government tells you "you don't need guns" ... that's when you need guns, because they're about to do something and they don't want you talking back.

Take it to the bank

[Michael Ginch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has provided me with significant insights regarding the second amendment. As a gun owner, it is crucial to express your opinions while also backing them up with factual information. Kate excels in offering the reader valuable and informative content. The next time I participate in a gun debate, I will certainly reference this book.