The Unorganized Militia

Randy Barnett, quoting Section 311 of US Code Title 10: "The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and...under 45 years of age...the unorganized militia....consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.”

Here is the cold hard fact of the matter that will be evaded and denied but which must never be forgotten in these discussions: Often — whether on an airplane, subway, cruise ship, or in a high school — only self defense by the “unorganized militia” will be available when domestic or foreign terrorists chose their next moment of murder. And here is the public-policy implication of this fact: It would be better if the militia were more prepared to act when it is needed.

The passengers and crew aboard United Flight 93 were members of the unorganized militia. They were quick, and far more effective than the military, the police, or the National Guard precisely because they were the ones on the spot.