Actually, you just said what defines what is wrong with the US, in my opinion. The Constitution is a bible for US politics. It is a social contract between all of the people, not just among the "elite" who think they know best for everyone. It's been adjusted 27 times since its inception 228 years ago (an average of once every 9 years).
The last truly major revision to the Bible was some 2000 years ago, right? (not counting the Protestant revisions, which to me were relatively minor revisions, considering none actually hearken back to the Old Testament itself) and yet some 300-400 years ago people were indeed still stoning others to death even with that revision. Good thing we don't use the actual Bible as our law book.
The last Amendment to the Constitution (the 27th - not a very interesting one, dealing with congressional salaries) was ratified in 1992 (of course, it was proposed in 1789!). Though the 26th was ratified in 1971 (proposed the same year) and ensures that age cannot be used a criterion for restrict the vote for anyone over 18 years of age. I was 9 years old when that one was ratified. 25th, which defines the succession to the Presidency in case of death or removal of the sitting president, ratified in 1965. I was 3.
I've been alive for three changes to the Constitution.
I wonder how you feel about abortion? I'm not asking you for an answer (though I wouldn't mind knowing if you'd like to answer), I'm just wondering. I pose the question because it seems to me that most of the people who are for gun control are Democrats/liberals while most of the people that oppose abortion, I believe, are Republican/conservatives. Liberals have Constitutional protection for terminating the development of human fetuses (some people call it murder EDIT: there were 699,202 abortions performed in 2012 [202 abortions per 1000 live births], a bit more than any gun death rate, much less murder rate) but conservatives are barbaric for wanting to arms themselves, Both sides say the other side is quite barbaric, both themes have to do with deaths - although abortion is actually killing something that will become a thinking, breathing person while gun control supposedly stops some people from killing others. (I'm actually pro-abortion as a woman's right to exercise control over her own body, BTW, though early term).
If you want to get rid of guns, modify the Constitution so you can change the laws. If you can't get enough support to change the Constitution, you have no right to take away the rights of others even if you vehemently disagree. If you think the Constitution is an old bag of laws (and actually, it is not made up of a single law) that allows people to stone each other to death and don't like that you can't change it - well, I don't know what to say except I'm glad I'm protected, for the moment and only to an extent these days, it seems, from people who think the Constitution is irrelevant.
Personally, I'd love the US to break up into smaller countries, each populated by people with similar beliefs, so we don't have these conflicts. I'd have no problem at all with people who want to deny others the right to own guns in one country, and I'd be tickled pink to live in a country where people were encouraged to wear guns. And there would be room for all beliefs in-between in other, smaller countries as well.
