What Is a "Well-Regulated Militia"?br Intelligence Squared U.S. Debates - Kaufman Centerbr "A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed." -2nd Amendmentbr br Recent mass shooting tragedies have renewed the national debate over the 2nd Amendment. Gun ownership and homicide rates are higher in the U.S. than in any other developed nation, but gun violence has decreased over the last two decades even as gun ownership may be increasing. Over 200 years have passed since James Madison introduced the Bill of Rights, the country has changed, and so have it guns.