[onion2k]

Do those Americans who believe they need guns to form a militia genuinely think they could take on the US military in the need arose? In a battle between a thousand guys with AR-15s against a single M1 Abhrams tank my money would be on the tank.

[mcny]

If there was a genuine need for such an uprising, I'd hope there would be people within the government and the military willing to support us.

I wouldn't want to be in the tank killing civilians because "I was following orders" won't work when all is said and done.

My understanding is that guns are not the main source of resistance against tyranny. It is the fact that an economy as complex as ours requires broad participation by many people with specialized skills. A dictator can't run the economy simply by mining blood diamonds or crude oil here. I imagine you need the backing of at least twenty percent of the population.

[the_trapper]

Insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan have held up pretty well against the US military over all. Pervasive gun ownership in these countries prior to our involvement is a major part of this equation. I think a militia uprising in the US would fare even better because a substantial number of the members of said militia would have been trained by that very military they are fighting. I also believe that a substantial number of the National Guard units would be loyal to their state instead of a tyrannical federal government.

Let's also not forget that our country got its start by a scrappy group of farmers and tradesmen armed only with muskets and flintlock pistols that defeated the greatest world power at the time.

[malandrew]

There’s also a good chance that some, many or even most soldiers in the military would end up on the side of the insurgency. They oath is sworn to the Constitution, not the federal government.