Does banning automatic weapons violate the second amendment to the US Constitution?

[KrazyHorse]

I don't know of any source that would give you an actual number, but there were significant numbers of them. The congress issued letters of marque and reprisal to private parties with warships.

The major difference btw yesteryear and today is not that private citizens can get their hands on more destructive weapons at the top end - it is mainly that in real terms people have become much richer and therefore many more people can afford to purchase more destructive weapons...

[KrazyHorse]

Oh, the other side is also that we have become so much richer that we hold higher standards for safety nowadays.

[giblets]

Is there any Supreme Court precedent on whether the 2nd amendment gives people the right to own artillery?