I snicker at the idea that the right to bear arms holds the government in check. Please. What happens to militia complexes when they try to resist the government? And if that was going on on a wide and large scale, trust me, they wouldn't be worried about the bad PR rap.

It will never be little guys with handguns and hunting rifles that stop a slide into fascism or authoritarianism. You could just as easily argue those guys will be helping it along as fighting it.