Actually only the polar bears would really distinguish you from a Brit.
As for the second amendment, I'm afraid you are missing the context. The second amendment was certainly about freedom as a whole, as a matter of fact it's the second amendment that ensures all of the others.
You have to remember the context, mate. We had just tossed out the Brits
by force of arms for infringing on our freedoms, of course the second amendment was about freedom. The founding fathers held as a given that free men had the absolute right to defend themselves, and that free communities had the right to band together to defend their communities (the militia), that's why the bill of rights was added later......it was simply unfinished business. (business that the original framers considered self evident).
You may disagree, but I certainly don't feel like we live in a safer world than they did. The majority of the framers of the constitution were rarely in danger of bear attacks, and I doubt many of them hunted except for sport. The predators they were concerned about were the two legged kind, both the typical dark alleyway variety and the political oppressor type.
None of that has changed, if anything it has gotten worse.
I happen to like a lot of you guys, even if I think that your political views are divorced from reality. I don't believe that guns are the answer to all of your problems, but I don't believe they are the cause of any of them.