Explaining Constitutional Amendments pic.twitter.com/oYkMPBe9Zi

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 13, 2023

The first picture shows Pepe sitting with a laptop open. The caption reads, “The First Amendment is for sharing memes with frens [friends].”

The second picture shows Pepe in tactical gear with a firearm in hand with the caption, “The Second Amendment is for when they try and stop me from sharing memes with frens.”

In short, Musk is trying to communicate that the First Amendment guarantees basic freedoms to the American people, particularly freedom of speech, and the Second Amendment allows Americans to defend those rights when they are violated.

[I’m not crazy about the Pepe imagery. Couldn’t Musk have redone it or looked for a similar point without goosing the groypers? Elon’s point is solid enough, however — and even if I dislike his imagery, it’s his right to use it. Twitter still has a long way to go to get entirely within the First Amendment on speech, but at least Musk seems to be going in the correct direction, if by fits and starts. — Ed]