Yes, What *Does* This Mean?

The New York Times today has a story about the strict gun laws in Washington, D.C., which might soon come under review by the Supreme Court. One thing the Justices will consider is the meaning of the Bill of Rights statement described here:

A decision in 1939, United States v. Miller, held that a sawed-off shotgun was not one of the “arms” to which the Second Amendment referred in its single, densely written, and oddly punctuated sentence: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

We wouldn't call the punctuation odd. The syntax, however, is a mess. Did Yoda write it? We love to call him our Founding Father. May the Force be with us all.