Letter: Reasons for amendment no longer exist

Amendment II: 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.

What do these words mean?

These words were first mentioned in our country's first "Constitution" otherwise known as the "Articles of Confederation" in 1781. They were again noted when the U.S. Constitution was drafted in 1787. And again when our Constitution was ratified in 1791, along with nine additional Articles which we know as the Bill of Rights.

The "arms" available to our citizens at that time were swords, daggers, muskets, primitive pistols and a few rifles, none of which could easily be used for mass killings.

The Second Amendment was meant to assure that our citizens were not taken advantage of by the federal government with a large standing army. It was also promoted by the Southern states, whose citizens feared an uprising of the people they held in enslavement and wanted arms to control such an uprising.

These reasons no longer exist in the United States of America.

I often see questions in publications such as The Daily Herald as, "What can we do to stem gun violence?" "How can we eliminate mass shootings" and " How can we reduce crime in our country." The answer is to eliminate the gun.

Robert Lettecci

Palatine