I guess hindsight is easy. Nevertheless, I think our Founding Fathers were not the infinitely wise sages we have been led to believe they were.

I am thinking of Article II of the Bill of Rights, which provided for “A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State.” If they had stopped there, it would have been one of the wisest articles in the Bill of Rights.

They thought it a good idea, however, to attach a “rider” to that good article that would allow any wing-nut to bear arms. Their mistake was in not defining what the arms were to be.

Of course, Big Bertha and machine guns and assault rifles were unheard of then; but if they had studied the history of weapons, they would have seen progress in their killing efficiency improving as time passed.

The other thing they established was a precedent of attaching “pork” riders that had not been discussed on the floor of Congress to another bill that had been discussed and showed a good possibility of being made into law.

Unscrupulous congresspersons have been using it unashamedly ever since. (How many retired congresspersons have you seen who are not millionaires?)

Where were all the Founding Mothers at that time? Oh, I know, they had to wait for suffrage.

Robert W. Vitolo

Waterville