Guns safeguard us from tyranny | The Fresno Bee

Saul Eskin (letter Oct. 18) needs to do more reading. He states, “The firearms of that time were muzzle-loaded, single-shot muskets and revolvers. Our Founding Fathers could not have imagined the profusion of deadly automatic weapons that are … everywhere in the U.S.”

First, revolvers didn’t exist in the 18th century to any degree (other than a few rare curiosities), but pistols were common. Second, most of our citizens today do not have access to automatic weapons, but rather semi-automatic, meaning you must press the trigger each time for it to discharge. Third, most male citizens were required to own a weapon to maintain that militia.

Why? Not for hunting, as many progressives would have you believe. The sole purpose was to protect against tyranny from an overbearing and intrusive government. And that same reason still exists today, guaranteed by our Constitution.