“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State.” In 1791 a militia was not a distant professional army. It was the able-bodied citizenry, expected to turn out with their own arms if the country or their community were in danger. “Well regulated” meant trained and orderly, not “endlessly restricted.” The Founders had just fought a war against a king who used standing troops. They wanted a free state that could defend itself without putting all the guns in the government’s hands.
KatNap Fever! 