Letter: America does have a well-regulated Militia. We just need to regulate those not in it.

As a veteran of a well-regulated Militia called the U.S. Army, I know something about what it really means to be part of such an organization.

In Vietnam (1967-1968) we soldiers sometimes carried a rifle, which should never be called a “gun,” or you might have to give your sergeant fifty (push-ups) if you did. We never had access to this rifle in our base area unless we were going on guard duty, or were under assault, as happened during Tet1968.

The rifle was kept locked up in an armory. This precaution was necessary, because even though we were well trained in the proper use of a rifle, accidents could and did happen. Also, some of us drank alcohol in our base camp, and we all knew that alcohol could lead to carelessness with a weapon.

In fact, I was once informed by an MP in Bien Hoa, a local town, that on average a soldier shot a fellow soldier at least once a day in local bars. This happened because a lot of soldiers carried their weapons in-transit, and would stop in a bar for a libation of their choice. Others went against military regulations, and carried their own personal weapons.

I was once attacked by a young Vietnamese male, whom I suspected was a Viet Cong (VC) insurgent, with a knife in the restroom of a Bien Hoa bar. I had to defend myself with my hands, because I did not have a pistol or a rifle with me.

In the field we did have helmets, flak jackets, grenades, and carried 400 rounds in 20 round magazines, plus our weapons. We never put our rifles on automatic, because this practice used up too much ammunition if we should come under assault. Yes, America does have a well-regulated Militia. Now, we just need to regulate those not in the Militia so that they do not kill the rest of us.

Luciano S. Martinez, Murray

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