I agree entirely with Diane Pleninger (Letters, Dec. 20). The sooner the Second Amendment follows the 18th Amendment (prohibition) into history the better.

When the Second Amendment was introduced, its drafters didn’t simply copy the clause in the original Bill of Rights (1689), they updated it to suit the conditions of their time (1791). Now, 221 years later, it is beyond time for us to do the same.

The Second Amendment today bears little resemblance to its original purpose. It is no longer tied to militia service (DC v Heller). It prevents individual states from regulating access to weapons that were unimaginable in 1791 (McDonald v Chicago). The Founding Fathers never intended the states to be so limited. This is a byproduct of the limitations imposed on the states after the Civil War (14th Amendment, 1868).

Repeal would enable individual states to update their firearms regulations in line with the wishes of their voters. Repeal is long overdue.

— Dr. Ian van Tets

Anchorage