Gun debate: Banning guns a fool's errand; right to life trumps right to carry
Want to end school shootings? Arm staff
With each report about a new gunfire incident, it should be obvious that the many attempts to disarm legal gun owners are not working. Like the "Controlled Substance Act" passed in 2014, restrictions on lawful use of anything does not work. The CSA was designed to reduce the harmful effects of "pain pills" and other addictive drugs. How has that worked out?
If government wants an effective response, it should encourage people to legally provide their own "first response" when shots are fired. I believe it is likely that people with a concealed carry license are the most law-abiding people. Certainly, any teacher or school employee who is licensed should be encouraged to "carry" when at work. Any student who wants to attack a school should know that the response will be quick and violent.
The constant efforts to ban guns will not solve any problem.
Keith A. Farnham, Fairview
U.S. worships at 'feet of idols wrought of cold steel'
The Supreme Court's recent ruling overturning the national ban on rapid-fire rifle bump stocks is a blatant betrayal of any "pro-life" ethic the court claims to champion.
In their June 3, 2022, letter to Congress on gun violence, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops explicitly calls for a "total ban on assault weapons and limitations on civilian access to high-capacity weapons and ammunition magazines…including a ban on bump stocks." Data show that restrictions on high-capacity magazines and accessories like bump stocks can reduce the number of people killed in mass shootings by as much at 38%, and those injured by as much as 77%.
And yet, America continues to worship at the feet of idols wrought of cold steel. Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, reminds us that "the Second Amendment did not come down from Sinai; the right to bear arms will never be more important than human life."
More: Supreme Court strikes down Trump-era ban on bump stocks for guns
Thanks to the Supreme Court, the number of innocent people wounded, maimed and killed by gun violence will grow exponentially. Until we confront and condemn our "culture of guns," pleas from politicians and preachers advocating a "culture of life" ring hollow.
Deacon Keith G. Kondrich, Pittsburgh
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie letters: Is the right to carry or right to life more important?
