Guns not the problem
Guns not the problem
Every time I read a paper or watch the news on the television, it is the same. We need more gun control. Guns kill people.
I had guns. They were locked away. I never saw them go out and kill anyone. If you have, please let me know.
Guns are safe when locked up and properly used. The only way they can kill is if some loon takes one and aims it at someone and pulls the trigger.
Now the politicians, who cannot even balance a budget, want more control. How about automobiles? They kill more people than guns, but I do not see anyone wanting to ban them. How about knives? We have had too many stabbings, as well.
We need families, doctors and others to observe loners and people who feel they are no one, people who are depressed, and those who feel that the world hates them. Treat them medically, so they can get rid of those ailments.
Another way is to stop eulogizing the loons or thrill-seekers in the media. Stop making killers famous. The more you make them a household name, then the more you make someone else wanting the fame and glory the media gives them. Each tries to outdo the other. Sure, report the event, but do not spend weeks telling all the gory things. The media has a habit of doing just that. Without praise and glory, then maybe the senseless killings will stop.
John Gallipeau
Honomu
Keep ‘em strict
In the article, “Hawaii’s gun laws among strictest in nation” (Tribune-Herald, Dec. 30), former Kona Councilman Curtis Tyler is quoted saying that Hawaii’s gun laws are “probably more restrictive than they need to be” and that he would like to see the state allowing more people to carry weapons.
After recent events, this is completely in the opposite direction in which the whole country should be moving. More guns is not the answer. Hawaii, with some of the strictest gun laws, has some of the lowest gun-crime levels, and that is not a coincidence. Strict gun laws do correlate to low gun-crime rates.
The following are headlines from a Tucson, Ariz., newspaper, all from the same day (Dec. 22). Arizona is a state with very loose gun laws — a state where it is very easy to obtain a permit to carry a concealed weapon, something which ex-councilman Tyler says is a constitutional right and an issue of “public safety and self defense.”
“Man shot at 49ers Country Club.” “Three people shot at midtown strip club.” “Shots fired in Tucson Mall parking lot.” “Man shoots, kills woman, himself.” “Boy, 6, takes gun to school.” “Suspected carjacker and Tucson police dog shot and killed.” “Tucson guns sales surge after Newtown.” “Tucson teen shot while riding in car dies from wounds.”
Are those the kind of headlines we want in Hawaii? Ask any police officer if they think things would be “safer” if people were allowed to carry weapons. I am sure they would all agree that it is best if we let them do their job.
We should be proud to have some of the strictest gun laws in the country and find ways to have other states emulate us, and not to look for excuses to loosen the existing laws. So, please, for everyone’s safety and sake, do not loosen any of Hawaii’s gun laws.
Rodrigo F.V. Romo
Hilo