Column on Second Amendment should have waited | Letters To Editor | thesunchronicle.com – The Sun Chronicle

To the editor:

Re: Dont like the Second Amendment, change the Constitution by Bob Foley, column, May 27:

Bob Foley, and The Sun Chronicle, too, displayed an amazing sense of poor timing. Obviously, Foley has strong feelings about the Second Amendment; I believe it is an important amendment, too, so long as those who own guns are responsible hunters, sportsmen, and/or those who want to protect their homes.

Foley should have, however, waited to write his piece until the 19 young children and two teachers were buried and properly mourned.

I do not want guns taken away from responsible owners; I do want it to be more difficult to gain access to guns, especially assault weapons. The boy who shot the children and teachers should not have had easy access to two AR-15s or 300+ rounds of ammunition. Our Founding Fathers wrote the Second Amendment when weapons were muzzle loaders not when assault weapons could kill 21 in a matter of minutes, if not seconds.

While I agree with Foley that two of the missions of the NRA are to preserve the Second Amendment and promote gun safety rules, it is also one of the most powerful lobbies in Washington that fights gun legislation it feels may be restrictive.

I grew up and worked in Washington, D.C., and had two friends who worked for the NRA in the 1970s and 80s; they would tell you the NRA is not a big spender as far as funding members of Congress; it uses its money strategically to buy attack ads against candidates who support gun control laws. The NRA also uses its grading system to let its base know which members of Congress are pro-guns and those who are not. Bottom line: the NRA is very effective in blocking gun laws, even ones that a vast majority of our country support, such as comprehensive background checks.

I was an elementary school administrator during the time of Sandy Hook and the fear amongst students and parents was palpable for weeks, so this column should have been saved for later.

Thomas Fuller

Mansfield

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