Gun bills are irresponsible
To the editor:
Just when I thought that things could not get any more bizarre in Augusta, two Republicans introduced gun bills, supported by the NRA. The bills would allow a person to carry a concealed weapon without a permit. Carry a concealed weapon in the Statehouse and state parks, historic places, premises licensed for consumption of alcohol, and on state property under the jurisdiction of the Dept. of Public Safety and the Legislative Council.
These people often quote the 2nd Amendment which gives us the right to bear arms. What they do not mention is that when this amendment was approved people were using muzzle loaded flintlocks. With today’s weapons you can shoot more bullets in seconds than our ancestors could shoot in a day. With today’s weapons some people are better armed than our police officers. I was brought up with guns, and I served on the battalion rifle team in the Army. I never felt I needed to own an AK-47 or a pistol that would fire 31 bullets without reloading.
The NRA is one of the most powerful lobbyists in the country, and neither party wants to cross them. As long as the NRA members put up with this, it will continue.
In 1979 when George H.W.Bush was contesting Ronald Reagan for the presidential nomination, he correctly labeled Reagan’s Trickle Down, Supply Side economics as Voodoo economics. This theory has been a dismal failure. The rich have gotten richer and the middle class is fast disappearing. We need to reduce spending and increase revenues.
The Republicans have given trillions of dollars in tax breaks to the rich, and some of them talk like they would take a bullet, before raising taxes, especially on the rich.
We need to invest in education, research and infrastructure. My better angels tell me we should help the needful elderly, the sick and hungry.
Bob Tweedie
Westfield
