Don’t be swayed by movie gun battles

Let’s assume that the town council in Aurora, Colo., passed laws that enforce the rule that all citizens of the town buy and openly carry or holster guns as many communities across the country have done in recent years. And then let’s also assume that all residents of the city sitting in a movie theater audience carried in guns. Would this implied threat by the city’s residents stop any gunman who may harbor insane thoughts and intentions from his planned assault? Doesn’t the perpetrator usually have the advantage in almost all circumstances, seeing that he has fewer boundaries than a law-abiding citizen?

Consider the Hollywood version of the good man versus the bad man. The good man waits for the bad man to draw. The good man usually wins the contest because he’s faster on the draw. In life, this is the reverse. The bad man hides covertly in theaters. The good man openly shows himself. And both have guns. The rest of this story is still unraveling.

James D. Cook

Schaumburg