NRA blinded by its passion for guns

NRA blinded by its passion for guns

I read with amusement the NRA member’s condemnation of the excellent political cartoon that accurately describes the feelings of the majority of our citizenry toward the NRA. He says the five million NRA members are “reasonable, caring law-abiding citizens who want personal protection for themselves and their families and the same for everyone.” He also says police do their best, but “cannot be on the spot in every case when needed.”

First, personal protection cannot be the reason that some members of the NRA have and defend their level of firepower. The Sandy Hook killer’s weaponry had nothing to do with personal protection. Assault weapons are not necessary for self protection.

Second, his statements offering the protection of the NRA gun owners for everyone and the need to be armed in the absence of police when they are needed sounds like the beginning of anarchy wherein each of these gun toting NRA types will be the judge and jury in certain situations based on their assessment of what he or she sees. I personally feel more threatened by this than by the possibility of a crime being committed.

Finally, the writer absolves the NRA for blame for the Sandy Hook disaster. I feel that the position of the NRA allowing for no control of guns allowed that sick young man to prepare for and put him in a position to do what we all recoiled in horror from. Yes, there were a number of factors, but as with other mass shootings before and those that assuredly are in the future, the NRA’s posture regarding the dissemination of weapons was and will be a contributing factor in each instance. That they are so blinded by their passion for guns that they cannot see this link is a tragedy.

Raymond Bellock

Sleepy Hollow