Letters: Gun control debated
A table of illegal firearms confiscated in a large weapons bust in East Harlem is on display during a news conference in New York City. (Oct. 12, 2012) Credit: Getty Images
He we go again with the illogical thinking ["Push for school-to-police alarms," News, Jan. 24].
Legis. Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai) said she'd like to see a local notification system that can notify police almost immediately if someone comes into a school and begins shooting. That wouldn't save lives, even if the police were around the corner. When they arrived, it would be too late.
This is all because some politicians have a phobia about armed guards at schools.
Dennis Wulf, Lynbrook
It never ceases to amaze me the lengths some people go to in their interpretation of the Second Amendment ["Notable on Newsday.com," Opinion, Jan. 24]. One writer claims that "our right to own weapons supersedes government laws."
The reason our government works is because it is based on the law as enacted through the legislative process and upheld by the courts. When the Founding Fathers devised the Second Amendment -- which can legally be repealed or further amended -- they had good reason to be wary of the experiment of forming a democratic republic for which there was no frame of reference or track record. But now, over 200 years later, ours is a time-proven system in which issues are worked out through civil discourse and debate, and not by assault weapon-toting thugs in the streets.
Gerard Simonette, Smithtown
Last Aug. 24, Jeffrey Johnson, who had been fired from his job, shot former co-worker Steven Ercolino dead outside the Empire State Building. In the subsequent shootout with police, nine bystanders were wounded.
Inside a school hallway, the chance of a bullet ricochet is increased, and so is the potential chance of innocents being killed. If a future school gunman would have the courtesy to wait until the hallways are cleared, I'd cast my vote for an armed school guard. That guarantee does not exist.
The best way to protect our children is by closing loopholes in our lax gun laws, mandating background checks and screening for mental health issues of any potential buyer.
Charlie Benkov, Flanders
Some do not understand the argument that if you take away guns from the good guys, only bad guys will have guns. Maybe they can understand this: Drugs such as cocaine and heroin have been illegal here for decades. However, we have a significant problem with drug trafficking and use.
Making guns illegal would not stop criminals from getting them. In fact, it would make it more profitable for gun traffickers to obtain and sell them.
Criminals would still get guns as long as they were made somewhere in the world.
Ed Tolentino, Massapequa Park
