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Re "The Gun Challenge: Reason to Hope After the Newtown Rampage" (editorial, Dec. 18):
Wouldn't it be a wondrous thing if, in the aftermath of our latest national tragedy, every rational, feeling member of the National Rifle Association were to follow the example of Senators Joe Manchin III and Mark Warner and call for a less rigid stance toward gun control?
Wouldn't it be amazing if every constituent of a pro-N.R.A. representative were to sign a petition stating strong support for more effective restrictions on weapons in this country?
It's hard to believe there are that many Americans who genuinely believe that easy access to the tools of destruction makes the world a better place to live in.
LOUISE T. GUINTHER
Forest Hills, Queens, Dec. 18, 2012
To the Editor:
I do not own a gun. In fact, I have never fired a gun with the exception of a BB gun as a teenager. Having said that, I wholeheartedly support the Second Amendment. However, I believe that we must begin to bring some sanity into this discussion.
The unspeakable tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School should challenge us to consider these measures:
¶There should be a waiting period to purchase any gun or rifle.
¶There should be a background check on all potential gun purchasers.
¶The mentally ill and convicted criminals should not be allowed to purchase or have weapons.
¶AK-47s and other automatic weapons should not be sold (with exceptions for the military and law enforcement).
¶High-capacity magazines and Teflon bullets should not be sold.
¶Guns should not be able to be bought over the Internet.
We can both maintain our Second Amendment rights and begin to put some safeguards in place to mitigate the likelihood of another Sandy Hook, Aurora, Virginia Tech and so on.
JAMES N. RASCATI
Woodbridge, Conn., Dec. 15, 2012
To the Editor:
When the heroes of Sandy Hook Elementary School defended 700 students against a lone gunman, they were also defending those children against an army of gun lobbyists — that force that continues to fight to allow hellish weapons to drop into the hands of our country's Adam Lanzas.
Gun zealots promote the fantasy that when faced with violence, any one of us — students, holiday shoppers and moviegoers — could click into commando mode and stop a maniac in a bulletproof vest, if only we were armed. But Nancy Lanza had staggering firepower. She couldn't stop her own son.
The gun lobbyists keep telling us that our "freedoms" depend on having the ability to kill one another, that this is the only way to protect our children. But don't they see? It's movie ushers, mall janitors and grade-school teachers who have to protect our children from them.
LISA WILSON
Yarmouth, Me., Dec. 17, 2012
To the Editor:
In too many mass shootings, when the bullets start flying, potential victims rightly run for their lives. Sometimes a hero emerges, someone who tried to stop the carnage. In the Connecticut shooting, instead of running away, teachers hid students, while the principal and other staff members reportedly ran toward the gunman to try to save the children.
This is unimaginable heroism — to be willing to die for a child who is not your own. Who among us would be prepared to do this? We expect so much from our teachers and administrators, but never did we imagine this.
Next time, when our teachers are being maligned for political sport, let us remember that on this day they were priceless.
PATTY BAUMANN
Hillsdale, N.J., Dec. 17, 2012
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