In “Why I send money to the NRA”[1] (Valley Voices April 21), Jerrold Jensen well expresses his side of the gun debate.
Mr. Jensen and I both served as Army officers, he in the Vietnam era, I in the World War II era. He’s 77; I’m 91. In 1944, Infantry Basic Training, this New Yorker – who had never fired a rifle before – became an avid Garand M1 student, and qualified for sharpshooter.
About 50 years ago, at a Wyoming dude ranch, I had a great fireside debate with people from North Dakota. We agreed on this: If you live in a remote farmhouse, the right to own a gun makes sense. But if you live in New York City, the right to own means that someone on a tall apartment rooftop can shoot people.
Worth noting: Since the Second Amendment was written, this nation has largely evolved from people on farms to people in cities.
Also worth noting: Guns kept at home are about 10 times more likely to kill family members or good guys, than home-threatening bad guys. Arming schoolteachers might well result in similar statistics.
Henry D. Friedman, Sanger
References
- ^ Why I send money to the NRA” (www.fresnobee.com)
