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Letter: Demonizing guns is wrong approach

The Columbian
Published: February 18, 2013, 4:00pm

As the investigators try to learn from the school shooting in Connecticut, politicians swing into action with grandiose speeches about passing new laws to stop these senseless acts.

Here are some facts that have been ignored by many in the press. Connecticut already has a law that bans “assault rifles” and that law has been on the books since the mid-1990s. The Federal Gun-Free School Zone Act of 1995 states that people with guns cannot walk within 1,000 feet of any school (grades K-12). If laws can prevent school shootings, why did these two laws not do just that? So what is the answer?There needs to be an honest conversation across America regarding the lack of mental health treatment, the violent video game culture and general societal desensitization to all forms of violence. Any crime committed with a gun should send the convicted suspect to prison for the entire sentence the law allows. A second offense should get life in prison. We should require that the prosecutors and judges do their jobs.

Demonizing guns is nothing more than smoke and mirrors to deflect away from issues that nobody in government really wants to talk about.

Harvey D. Olson

Washougal

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