Automatic? Know your guns, people!

May 1, 2007 12:35 am

In the aftermath of the Virginia Tech killings, debates on automatic versus semiautomatic weapons have come to the fore.

While I applaud letter-writer Terry Wendland's acceptance of our constitutional right to bear arms, the lack of knowledge clearly shows through, considering that automatic weapons are already banned from the general public ["Gun rights don't include automatic weapons!" April 24].

Bonnie Erbe makes the same mistake in her op-ed ["Enough gun violence! It's time to act now," April 24].

How can these writers expect people to pay any attention to their rants when they don't even know what they are talking about?

There is clearly a huge difference between automatic and semiautomatic weapons, and it was the latter that was used by the deranged at Columbine and Virginia Tech.

Anyone who has ever hunted will probably be aware of how shaky one can get while trying to line up a scope or sights on the target. Now consider that someone is in your home pointing a gun at you as you raise your weapon for self-defense. How shaky are you going to be?

Frankly, I want a chance to shoot again and again with a semiautomatic weapon in case I miss the first time. Running is not an option.

If we ban guns, not only will it be only criminals who will have guns, it will also be only the government that has guns.

The Founding Fathers designed a self-governing society through the Constitution, and the Second Amendment was written in recognition that the government should indeed fear "we the people."

It is so sad that this is no longer the case. Government was supposed to be our servant. Now, we are the servants of government.

Stephen Despres King George