Some believe, like Paul Gibbs in his Nov. 2 letter, that guns are made to kill people and target practice and hunting are mere excuses. The word he left out is protection.
Today, Beverly Hills has popular shooting clubs for women. Why do women join and take training? Just to hear the bang? No. They want to protect themselves.My father returned from World War I and began a ranch and store at Colton in Spanish Fork Canyon. That town has disappeared, but then that area was a thriving rail center for livestock. Early trouble began with robbers but only for a while. After using his rifle a few times the robberies ceased. Without his gun, Dad would have been victimized.
The Constitution says the people shall have the right to keep and bear arms. The right shall not be infringed. It was to be a permanent right to protect Americans against any enemy intruder.
The "Second Amendment Restoration Act of 1999," HR407, is now before Congress. In its introduction it states:
1. Law-abiding citizens use guns to defend themselves against criminals 2.5 million times a year, or 6,850 times a day. This means that firearms are used 60 times more often to protect lives of honest citizens than to take lives.
2. Of the 2.5 million self-defense cases, more than 200,000 are by women defending themselves.
3. Citizens shoot and kill over 1,500 criminals a year, which is twice as many as police kill.
4. Police cannot protect every citizen. There are 150,000 police officers to protect 250 million Americans or 1,700 citizens per officer. Our police officers do well but are spread too thin. If you are threatened and call the police, the chances are the wait will be from five to 30 minutes. In the meantime you may be taking harp lessons above.
Therefore, don't be swayed by the whiners about bad guys being people who buy guns to kill people. Guns are used primarily for protection.
Paul Lewis Harmon
Salt Lake City