LETTER: Meaningless gun laws won’t stop the violence

It’s entertaining when a Review-Journal letter writer unwittingly refutes his own argument. That’s what Randall Buie did with his silly comparison of using disinfecting wipes and gun control (Saturday letter).

Mr. Buie correctly states that it makes sense to use wipes that kill 99.99 percent of germs. Unfortunately, the many proposed gun control laws might stop 0.01 percent of gun violence. Would you still use the disinfecting wipes if they killed 0.01 percent of all germs? Obviously not.

Mr. Buie manages to trot out the usual anti-gun talking points: gun advocates want mentally ill people to have guns, military weapons are commonplace on our streets (referring to the AR-15) and the NRA uses its vast political influence to “buy” politicians. Fact is, no one wants mentally ill people to possess firearms. The AR-15 may look like a military weapon, but it doesn’t operate as one, nor is it used by the military. Finally, the NRA doesn’t even make the list of top 50 contributors. The NRA has power because its members vote. In a democracy, that is where the true power should be.

We all want the gun violence to end. Unfortunately, the many laws being proposed will do nothing to stop it. I wish the answer was easy. If it was, this problem would already be fixed. Meaningless laws designed to make us “feel” safe aren’t the answer.