Letters to the Editor 06-18-1999
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- EMS Feud - Educating Kids About Guns - Gun Laws - Hunter Education
EMS Feud
Editor, Times-Union:An article was written in another local paper, insinuating that our daughter, April Rodriguez, could have been saved in the May 15th fatal accident on 13. The coroner and the funeral director, neither of whom were contacted for the facts, feel that death was instant on impact due to severe head trauma. This is irresponsible reporting, and created great pain for both of us. But I'd like to ask the North Webster EMS and Syracuse EMS if they would like to explain to April's younger brother and sister and to the 400 people who came to April's viewing and funeral, if because of their petty feuding precious minutes weren't wasted for both of the two victims? How can you think of putting any "differences" before a life. You should be one unit working together NO MATTER WHAT.
Gary & Gail Rodriguez, North Webster
Educating Kids About Guns
Editor, Times-Union:I, too, am a parent of two youths that have attended Wawasee school system. One is still in high school; the other having graduated several years prior. I am also a volunteer Hunter Education Instructor for the DNR and on the board of directors for the Indiana Hunter Education Association - a group that serves without pay to help facilitate and improve the Hunter Education system in the state. I must first state that I admire the concern that the writer, Jane Plew, has for her children. She is obviously a caring parent and although we will disagree on matters related to hunter safety, if more parents were actively concerned about their children in this day and age, we might not be looking at such tragedies as Littleton, Colo., at this time.
Should a parent be opposed to their children learning proper firearms safety they should have that right, and their children should not be persecuted for that action. But might I suggest that properly trained law enforcement personnel (in this case, conservation officers) would better be able to impart the proper respect for firearms and their use among our youth as a counter-balance to the vicious portrayal of firearms by our movie and video game industry that is so highly promoted these days. Where else do they get these concepts that they later act out upon? They do not get these from the teaching of a hunter education class or from the firearms industry for that matter. I would also suggest that should the youth be a member of a family that has firearms or that should the youth later on in life decide to purchase one legally for whatever reason that he will be far better prepared to accept that responsibility in life than one who has not completed a properly instructed course. Properly trained personnel (in this case DNR conservation officers) are not violating any Zero Tolerance. They are law enforcement personnel and I would hope that the writer would consider this before embarking on a campaign at the Wawasee school system that, however well intentioned, may result in the loss of life due to a lack of proper understanding of firearms.
Michael Houze, Leesburg
Gun Laws
Editor, Times-Union:I'm really tired of this. I keep waiting for someone else to say something but I guess I'm stuck again.
I think it's time for Bill Clinton, Al Gore and the rest of the Washington anti-gun morons to take a little walk to their corner Wal-Mart. Anyone who has ever purchased firearms or ammunition there can tell you that they have a great big sign which reads "NO HANDGUNS OR HANDGUN AMMUNITION TO ANYONE UNDER 21. Federal Law." Now I'm not sure about this but I believe that was part of the 1968 Gun Control Act. In other words some 30 years. Now doesn't that give you a lot of confidence in our fearless leaders. They don't seem to have a clue as to what laws they've already passed.
The law they are supposedly working on is "Possession." Although a person under 21 cannot legally purchase a handgun, they may legally possess one at 18. The state of Indiana, for example, will issue a concealed carry permit to persons over the age of 18 if they have a clean record. I no longer recall the reasoning behind this but I believe it had to do with hunting. Although an 18 year old cannot buy a handgun, they may hunt with their father's with the proper permits.
As far as Al Gore's report goes, if I'm not mistaken, nearly every crime report anyone has ever come up with has shown that the majority of all major crime has been committed by men in the 18 to 25 age group. That probably only makes sense. If they don't get started by 18 they probably won't, and by 25 they're either dead or in prison for a very long time.
As far as the NRA goes, isn't it funny how a group of 3 million people can get so much credit for influencing the politics of a nation of some 270 million. Well I'll let you in on little secret folks, it ain't the NRA. The NRA has had a policy of compromise for years. The real fighters are the GOA headed by Larry Pratt. His group is only some 250,000 but we are hard-core Second Amendment. But maybe, just maybe, the real culprits are many of the politicians who still have enough common sense to realize that the problem is not with firearms and law abiding citizens. The real problem is a society that puts little or no value on human life.
Harold Kitson, Warsaw
Hunter Education
Editor, Times-Union:I think I have heard it all now! A parent is upset because her child was taught how to properly handle a firearm! With accidental shootings making a big splash in the news whenever they happen, I would think that every parent would be thankful that their child had been taught how to check any firearm that they might come into contact with to ensure it is unloaded so an accident cannot occur. Or, if that child decides to become interested in a shooting or hunting sport, they would at least have a basic working knowledge of the usage of firearms and the safety rules.
It is really a shame that these "evil guns" have taken on such a forbidding aura by the media that the mere touching of a firearm would somehow "take away one's innocence" as mentioned in the letter on Hunter Safety Classes on 6/11/99. I guess I lost my innocence when I was about 10 years old, if that is the case, and never found it again. As I got older, I started shooting paper targets for fun and then got serious about the shooting sport and started attending tournaments. I have shot thousands of rounds of ammunition, won several tournaments, had lots of fun, and never (even by accident) hurt anyone. And all this time I did not realize I had "lost my innocence." I confess, I even played with toy guns as a child. I wonder if the child mentioned in the letter has touched or seen an automobile before the child becomes licensed to drive? After all, more people are killed by automobiles than by firearms. I wonder if this child has ever seen the wrong use of firearms and the violence of television, and "lost her innocence." I would take a guess that her mother has never handled a firearm in her life and because she has no knowledge about them, the firearms scare her to death and she wishes to instill that same fear in her children. That is like being afraid of the water and not letting your children learn how to swim. Rather than innocence being lost, knowledge has been gained. And that knowledge may someday prevent a tragic firearm accident.
Donald K. Wiesehan Sr., 1998 State Pistol Champion, Claypool
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- EMS Feud - Educating Kids About Guns - Gun Laws - Hunter Education
EMS Feud
Editor, Times-Union:An article was written in another local paper, insinuating that our daughter, April Rodriguez, could have been saved in the May 15th fatal accident on 13. The coroner and the funeral director, neither of whom were contacted for the facts, feel that death was instant on impact due to severe head trauma. This is irresponsible reporting, and created great pain for both of us. But I'd like to ask the North Webster EMS and Syracuse EMS if they would like to explain to April's younger brother and sister and to the 400 people who came to April's viewing and funeral, if because of their petty feuding precious minutes weren't wasted for both of the two victims? How can you think of putting any "differences" before a life. You should be one unit working together NO MATTER WHAT.
Gary & Gail Rodriguez, North Webster
Educating Kids About Guns
Editor, Times-Union:I, too, am a parent of two youths that have attended Wawasee school system. One is still in high school; the other having graduated several years prior. I am also a volunteer Hunter Education Instructor for the DNR and on the board of directors for the Indiana Hunter Education Association - a group that serves without pay to help facilitate and improve the Hunter Education system in the state. I must first state that I admire the concern that the writer, Jane Plew, has for her children. She is obviously a caring parent and although we will disagree on matters related to hunter safety, if more parents were actively concerned about their children in this day and age, we might not be looking at such tragedies as Littleton, Colo., at this time.
Should a parent be opposed to their children learning proper firearms safety they should have that right, and their children should not be persecuted for that action. But might I suggest that properly trained law enforcement personnel (in this case, conservation officers) would better be able to impart the proper respect for firearms and their use among our youth as a counter-balance to the vicious portrayal of firearms by our movie and video game industry that is so highly promoted these days. Where else do they get these concepts that they later act out upon? They do not get these from the teaching of a hunter education class or from the firearms industry for that matter. I would also suggest that should the youth be a member of a family that has firearms or that should the youth later on in life decide to purchase one legally for whatever reason that he will be far better prepared to accept that responsibility in life than one who has not completed a properly instructed course. Properly trained personnel (in this case DNR conservation officers) are not violating any Zero Tolerance. They are law enforcement personnel and I would hope that the writer would consider this before embarking on a campaign at the Wawasee school system that, however well intentioned, may result in the loss of life due to a lack of proper understanding of firearms.
Michael Houze, Leesburg
Gun Laws
Editor, Times-Union:I'm really tired of this. I keep waiting for someone else to say something but I guess I'm stuck again.
I think it's time for Bill Clinton, Al Gore and the rest of the Washington anti-gun morons to take a little walk to their corner Wal-Mart. Anyone who has ever purchased firearms or ammunition there can tell you that they have a great big sign which reads "NO HANDGUNS OR HANDGUN AMMUNITION TO ANYONE UNDER 21. Federal Law." Now I'm not sure about this but I believe that was part of the 1968 Gun Control Act. In other words some 30 years. Now doesn't that give you a lot of confidence in our fearless leaders. They don't seem to have a clue as to what laws they've already passed.
The law they are supposedly working on is "Possession." Although a person under 21 cannot legally purchase a handgun, they may legally possess one at 18. The state of Indiana, for example, will issue a concealed carry permit to persons over the age of 18 if they have a clean record. I no longer recall the reasoning behind this but I believe it had to do with hunting. Although an 18 year old cannot buy a handgun, they may hunt with their father's with the proper permits.
As far as Al Gore's report goes, if I'm not mistaken, nearly every crime report anyone has ever come up with has shown that the majority of all major crime has been committed by men in the 18 to 25 age group. That probably only makes sense. If they don't get started by 18 they probably won't, and by 25 they're either dead or in prison for a very long time.
As far as the NRA goes, isn't it funny how a group of 3 million people can get so much credit for influencing the politics of a nation of some 270 million. Well I'll let you in on little secret folks, it ain't the NRA. The NRA has had a policy of compromise for years. The real fighters are the GOA headed by Larry Pratt. His group is only some 250,000 but we are hard-core Second Amendment. But maybe, just maybe, the real culprits are many of the politicians who still have enough common sense to realize that the problem is not with firearms and law abiding citizens. The real problem is a society that puts little or no value on human life.
Harold Kitson, Warsaw
Hunter Education
Editor, Times-Union:I think I have heard it all now! A parent is upset because her child was taught how to properly handle a firearm! With accidental shootings making a big splash in the news whenever they happen, I would think that every parent would be thankful that their child had been taught how to check any firearm that they might come into contact with to ensure it is unloaded so an accident cannot occur. Or, if that child decides to become interested in a shooting or hunting sport, they would at least have a basic working knowledge of the usage of firearms and the safety rules.
It is really a shame that these "evil guns" have taken on such a forbidding aura by the media that the mere touching of a firearm would somehow "take away one's innocence" as mentioned in the letter on Hunter Safety Classes on 6/11/99. I guess I lost my innocence when I was about 10 years old, if that is the case, and never found it again. As I got older, I started shooting paper targets for fun and then got serious about the shooting sport and started attending tournaments. I have shot thousands of rounds of ammunition, won several tournaments, had lots of fun, and never (even by accident) hurt anyone. And all this time I did not realize I had "lost my innocence." I confess, I even played with toy guns as a child. I wonder if the child mentioned in the letter has touched or seen an automobile before the child becomes licensed to drive? After all, more people are killed by automobiles than by firearms. I wonder if this child has ever seen the wrong use of firearms and the violence of television, and "lost her innocence." I would take a guess that her mother has never handled a firearm in her life and because she has no knowledge about them, the firearms scare her to death and she wishes to instill that same fear in her children. That is like being afraid of the water and not letting your children learn how to swim. Rather than innocence being lost, knowledge has been gained. And that knowledge may someday prevent a tragic firearm accident.
Donald K. Wiesehan Sr., 1998 State Pistol Champion, Claypool
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