Second thoughts on Second Amendment
Our society’s fetishization of the second amendment’s reference to a “well regulated Militia” has led directly to regular school massacres and the recent death by Uzi of a gun instructor at the hands of an innocent 9-year-old. This obsession has grown so out of control that a Douglas County father is now claiming that he will somehow be “irreparably harmed” if he cannot carry his gun around his daughter’s elementary school. We need to exercise common sense and enact sensible gun control to prevent further tragedies. To the extent that the current Supreme Court’s interpretation of the second amendment stands in the way of reasonable regulation, then by all means let’s work to amend or even eliminate its outdated provisions.
RICHARD NIKONOVICH-KAHN, ATLANTA
Right-wing media blurs facts
A reader wrote a letter with his usual anti-Obama views claiming the liberal media refuses to cover the faux scandals of Benghazi and the IRS that the right-wing media constantly hypes. But his statement that President Barack Obama is destroying the best health care system, economic system and our freedoms requires a response. Over 50 million Americans could not afford health care before Obamacare, so that disqualifies us from having had the best health care in the world. Our economic system nearly collapsed in 2008 and it was President Obama and the Democrats in Congress who walked us back from the brink of disaster. And if the reader can list five freedoms he lost since 2009 as a direct result of Obama being elected, then his views may have some merit.
MIKE HAREMSKI, TUCKER
Airlines to blame for behavior
With the increase in reported incidents involving airline passengers reclining their seats into fellow passengers’ knees, it is very easy for the airlines blame the resultant altercations on “bad passenger behavior.” The real culprits are the airlines themselves who have been squeezing more and more seats into the available space. This observation is of course true only of economy class, where the poor regular traveller has been traditionally subjeced to being treated as a second-class citizen. Of course, we all understand that airline corporate profits come first and customer comfort (and sanity) come a very distant second.
IAN SHAW, CUMMING
Persistence pays off for citizens
“Stick to-it-ness” seems be a trait of AJC reporters. They have the determination that allows them to investigate a story thoroughly, despite all obstacles and get to the truth. Unfortunately, we read daily of the deception, fraud, and corruption that go on behind the scenes. The public counts on them to be our watchdog and they’ve served us well.
JERRY SCHWARTZ, ALPHARETTA
