LETTER: Enforce the gun laws already set in place

Talk about it

To the Editor:

I would like to reply to Mr. Plowe’s Saturday comments. I too am a gun owner in support of the Second Amendment, a hunter, and a responsible citizen as you claim. But ... I do not agree with or intend to suggest the banning of weapons as an answer to preventing gun violence. Why should I, along with all other responsible gun owners, give up our opportunity to someday, if we so choose, purchase or own an assault rifle similar to the one we used while serving in the U.S. military, or as a collector and admirer of current or historical firearms?

Responsible citizens do not go around killing people, people with issues kill people. So let’s enforce those laws that prohibit them from owning or acquiring any article for violence. It seems, though, that whenever a plan that might work comes up someone cries foul.

Example: Back around the first gun ban, a group of gun store owners on the East Coast connected their computers together so anytime a felon or prohibited person attempted a gun buy, that owner would contact the others so all were on the lookout for similar attempts. Simple, right? And it worked, however, the anti-gun people would hear nothing of it going nationwide because it had nothing to do with banning guns.

Lately, we’ve heard reports that 40 percent of gun show sales are under-the-table sales. I’ve always had to fill out the proper paperwork when purchasing a firearm, so I don’t know where this report is coming from, but here’s an apparent example of current gun laws not being enforced. So let’s start by enforcing existing laws before even thinking about new ones. That’s what I hope our South Dakota representatives are doing, not oppressing responsible citizens, oppressing non-responsible citizens. South Dakota is a sports-minded state, so whether your sport is hunting, shooting or neither of these, I trust our representatives to act in all our interests and protect responsible South Dakota citizens and their values. And yes, Mr. Plowe, anti-gun people would love to get rid of the Second Amendment.

Tags: opinion, letters, guns