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State should defend mother, not gun slingers

I find it rather ironic that the defense team for Sylvia Neeley is preparing for an insanity plea, at the same moment a new law allows anyone who feels threatened to shoot to kill.

A group of politically connected, financially protected, constitutionally confused individuals feels so threatened by mankind that they think it necessary to carry loaded weapons into their place of employment, not to mention in their cars, purses and homes and to movie theaters, Little League fields, etc.

After a pedophile attacks a child and brags about it to the child's mother, the mother seeks guidance and support and, upon receiving none, protects her daughter by shooting the pedophile. Yet she is found guilty of second-degree murder.

Am I to assume then that there is no threat if a child is raped? Since no advocate of the right to bear arms came to the defense of Sylvia Neeley at the time of her first trial, I am left to believe that a raped child does not matter to these defenders of the Constitution. And, as far as the jury members who convicted a mother for protecting her child, they scare me.

Would they have found differently if the raped child were their own? Or would they have told her to get over it? Anyone remember the name John Couey?

Sylvia saved not only her own daughter, but mine and maybe yours as well. Yes, I am an outspoken advocate for gun control, but I am even louder against child molesters. This state needs to prioritize and stop indulging the politically connected and protected fearmongers.

NRA does good for community and protects our rights

Re: Catering to NRA's bidding creates absurd laws, Oct. 5 letter.

Arthur Hayhoe finds it absurd that we want to protect our Second Amendment rights? I find it absurd that he can always be counted on for erroneous statements that lead to the same dull conclusion: abolition of my rights as a law-abiding, gun-carrying citizen and demonization of the NRA.

It is also quite absurd when you know that Arthur Hayhoe himself has a conceal/carry license, but I suppose he is elitist enough to be trusted with this responsibility as opposed to the rest of us hayseeds who are not duplicitous as he is in this area.

The NRA does much good in the community and in protecting our Second Amendment rights, and to them I give a much heartfelt thank you! I was a first-time attendee at the most recent Friends of the NRA dinner where $31,000 was raised. This money will be used within our state and on the national level and goes to such institutions as the 4-H Clubs, FFA chapters, Boy Scouts, American Legion Posts, JROTC units, and the cause of firearm safety for children. There were many of our community leaders there, including business leaders, elected officials, judges, law enforcement officials and many like myself who are just regular citizens trying to live our lives unencumbered by senseless violence against our own persons and our families.

We know that gun restriction laws do nothing to address the criminal element; they affect only those of us who are law-abiding citizens. If it were the Wild West and those of us who conceal/carry were renegades as Arthur Hayhoe incessantly brays, none of us would care about the law; we would consider ourselves above it. We are only involved, concerned and vocal about gun restriction laws because we do abide by the laws of our land.

I would also like to give our local Second Amendment Club a great big hurray as its members are gearing up to offer gun training to battered women. Another cause worthy of community support, if ever there was one.

Gun law that protects us from criminals makes perfect sense

Re: Catering to NRA's bidding creates absurd laws, Oct. 5 letter.

Once again, Arthur Hayhoe's vitriolic attack on the NRA, the Buntings, our local Legislative members and legal gun owners in Florida distorts and omits facts, something he always has trouble dealing with when it comes to issues involving the Second Amendment.

First, referring to the new law that went into effect Oct. 1 as the "shoot first law" is totally inaccurate. The Times provided accurate coverage of this law before it was passed and signed by Gov. Jeb Bush and is aware that no such reference can be found in the statute. Perhaps you can loan your copy to Mr. Hayhoe so he can compare it to the erroneous copy he cites.

The Times and Mr. Hayhoe are also aware that the law covers only those citizens who have a valid concealed weapons permit and that anyone else who takes the action of defending themselves by using a firearm they are carrying without a permit is subject to the same prosecution as criminals who use firearms in the commission of a crime.

The bills he refers to that have been introduced do not force employers to do anything but allow their employees to exercise their Second Amendment rights regarding the possession of their legally owned firearms in their vehicles while at work. Perhaps Mr. Hayhoe would prefer to see legislation enacted making business owners criminally liable for any injury suffered by an employee or customer caused by a criminal on the premises?

I am quite sure that Mr. Hayhoe has been disappointed by the lack of gruesome headlines depicting the bloody shootouts across Florida that were predicted by the various antigun groups, including the Brady bunch. It has yet to happen and won't, in spite of their Chicken Little-like approach to the issue.

Actually, the antigun forces in Florida are doing us all a favor by making such a mountain out of a molehill. Perhaps their misguided campaign to inform tourists that at least 350,000 residents are now capable of protecting themselves (as well as those around them should the need arise) will make our visitors feel safer here and send a clear message to those who would prey on innocent law-abiding Floridians that perhaps they need to go somewhere gun control has worked so well, like Washington, D.C.

Mr. Hayhoe thinks that any law that allows one to legally own firearms and use them to protect themselves or their families in life-threatening situations is insane. Fortunately, the Florida Legislature (including those in Pasco) and our governor disagree, enacting into law a bill that helps protect us from rather than making us the victim of criminals. If that is insane, then I and many other people in the state are stark, raving lunatics.

Not confronting criminals will only endanger citizens

It certainly is no surprise that Arthur Hayhoe has taken up the vehemently antigun and anti-Florida banner of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence's latest misinformation blitz.

It is preposterous to claim that the new Castle Doctrine law which took effect Oct. 1 expanding the right to self-defense is anything other than beneficial to the safety of all law-abiding citizens in Florida, whether visitors or residents.

The antigun/self-defense bunch has a problem with the concept of not having a duty to retreat when law-abiding citizens are confronted with potentially life-threatening criminal attacks. There is a preference to appease criminal behavior and encourage recidivism. Appeasement can further endanger the victim as well as others, and allows the perpetrator to seek new defenseless, retreating victims who will offer no resistance to murder, rape, kidnapping, carjacking and robbery.

The state of Washington is a good example of a "no duty to retreat" environment, coupled with a right-to-carry concealed weapon law, and it enjoys one of the highest per-capita numbers of legally licensed armed citizens. In State vs. Redmond (2003), its Supreme Court said: "The law is well settled, that there is no duty to retreat when a person is assaulted in a place where he or she has a right to be."

Hayhoe also seems to think that company policies that prohibit all employees from having a firearm in their locked vehicles somehow prevents disgruntled employees from violent behavior. Criminals and those bent on violence do not follow laws or company rules. Therefore, the workplace becomes an area of no defense, a setting preferred by criminals. In addition, since employees can't have self-defense guns in their vehicles in the company parking lot, they will have to leave them at home and be defenseless for the entire commute, in violation of their rights under the Second Amendment and the Constitution of Florida.

Florida's crime rate is at its lowest point in 34 years, and Florida's Legislature and governors, beginning in 1987 when the current concealed weapons law was enacted with the support of the National Rifle Association, have clearly contributed to a safer Florida, while preserving the rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms.

Ladies Auxiliary seeks to reach out to military families

I am the president of the Ladies Auxiliary to the Veterans of Foreign Wars post 7631 in Hudson. I am also the rehabilitation chairman for the Department of Florida Ladies Auxiliary. I have a son-in-law in Afghanistan. I am interested in finding families of active duty personnel to see if they need anything. Maybe a friendly voice on the phone, or lunch with a good listener.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars and its auxiliary are very active in doing whatever we can to help the personnel and their families. Mothers, daughters and sisters are also eligible to join the auxiliary. Please contact us at 14022 Bream Drive, Hudson, FL 34669 or e-mail hgailmom@msn.com

[Last modified October 7, 2005, 01:50:23]