This is a scary time for supporters of the Second Amendment.
For men like my husband, a lifelong National Rifle Association member, guns represent much more than hunting. Guns and our rights to them stem from a time when every day was a fight. The Second Amendment is a part of our Constitution. Any laws that politicians are working to enact infringe upon our rights.
We follow the laws. So why harm the law-abiding citizens?
Take guns away, and criminals will always find them. The citizens breaking the laws are not the hunters, trap shooters, target shooters.
Why, then, are politicians taking away their rights to a certain kind of gun or limiting the number of bullets in a magazine? Because perhaps the tragedy in Newtown, Conn., could have been prevented?
Not by stepping on the rights of citizens, not by enraging a significant portion of the population. Politicians have a duty to the citizens that elected them, including the pro-gun citizens.
We all want to feel safe. We all want our children to be safe. My heart goes out to all the parents from that school. But this is not the way to prevent tragedy. This is breaking the Second Amendment, punishing men and women who have done nothing wrong.
JENNIFER WHITING
Schoharie