Attention: Andy Hamilton. I must say, you are very correct in saying that the purpose of a gun is to “cause severe injury or perhaps kill either another human or an animal.” Think for a minute though, isn’t the right to bear arms for reasons of self-defense or hunting? Many gangs use automatic weapons which are already illegal. If the access of semiautomatic weapons to law-abiding citizens is stopped, the gangs will be even better armed against us than they already are. Take for example, Morton Grove, Illinois. When handguns were outlawed in Morton Grove, the crime rate rose. This is because the citizens were less able to defend themselves. Tell me Andy, if you had your choice of defending yourself against someone with an automatic weapon, would you really want to have a musket to defend yourself? Taking weapons away, or making them less accessible, will just make the gangs stronger. Gangs will always find ways to get whatever kind of guns they want.

It is true Andy, the men who wrote the Constitution were not perfect. The Bill of Rights may not be perfect either, but the right to bear arms was one of the wisest rights we were given. When this link was made, it was galvanized. There is no rust here, Andy.

MICHAEL GORDON

Pre-business

Freshman