Letter to the Editor 3/4

By Joshua Henschel

published: Wed, 3 Mar, 2010

To the Editor,

The hypocrisy shown in Caitlyn Christensen’s Feb. 23 column “Gun legislation misfires” is disappointing. The recent legislation regarding firearms in the state of Virginia should be applauded.

This legislation is in no way a backlash against the current presidential administration. But rather, it’s simply restoring the rights of the law-abiding U.S. citizen. The writer mentions the recent tragedies in Virginia in which she pointed out the Muhammad and Malvo case, but the case has nothing to do with the legislation mentioned within the article, as their attacks didn’t involve handguns.

Christensen writes, “...history hasn’t taught us that making firearms readily available makes the public any safer.” A 2007 study in the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy found that countries with greater gun ownership suffered fewer murders than those who had less gun ownership. People suffering from a problem in which they desire to cause harm to another human being will attempt violence whether it be with a gun, a knife or a fist.

The writer also says that allowing firearms to be locked in a glove box will have a direct correlation to an increase in the gun traffic rate. No gun traffickers are going to bother with a single pistol locked in a car.

Joshua Henschel
School of Arts and Sciences