The echoes of the gunshots in Aurora, Colo., had barely quieted before the gun-control crowd began its predictable call for more gun laws, banning “assault weapons” and large magazines, and more “reasonable” gun laws. I think New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg was first.

If any of those pipe dreams come to fruition, it will make good theater but little good will come of it.

With the Volstead Act in 1919, we tried to outlaw alcoholic beverages. We all know how well Prohibition worked out. (One of my most prized possessions is the bottle capper that my grandfather utilized to put up homebrew beer.)

We have tried over the years to control illegal drugs and, if anything, they are more easily obtainable than ever. Sometimes I suspect that the only good to come out of the “war on drugs” is that it keeps a lot of law enforcement people employed.

We can’t even come close to keeping human beings from coming into our country illegally.

So why do the gun-control people think that chasing down firearms will produce any different result?

If by some work of magic, all guns were eliminated from Earth by a poof of fairy dust, there are plenty of smart folks with lathes and milling machines who would shortly turn to building them down cellar, just the same way my grandfather made beer during the days of Prohibition.

I think that personal firearms are more often a force for good than evil, although I realize that I will never convince some of my friends of that. The genie is out of the bottle, and it won’t be put back in.

Norman B. Blake, West Baldwin 

Gripe about ‘diatribes’ doesn’t jibe with reality 

As I read F. Kingston Berlew’s Another View (“Too many right-wing diatribes appear on Commentary page,” July 12), I found myself wondering if he reads the same Press Herald as I do.

He states that this paper should not fill your Commentary page with “right-wing diatribes” without including Democratic or left-wing commentaries on the same page.

Mr. Berlew further states that the Commentary page needs to be “liberated” (oh, please) from overwhelming right-wing nonsense. Again, does he read the same paper that I read?

I believe that the Press Herald offers a fair balance of different opinions, though at times I think they lean left. Go figure.

Joe Burke, Limerick 

Onus is all on lawmakers to resolve tax-break issue 

In speaking about the failed legislative attempts to resolve the tax-break extensions beyond the current year, Sen. Olympia Snowe lamented on public radio, “We should have fixed that last year,” or words to that effect.

Neither I nor my fellow citizens are numbered among that cohort of “We” to whom she refers, but she and her fellow Republican and junior colleague are. My questions to both venerable senators are: “Why didn’t you, Senator? Why haven’t you since? Why don’t you fix it now?”

With what little remaining respect is due, I suggest that we citizens are fully aware of the problem. What is lacking is the effort from those who could resolve the issue to do so!

Charles C. Cate, Ogunquit

WW II vet voices thanks for ‘unforgettable’ D.C. trip 

An unforgettable free trip is sponsored by Honor Flights New England.

This trip is for World War II veterans. Twenty-two of us were flown out of Manchester, N.H., on April 22 to Baltimore, where we boarded a luxury bus to Washington, D.C. We were escorted to the airport by two police cruisers and 20 Patriot cyclists. It was an awesome sight.

Each of us was escorted by an attendant and a wheelchair. They stayed by our side from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m., when the trip ended back in Manchester.

All along the way, we were greeted as heroes by bands and Patriot Greeters. It was embarrassing because as young men, average age 17 to 20, most just out of high school, we were privileged to serve our great country.

We still feel that way, although we still mourn the loss of our friends who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

We visited all the service memorials: World War II, Korea, Vietnam, etc. We witnessed the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and had a tour of Washington.

We owe this to the founder of Honor Flights New England, Joe Byron (a retired police officer), assisted by Sheila Peters.

If you are a World War II veteran and would be interested in making this trip, you can contact Honor Flight New England at www.Honor FlightNewEngland.org.

Thanks to Joe and Sheila for an unforgettable trip, and thanks to the Angels who accompanied each of us.

W.O. “Bill” Gardner, U.S. Navy veteran, World War II and Korea, Portland 

Lifting fireworks ban puts burden on police, taxpayers 

From the fireworks noise that I experienced on the night of July 4, you would not have known that the release of fireworks in Falmouth is illegal. I truly thought that Portland had gone ahead with its fireworks display after the rain had stopped.

Upon further investigation, because the noise was so close by, I realized that the noise was coming from the neighborhood. As I looked out the windows, I could see fireworks displays from the east and from the south and heard a lot of noise from the west.

These individuals who were responsible for this activity obviously show no respect for their neighbors and the people who try to enforce illegal activity in the town, the police department.

These individuals, as well as the present governor of the state of Maine, do not realize the additional financial impact to all police departments. And where do you think the money comes from for these added responsibilities? Taxes!

Let adults show the young people in the state of Maine how to move forward in a positive way, like the University of Maine does (Bill Nemitz, “Real Maine ingenuity lost in din of fireworks,” July 18), and not in a negative way, as in the pursuit of illegal activities.

Cecelia Cierpich, Falmouth

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