A recent article quoted Anne Verrill, owner of Grace and Foreside restaurants in Portland. In a post on Facebook that included a photo of an AR-15 style rifle, she wrote: “If you own this gun, or you condone the ownership of this gun for private use, you may no longer enter either of my restaurants.”

In general, the public reaction to the Orlando shooting incident has been fearful and seems intent on stifling any reasonable form of public discussion, as exemplified by Ms. Verrill.

First, let’s clear up a misunderstanding. Ms. Verrill wrote that assault rifles can shoot at a faster rate than conventional firearms. That is false.

Most firearms manufactured today like the AR-15 are semi-automatic. The term “semi-automatic” means that the gun can fire only as fast as someone can pull the trigger. This is true for most pistols, many shotguns used for skeet and trap shooting, target rifles, hunting rifles and even assault rifles. There is no difference in the rate of fire of any of the above-mentioned firearms.

The general outcry against gun owners is misplaced. Law-abiding gun owners are generally good people who contribute to keeping the public safe.

In contrast, gun-free zones have a growing reputation for being the locations for mass shootings. These are the areas that are easy pickings for terrorists because of their lack of physical opposition.

Think about it. If you wanted to kill a lot of people, would you do it in an area where the patrons are likely to legally possess a concealed firearm? In this sense, guns preserve lives.

My suggestion to Ms. Verrill is to not be afraid of having a two-sided conversation. Who knows, she might actually come to have a deeper appreciation for her clientele.

Ted Bennett

Scarborough

This letter was corrected and republished on Monday, June 20 at 2:05 p.m. to correct the name of the writer due to a news assistant’s error. A previous version misidentified the author as Derek Brown of Windham.

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