After a horrific mass shooting, the entire country is waiting to see how our governor and legislators handle the aftermath.

In spite of local and national polls favoring firearm safety legislation by large margins, little has happened in Maine. We need universal background checks. We need a 72-hour waiting period. The age of firearm purchase should be 21. Inconvenience is not a valid argument against these measures.

We need to ban dangerous modifications (bump stocks, binary triggers, large magazines) that turn a semiautomatic firearm into an automatic killing machine. During Maine’s last legislative session, it was argued that disabled hunters might use these modifications. What disingenuous nonsense.

Finally, we need to stop the uncontrolled sale of military grade firearms and the targeted marketing to young teens and gamers. The semiautomatic, accessorized weapon used in Lewiston doesn’t belong in the hands of civilians: No ethical hunter uses an assault rifle, and no one “needs” one.

Where is our special legislative session? Far more than words, Mainers deserve an appropriate, sensible response. It will take courage, but will be Gov. Janet Mills’ legacy.

David G. Fitz MD
Cumberland

Copy the Story Link

« Previous

Letter to the editor: My childhood games seem innocent today

Next »

Letter to the editor: On guns, we already have all the ’empirical analysis’ we need