Reader begs politicians to toughen nation’s gun laws and ‘stop the constant carnage’

Stop the carnage

School officials nationwide who have seen students gunned down for more than 20 years – Columbine, Parkland, Sandy Hook and many others – have written a “Guide to Recovery.” It is a set of protocols for school leaders to use in the aftermath of massacres caused by assault weapons that are the practical equivalent of machine guns.

Think about that.

Government agencies develop protocols and procedures for all sorts of common, everyday activities – how to process an unemployment claim or how to review an application for a new building permit.

And now we must have protocols for what is becoming another common, everyday event – the unbelievable tragedy and mayhem of mass shooting after mass shooting.

How can our elected leaders, Republicans in particular, who for years have rejected and opposed efforts to strengthen gun laws, bear to look in the mirror? Why do they cower before a weakened NRA?

We must demand that gun laws be strengthened, including universal background checks, reinstating the ban on assault rifles and repealing open-carry laws.

I urge our state and federal leaders to take action to stop the constant, unbelievable carnage.

David Proffitt, Columbia

Who’s in charge?

In my judgment, the basic question is “Who is in charge of my womb?”.

The obvious answer is, since it is my womb, then I am the only one in charge.

The idea that elected legislators should have the authority to make personal decisions affecting my womb is totally outrageous and unacceptable. Case closed.

Sioux Nichols Taylor, West Columbia

Fund frontline workers

The emergence and spread of COVID-19, and now Monkeypox, has shown us just how vulnerable we are to future pandemics.

For myself and many other South Carolinians, quarantine and isolation was a rough period of time, both physically and mentally. If we want to prevent going back to periods of isolation and economic crisis as a result of future pandemics, we need tangible solutions that will nip them in the bud.

I think a great way to do this is to bolster primary health care systems.

Frontline health workers are among the first people to come into contact with infected people, and with the right amount of aid and resources, they can play a major role in preventing the next pandemic.

I urge Sen. Graham to advocate for a majority of funds in the Global Health Security account to be allocated for frontline primary health care workers to protect the health of South Carolinians.

Caroline Brennan, Columbia

Disappointing result

I am very disappointed that again this year the General Assembly has ignored the needs of retired state employees.

Many have worked for the state, in low paying jobs, for 28-30 years with retirement being very low.

A few years ago the General Assembly approved a 1% yearly raise with the maximum being $500. Most of the increase is less than $15 per month.

The state needs to help their own with the high cost of living; instead they are trying to help the retired military in our state. Why not both? This has become very political rather than being bi-partisan.

A.B. Turner, Columbia