Printed letters, February 3, 2013

By Staff
Sunday, February 3, 2013

The gun-control discussions will be taking place for years to come. In the meantime, we need to take measures for more security in schools.

My suggestion is to immediately have every school door easily secured from the inside as soon as the students are in the classroom.

A bar that the teacher could easily flip into place would give the students, parents and teachers some peace of mind while all other suggestions are being debated.

VIRGINIA LIONBERGER

Grand Junction

Certain stipulations needed 
before citizenship granted

Here we go again with the illegal immigrants. Do people in Congress understand what is meant by being illegal? Guessing they will pass something, I offer a few suggestions.

First, immigrants must learn to read, write, speak and understand English within five years. Next, they may not vote in any election for at least 10 years after they become citizens, and they must learn about the country and Constitution. They won’t be allowed to draw Social Security until they are 66 — period. They won’t be allowed to draw any welfare for five years. If they cannot meet all these stipulations, then they leave the country on their own.

To further ensure they can read, write and speak English, all documents for driver’s licenses, voter registration, etc. must be in English. Throw away everything that is written in Spanish. This alone would save a lot of tax dollars.

LARRY SCHULZ

Grand Junction

 

GOP may need to make way 
for a new political party

GOP lawmakers will be facing an uphill re-election battle. I, a long-time member of the “base,” am disgusted, and here’s why. Republicans seem so worried about being liked by Democrats that they are compromising with them on almost everything. We didn’t elect them to win a popularity contest. If they believe compromise will make Democrats like them, then they’ve been taking TV reports too seriously. I was always told even a smiling fox will kill the chickens.

More and more of us are turning to an emerging third party, the new kid in town. We can’t understand what’s so hard about showing some backbone and voting “no” on liberal crap.

There’s nothing wrong with being seen as partisan. Politics is partisan. So, “deadlock” Congress. That’s better than what we’ve got now.

The media say the GOP is divided, and maybe they’re right. We expect the mainstream media to say we’re in trouble because they’re biased, but now, even conservative pundits are saying it.

It’s time for the GOP to fish or cut bait. If not, maybe the new kid in town can do better. It sure can’t do worse.

AL CARLEY

Grand Junction

 

Properly trained teachers 
can help protect children

Some people just don’t understand gun policy. I have been safely handling firearms for more than 60 years.

If we put guns into schools, it should be on a strictly volunteer basis. The teachers who want can carry after they go through a very good training program. The NRA will do the training.

If a teacher passes and carries, the firearm should be concealed as much as possible and never leave the person carrying it. That is just common sense.

I know that if I were a teacher, I would be more than willing to take the course and carry. I may have to protect myself some day.

STEVE THOMAS

Montrose

 

If gun-free zones are good, 
include government buildings

So, a Colorado Senate panel rejects the bill to allow teachers and other employees to have guns on school grounds, preserving those “gun-free zones.” Instead, Senate President John Morse suggests a “culture change when it comes to gun violence.”

If it’s that simple, let’s not stop with gun violence. How about child abuse, spouse abuse, alcohol and drug abuse and the casual practice of abortion to cover for our nihilistic entitlement to sex without responsibility? We could also hope for cultural change that transforms mere politicians into statesmen.

We could expect an end to the waste of taxpayers’ money, cronyism and elected officials in bed, either with lobbyists or someone other than their spouse. Heck, how about a general cultural change for us all? Could we not all practice, with God’s help, being more loving, merciful, generous and grateful?

Meanwhile, evidence — and urgency — be damned. Children remain unprotected in the liberal fantasy world of gun-free zones, while armed security keeps watch over government buildings and courtroom proceedings.

I have an idea for a bill the Senate might consider: Remove all security from government buildings, courtrooms, legislative sessions, etc. and subsidize their employment in neighborhood schools. If the politicians want to continue their experiment with gun-free zones during this time when the culture has most certainly not changed, let it be at their risk, not the children’s.

BILL FORBES

Whitewater