Guns have no moral character, people do

To the Editor:
The latest tragic shooting in Florida has brought out the usual cries for banning guns, particularly assault-style weapons. What we have to recognize is that assault weapons (or any other firearm) have no moral character. They can be used as a tool of good or evil. Banning certain types may make many people feel good but, in effect, it does nothing to get at the root cause – that is minimizing evil.
We have tried our best to rid schools and society in general of God and the influence of His values (honesty, integrity and a respect for life, etc.) so much so that there is nothing to counter the evil that is espoused in many of the movies, TV shows and video games which can result in devalued view of human life. This has been replaced with moral relativism where everyone does what is right in their own eyes.
The Second Amendment guaranteeing the right to own firearms was put in by the founders so that a tyrannical government could not control its citizens, if one looks at the original arguments surrounding this amendment. When citizens have no means to resist, freedom goes out the window (think North Korea, China, areas controlled by ISIS etc.). This ability of citizens to defend themselves must be retained.
This minimizing of evil must start in the home by parents instilling values in their children. Maybe they do not need to have the latest violent video games on their Xboxes. Know what your kids are doing, who they are hanging out with. Schools can supplement this by reinforcing values when the situation arises instead of being restricted from doing so by worrying about who is going to be offended. We as consumers can have an economic impact on companies producing depictions of evil by not purchasing their products.
Let’s get back to the Judeo Christian values that worked well in this country for many years. Any legislation that does not address the cause of evil will be ineffective and we can expect to see more of these shootings.
Gary Carter
Glencoe