An obvious solution
Devin Kelley, Stephen Paddock, Omar Mateen, Syed Farook, Chris Harper Mercer, Dylann Roof, Aaron Alexis, Adam Lanza, James Holmes, Nidal Hasan, Jiverly Wong, Michael McClendon, Sueng-Hui Cho, Mark Barton, Dylan Klebold, Eric Harris, George Hennard, James Huberty, George Banks, Charles Whitman, and Howard Unruh.
Notice anything about this list? These are all reported mass murderers who have used guns, and they are all men. Only one, Syed Farook, was assisted by a woman. These murderers have killed at least 400 people and injured hundreds more.
It appears the solution to the gun problem in the United States is not outlawing guns completely, but outlawing guns just for men. Women seem to have their act together. Case closed.
PATRICIA M. PHILLIPS
Little Rock
How tomorrow will be
If you love a child, have a child, are planning on having a child, then you should be thinking about what their world will be like in 10 or 15 years.
Twenty-six people died in a shooting last Sunday in Texas. Was the cause a madman with a gun? Was the cause the gun itself, capable of shooting many rounds in the blink of an eye? Was it the numbness of the American people who have seen this over and over and now don't think twice? Is it the fault of our government not being able to work together to find a solution? There are even those who say it is the will of God that the men, women, children and babies died.
Now back to the first sentence. What will the world look like for the children alive today or those yet unborn? Imagine walking down your streets as they are today. Now imagine them in the very near future. Will there be guards on every corner with semiautomatics slung across their shoulders? Will you be afraid every time you leave your house? Will there be guards at the doors of your church on Sundays? Will your church lock its doors for its services? Schools are already doing this, locking their doors during the school day. Will your teenager carry a gun because they are afraid of what will happen next? One of the teenagers from Texas said this very thing.
I have lived my life. I have seen my sons grow up to live their lives. It is the young ones that everyone needs to consider. If you are a young parent, if you are a grandparent, if you are the aunts or uncles, you are the ones who will have to rise up and work together for change. The question is how. Help for the mentally ill, limits, bans, recalls on guns. Involvement in your local, state, national government. It will take all of this and then some.
LORRIE ADAMS
Arkadelphia
Please, do something
I just read the Sunday paper about how the Arkansas congressional delegation voted this past week. House Resolution 367 would establish the Select Committee for Gun Violence Prevention comprised of six Republicans and six Democrats. It was in committee but was blocked from coming to the House floor for debate by Republicans, including all four from Arkansas.
The measure would have investigated the causes of mass shootings, keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and the mentally ill, and tightening background checks on gun purchasers. Unbelievable, only two days after the shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, that left 26 dead and another 20 injured.
Republicans apparently think prayers and thoughts are enough. When will it be time to take at least some minimal action against gun violence? Apparently Sandy Hook Elementary, Charleston, Orlando and Las Vegas weren't enough. Please write Reps. Rick Crawford, French Hill, Steve Womack and Bruce Westerman and tell them enough! Do something or get out of the way.
ED PARKS
Rogers
Be done with all of it
To NRA members: It is time to tell the NRA to stand down. You must speak up! Burn your cards. Be done with this insanity. We must have universal background checks, and that includes at gun shows.
MARY STOREY
Fayetteville
Connected to housing
Affordable housing is interconnected with multiple policy areas. Education is one. When children have safe, stable housing, they are better students.
Many factors affect school outcomes, including parental involvement and school quality, and research from the Urban Institute's What Works Collaborative suggests that meeting children's basic housing needs is a very important part of school readiness and academic success:
"Housing quality (often affected by housing affordability) can positively affect children's safety and health outcomes, leading to better school attendance rates and improved attentiveness in class. Living in a housing unit that comfortably accommodates all members of the household provides a stress-free environment in which children can accomplish homework assignments.
"Residential stability (often affected by housing quality and housing affordability) can lead to an uninterrupted school year, avoid disruptions at home caused by an unplanned move, and lead to fewer school changes that leave children behind academically.
"Since housing is the biggest expenditure in household budgets, affordable housing can provide families with financial security, leading to improvements in housing quality and residential stability; these improvements lead to better school outcomes ... .
"Housing in a safe and healthy neighborhood location can improve household access to high-performing schools that lead to improved academic outcomes. Factors independent of school quality, such as community norms and values, day-care availability, and safety may also lead to improved educational outcomes in a good neighborhood."
Education is an important policy area; and affordable housing is connected.
RICH ROY
Little Rock
To win the next battle
For the want of a nail the shoe was lost; for the want of a shoe the horse was lost; for the want of a horse the rider was lost; for the want of a rider the battle was lost; for the want of a battle the kingdom was lost ... and we wound up with the Trump administration.
Well, okay, that's a bit of a stretch, but we may have Trump because too many citizens were complacent and neglected to vote. For want of a vote ...
Fortunately, we are waking up. Witness the landslide for Democrats in special elections on Nov. 7. In Virginia alone, 15 seats held by Republicans, all men, went to Democrats, 11 of them women. This switch was repeated in other states. More and more people new to politics are filing to run for legislative seats all over the country, mostly Democrats, and even some moderate Republicans, such as Robb Ryerse here in Arkansas' 3rd Congressional District.
We could win the next battle (2018 elections) and regain our democracy. But you can't vote if you aren't registered. In a previous letter to the editor, Kelly Holst gave us detailed information about how to get registered. Get your friends and family registered, and then get them out to vote.
We need every nail and every shoe and every horse and every rider ...
MAYA PORTER
Johnson
Editorial on 11/16/2017