THE EDITOR: If there are any lessons to be gleaned from two recent news items out of the US, viz the Ralph Yarl and Kaylin Gillis incidents in Missouri and New York respectively, it is this: that easier access to guns and stand-your-ground laws are neither safe nor effective approaches to crime reduction.

In fact, similar to the suggestion that extra-judicial killings should fill in the gaps left by our justice system, such initiatives could swiftly become tools of those with race-driven agendas.

The mere suggestion of either by the Opposition Leader on Monday is a reflection not just of how disconnected she is from political reality, but also of how few options she has been left with thanks to her contrarian, ie, oppose for the sake of opposing agenda.

Sadder still that she would attempt to defend the suggestion of stand-your-ground laws (or as alarmingly described: make-my-day laws) solely on their presence in 28 of the 50 US states. (One wonders if she or any of her advisers considered for one moment the reasons why such laws are not commonplace in all 50 states?)

Futher still, the senior counsel may have betrayed her lack of knowledge of the laws that are already on our books that deal with breaking and entering and self-defence.

As a presumed candidate for the post of prime minister, I urge her to desist from holding the US up as an example when it comes to the issues of gun ownership and self-defence. Especially since the evidence shows us that the norms there have failed the entire society, and innocent people have now become the victims of a gun culture alarmingly out of control.

The last thing we need here is to exchange the status quo for a procession of our own Yarls, Gillises and Trayvon Martins, when what we in fact need are fewer guns and fewer reasons for using the ones we already have.

And please, Persad-Bissessar, for all our sakes, show a greater willingness going forward to support the Government when it brings legislation for stiffer penalties and bail guidelines for violent offenders and gun traffickers.

G ELIAS

Cascade

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