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July 15, 2024
Editor, the News-Gazette,
This past Saturday, a husband and father was killed and three others, including Donald Trump, were wounded at a rally in Pennsylvania by a 20-year-old with an AR-15 rifle. The lightweight, semi-automatic AR-15 is the weapon of choice for mass shooters. It is not a hunting rifle, but an assault weapon - a killing machine.
In 1994 a bipartisan assault weapons ban was passed — with more than 50 Republicans in Congress voting in support— but the gun lobby prevented it from being renewed in 2004. An analysis of data (by the Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery) has found that mass shooting fatalities are 70% more likely without the assault weapons ban in place.
Anybody, even Donald Trump, can be a victim of outof- control gun policies. Let’s elect legislators with the courage to stand up to the gun lobby and restore common sense laws. ANNETTE GREEN Rockbridge County
