Our gun laws are pointed wrong way

An airline pilot well-known to me expressed the perfect idiocy of aircraft security when he said, “I’m trusted with a $150 million aircraft loaded with upward of 400 people but I can’t be trusted with a pistol in the cockpit.” Now he tells me they won’t even let him take a Leatherman pocket-knife onboard.

I don’t know why it hasn’t been said but it needs to be said: If each of the eight pilots involved in the tragedy of September 11 had had a revolver in his flight bag, the outcome might have been different. It couldn’t have been worse.

For years an unceasing barrage of lies, half-truths and distorted statistics by a claque of anti-gun zealots has led a large number of people to accept, without question the idea that guns have no place in society. The politicians, being what they are, write laws not to protect society from evil-doers but to make evil-doers out of people who own guns.

Monroe

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

FILE - In this Friday, Oct. 4, 2019, file photo, a man using an electronic cigarette exhales in Mayfield Heights, Ohio. On Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2019, the American Medical Association said it is calling for an immediate ban on all electronic cigarette and vaping devices. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File)
Editorial: Shut down flavored tobacco’s gateway to youths

Legislation in Olympia would bar the use of flavors and menthol in vape products and cigarettes.

toon
Editorial cartoons for Tuesday, Feb. 18

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Herald report of Everett protest inaccurate, biased

I was at the rally and protest in Everett last on Feb.… Continue reading

Media shouldn’t use ‘she’ for trans people

About 79 percent of Americans oppose those observed male at birth from… Continue reading

USAID freeze halts vital aid work

I am outraged the Trump administration is making the U.S. weaker in… Continue reading

Goldberg: Trump declares war on higher ed, not just woke parts

The move, aided by Elon Musk, to gut NIH funding, is part of a larger and debilitating attack on academia.

Comment: Trump’s Kennedy Center will narrow exposure to art

Trump’s move to takeover the Kennedy Center is not about the arts but about celebrating his tastes.

Rivian, based in Irvine, Calif., has introduced its new R2 models, smaller and more affordable SUVs. (Rivian)
Editorial: Open electric vehicle market to direct sales

Legislation would allow EV makers to sell directly to customers, making lease or purchase easier.

People walk adjacent to the border with Canada at the Peace Arch in Peace Arch Historical State Park, where cars behind wait to enter Canada at the border crossing Monday, Aug. 9, 2021, in Blaine, Wash. Canada lifted its prohibition on Americans crossing the border to shop, vacation or visit, but America kept similar restrictions in place, part of a bumpy return to normalcy from coronavirus travel bans. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Editorial: U.S. and Canada better neighbors than housemates

President Trump may be serious about annexing Canada, but it’s a deal fraught with complexities for all.

CNA Nina Prigodich, right, goes through restorative exercises with long term care patient Betty Long, 86, at Nightingale's View Ridge Care Center on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: Boost state Medicaid funding for long-term care

With more in need of skilled nursing and assisted-living services, funding must keep up to retain staff.

toon
Editorial cartoons for Monday, Feb. 17

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Comment: No one saw Musk’s DOGE rampage coming or its threat

With no formal grant of authority, Musk is making cuts without fully understanding the consequences.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.