Our country has many laws that make us feel good while doing little or nothing to solve a problem. The same holds true for mass shootings. We must first identify the problem. What type of person is prone to committing these crimes? We need to find ways of tracking and helping these people before they commit a crime. This data, along with police encounters and previous incidents of criminal activity need to be shared with the proper authorities. Schools need to report criminal behavior to the police and to parents.

The problem cannot be solved by taking away guns. Criminals will use another means, like bombs, cars or even knives. It is much more complicated than confiscating or outlawing a particular gun type.

Falsely identifying a semi-automatic firearm as a fully automatic firearm muddies the water and makes it harder to find a solution. Our Second Amendment was not written to protect hunters, but to protect the citizens from a far-reaching government. We already can see what happens when those in power overstep their authority. Let’s all work together, wisely, to make our country safer.

Gun laws cannot be established by individual communities in Michigan. Michigan has pre-emption laws that do not allow individual government entities to enact firearm laws that are stricter than state laws. This is done to avoid a patchwork of laws that could entrap citizens.

SUZANNE LEOW,

Rogers City