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Show A6 CUPPER TODAY THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 1999 Viewpoint n8a ezmu, lenses 'No' to more controls carry weapons everywhere to from keep us from suffering Columbine High and all violence against the innocent. I am against the shallow thinkers of the PTA hierarwill tions. I have a BS degree from Weber State in Corrections and Law ' ' Enforcement. I have five years experience as a patrolman in three different agencies here in Utah. I have a concealed carry permit and am a licensed Federal Firearms Dealer. My opinion is: The issue of gun control is very complex and has been. and will continue to be used political- ly to influence vote, power and money. ' I am well aware of the massive laws and regulations currently existing and also of the lack of any meaningful enforcement. Our system relies on the honor of those within it and does little to mistakes or criminal activity. More laws will not help. Better f. enforcement and prosecution of the C current laws is what is needed. Our families, schools, and communities need to be more involved in properly nurturing our children and providing them with better decision making i ; ' pre-ve- nt ' abilities. However, while we work toward those goals, we must have good responsible law abiding citizens who are willing to be trained and become 1 proficient in the use of firearms to I ' or help end the next ' possibly prevent schools and in shooting our commu-- l chy who think the law abiding citizens who want freedom are the problem and would like my PTA dues back if they carit find something else to work on except feeling good about themselves for identifying a non problem . How many concealed weapons carriers have ever drawn their weapon while out, let alone one who has shot someone? I'll bet NONE!!!!! The problem is the daily dose of violence and antisocial behavior taught in our school, portrayed in our media and d left. If promoted by the they want to legislate, let them begin legislating against filth, violence and feel-goo- in the passenger seat while his girlfriend drove the car, ordered breakfast before restaurant employees noted that he was weanng a woman's bikini. Now I don't know about you, but I Tie man, sitting necessarily those of the ownership management of this newspaper. or For many yean this column periodically focused on silly comments, and the Cyclops Annual Dumb Quote of the Year Award became a reader favorite. However, since Bill Clinton began salivating over stocky female interns. I've turned my attention to stupid actions rather than stupid quo- The students at Columbine High were dressed to go to seances, strip joints and trick or treating. We should expect our students in the USA dress and act like school is a meaningful beginning to a successful life, an opportunity to improve themselves. Anyone wishing to protest this opportunity should go to a trade school so they can support themselves as soon as possible without becoming a burden on society. Eilon wy307aol. com ut tations. And dumb actions are hardly rare. In the NBA, for instance, a highly-toute- d high school basketball who had eaten out of garbage cans literally player as a castaway child was given a $1.5 million contract by the Dallas Mavericks. Figuring the young man needed seasoning, the coach suggested that the kid spend a short time in a practice league before joining the team. The young man turned him down, implying that not starting on a NBA team was an affront to his manhood. These are the dumb actions that need to be honored for implicit stupidity. If someone offered you or me $1.5 million, the last thing we'd worry about is where we played. For $500,000 I'd play in a bam. For $1.5 million, Id even move to South Dakota. And as for demeaning ones manhood, theres a whole lot more in eating a filet mignon than drooling for a discarded wTapper in the nearest garbage dumpster. But there are dumb acts closer to home. Here's a few tasty ones from the Wasatch Front during the past week. DUMB ACT NOMINATION 1: During a your choice reading session, a Davis County student was berated by his teacher for silently reading the Old Testament. When the boy responded that the book was his personal choice for reading material. the teacher groused that the boy's selection might mb off on some of his classmates. First of all, the teacher should be grateful that a teenager is reading anything more profound than a Nintendo instruction manual. Secondly, the Bible is hardly a disease that needs to be cordoned off from other students. And thirdly, there's a whole lot more drastic action in the Old Testament than there is in Moby Dick. If the boy is quiet and not disturbing others, why should the teacher object to the boy's reading matter. old DUMB ACT NOMINATION 2: A man was cited for misdemeanor lewdness after he h went through a Logan Burger King while wearing nothing but a string bikini bottom. 40-ye- ar drive-throug- Dickens Christmas Festival VtAh StAtc pAirpArk ' It is not a question of "iff it is a ' matter of when and how often future Laws won't stop killers The Right to Bear Arms is so when Utah became a state important " in 18, Utah's founding fathers went even further to secure this right in the Utah State Constitution. In Article 1, Section 6. it states: The individual right of the people to 1 keep and bear arms for security and . defense of self, family, others, property, or the state, as well as for other lawful , purposes shall not be infringed; but nothing herein shall prevent the legis-- ; lature from defining the lawful use of ; arms. 'served United States Air the Vietnam War and in the in the Utah National Guard the Gulf War. I am all for patri- ' during otism and the American of life. I way have put myself in harms way on sev-- ,, eral occasions and would do so again. If my child was at a school in the situation like Columbine, I would hope and pray for someone who could 'stop the incident before more inno-ycelives were lost. Allowing those kids to shoot for hours and not engage them sooner shows incompe- -' tency. unwillingness, and cowardice on I the part of school and law enforce- -' ment leaders. Personally, I would gladly trade the I lives of those leaders if it would bring back even a fraction of those students who lost their lives. There is a lot of - political rhetoric on both sides of the I debate but defending ourselves, our families, our neighbors, our country, nt ll our Constitution and our schools needs realistic solutions and qualified I responsible people who are willing to ; put themselves in harms way. - T. Laws are adequate I Editor I feel we have adequate gun con- trol laws. What we need is controlled, appropriate dress, behavior and values I demonstrated and taught in the class- room and by society. This is the focus the PTA and U of U should take. clean up their own local 'messes by improving their schools. "We are not passing on the behavior that will bring greatness to our youth. m Our media is out of control with their Ifree speech mantra while teaching casual sex, violence and ugly behavior "are smart. ' Let-4he- 870 x-ne- Whtl oc your list (odmtTbuB Sndl4 FredMsyer KALL910 gun-contr- ol law abiding citizen who might be able to stop a killer, will be stopped. Tie second amendment states the citizens of this nation have a right to bear arms, which cannot be infringed. This is part of our God inspired Constitution. Those members of the Utah State Legislature who stopped the special session on guns should be thanked, and admonished to keep defending the second amendment. Don Guymon, Bountiful dguymonmsn.com Guns aid self-defen- se Editor: My opinion is rather simple: The Supreme Court has decided that no law enforcement agency is responsible for the protection of any individual, like you. me, or our family members. Since theyre not obligated to protect us, it's up to us to protect ourselves. Studies have shown that one of the most effective tools for is a firearm. Restricting or prohibiting normal people, like you and I, from owning andor legally carrying a firearm for reduces (if not eliminates) our ability to defend ourselves and our families. Criminals prefer unarmed victims. D. Joseph Levi Syracuse Shaun Myers Receiving Pursuit of Excellence Award from NFDA Executive Director Robert Harden I I Tbo many laws already Editor. I believe too many laws and ordinances are imposed on citizens, as far as owning, carrying, and using firearms. When we allow or promote this loss of our freedom, other freedoms such as freedom of speech, travel, and private property ownership can also be taken from us. There are many laws already on the books, which if enforced, would greatly cut down on violence and crime. I do not believe we should produce additional laws when we fail to enforce the laws we already have now. Larry Parker Bountiful One of funeral service's highest awards, the PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE EMERITUS AWARD has been presented to the Myers Mortuaries of Ogden, Roy, Layton, and Brigham City. I 1 Cheney Kaymlle ' MotibAVj - 7liwrsttAf 4:00 - 10:00 p.m. FrifcAVf & SAtvtrtAVf 10:00 A.m. - 10:00 p.m. bears repeating, no concealed weapons permit holder has committed a felony since the laws were changed in 1995. Tie current solutions being presented by the governor would have done nothing to stop the shootings at the Family History Center, the Triad Center or keep a situation such as Columbine happening in Utah. These individuals already broke existing laws. It is naive to believe a person with murder in their hearts will be law, but a stopped by a ! Michael (ExcIwMng SvmtAV(s) gun-contr- ol ' I litVi gun-contr- ' ''.Forceserved during November 26th - December Editor: I have a friend whose car was stolen in Salt Lake County and found in Davis County. The two law enforcement agencies involved could not decide who should try the case and eventually the individual who stole the car was set free, because they said he w'ould just flee the country anyway. This individual is now wanted for murder. Meanwhile, the governor and advocates seek to punish innocent individuals with more Since the concealed laws. liberalized in 1995, laws were weapons no concealed weapons permit holder has committed a felony. That fact f fast-flyin- g Don't Miss Mhcr Christmas M the nities. tragedies occur. The schools with the . most and best trained teachers, securi-- , ty officers, and other adults who qualify. will be safer than those that attempt to enforce a gun free school zone. It is already a crime for juveniles to take guns to school. It is obviously also a crime to use them in gang or criminal activity: More laws written on ' paper will not change the mind and actions of criminals, especially the young ones. So, while the solutions are explored and tested, let us better prepare our communities and schools to identify the problems quicker and then defend our innocent children. I say No to more gun control for ; many other reasons in addition to combating crime and piotecting our- selves and others. I also say No" because it really is the only answer to tyranny. That is one ol the reasons it is - in the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. have never had this intense desire to expose myself at a drive-i- n restaurant. In Im emofact, w hen I go through a drive-iif satisfied the employees teenage tionally sack. put the right items in my take-oDUMB ACT NOMINATION 3: A female customer argued with an Albertsons cashier in American Fork over the price of a frying pan. The woman departed from the store, then later returned with a bird cage containing eight dead birds. She then threw the bird cage and the dead remains at the cashier who also had to dodge a frying even after consuming a propan. Again, never have I ever ponhibitive number of martinis dered the thnll of tossing dead birds at another human being. As a young boy, I tossed a rock at a moving car one afternoon, only to receive a prompt whack on the head by an enraged driver. But even at this immature age, I somehow knew it was a bad idea to throw dead parakeets at grocery store employees. This woman needs to visit a good mental health counselor and then be banned from tounng any aviary within 600 miles. From time to time, I'll keep you posted on new nominations for the Cyclops Dumb Act Award. And as for the Dumb Quote competition, we might just find a need to resurrect it. After all, the Legislature is only a few months away from beginning its opening session. n. self-estee- pom. J. it time for the Dumb Act Award? The views expressed in this column are the opinion of the writer and not The PTA ought to speak out about this problem which would address the violence in the schools issue. Our board of regents ought to promote the same for the universities. I am for the concealed weapons permits and hope all who are trained ' Editor: married man, I am a with three children. I have lived in both Weber and Davis Counties most of my life. I am a member of the NRA and several other similar organiza- , Is A - The PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE EMERITUS AWARD is given annually by the National Funeral Directors Association to outstanding mortuaries throughout the world that attain high degrees of excellence in service. The award is given in recognition of truly outstanding professional achievement, educational attainment, and community service. The Myers Mortuaries are four of only 26 mortuaries in America to receive the award. The staff at the Myers Mortuaries is most pleased to receive this coveted honor. MORTUARIES Ogden, Roy, Layton, and Brigham City I |