Loopholes in Assault Weapons Law

The Sept. 18 story on the shooting death of police officer Jim Guelff by a crazed gunman armed with an assault weapon is another reminder of the total lack of common sense politicians show toward sensible gun control. If they had the political will, lawmakers could stop the importation of these weapons immediately.

Instead, we have a situation where we supply the manufacturing country (Israel) with $3 billion per year in free U.S. taxpayers’ money so that Israel can continue to be among the world’s leading arms dealers. Instead of asking Israel to halt the export of these senseless weapons to the U.S., as Sen. Dianne Feinstein is doing (“Feinstein Targets Loopholes in Assault Weapons Ban,” Sept. 17), we should halt the export of our money to Israel and pass a law that prohibits assault weapons imports.

Will we? Probably not. The politicians fear the Israel lobby’s clout in U.S. politics which, for the time being, they consider much more important than your vote or mine. Individual U.S. taxpayers have lost any semblance of political influence and essentially have no voice in their own country about such matters. A wake-up call to U.S. taxpayers is long overdue. Is anybody listening?

Write to your elected officials and voice your opinion. Political influence is a numbers game.

J.R. THOMPSON

Irvine

* In 1994 the Congress passed and the president signed a law that prohibits firearms built with certain characteristics. That law also legitimized the manufacture of firearms with identical functional characteristics absent those cosmetic characteristics. Now, Feinstein complains that manufacturers have complied with the law. What did she expect them to do?

The state Legislature passed a law that requires California gun manufacturers to build large and powerful handguns (“Senate Sends Ban on Making Cheap Guns to Governor,” Sept. 10). If it is signed (so far it is waiting), how will the gun control lobby, including The Times, react when California gun manufacturers comply with the law by making inexpensive, large and powerful handguns?

Criminals cause crime. Not economics, discrimination, poor parenting, schools or guns. Until we recognize this and decide that people who have no respect for the rights of others have no place among civilized people, we will continue to have problems with criminals who acquire weapons.

If you want to shut down gun manufacturers, do it the “American way.” Buy them out.

BRUCE ERICKSON

El Segundo