L.A. Police Patrols and Fatal Gang Shooting in Westwood
I was shocked to read about the death of Karen Toshima in Westwood. As a resident of Thousand Oaks I was shocked to read about the mysterious shooting of Melinda Pape, a Thousand Oaks resident. Apparently no area is safe from the horrors of gunfire. How much longer must this carnage continue?
We’re spending billions annually to protect ourselves from the Russians while allowing our citizens to be mowed down daily by irresponsible gun owners. I don’t see how an unregulated flow of handguns in America is essential to the freedom and safety of our citizens. The death toll is intolerable. According to the National Coalition to Ban Handguns, guns take more than 22,000 American lives every year.
Granted that our nation’s citizenry suffer a terrible death toll from our nation’s auto drivers, but through registration and testing of drivers we have some handle on the problem. The wholesale traffic in guns without similar controls merely leaves our nation open to internal suicide.
Tripling patrols in Westwood may provide some temporary security, but Karen Toshima’s death should spearhead a drive to ban handguns.
Who knows who the next victim will be.
I. RUBIN
Newbury Park
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