Gun-Carrying Councilman

Re “Councilman Won’t Give Up Police Weapon at Meetings” (Oct. 13):

If we can’t trust a veteran police officer and Fountain Valley councilman [Chuck Conlosh] with a concealed weapon, then we may as well start a “war on guns.” Confiscate every gun and destroy it, and start with the police and military. The idiots who think that guns are the problem with society will feel much safer knowing only criminals will have guns.

LIONEL DE LEON

Garden Grove

* I agree with the Fountain Valley council members that having a colleague close at hand with a loaded gun is uncomfortable and intimidating, especially since the gun-carrying councilman admits he may draw fire at any time. Anyone who reads the paper knows that more often than not it is innocent bystanders who get shot.

In Texas, George W. Bush has signed National Rifle Assn.-promoted legislation that encourages carrying a loaded gun. He even went further by signing an amendment to OK carrying concealed weapons in churches, hospitals, amusement parks and nursing homes.

Since the NRA brags that Bush does essentially whatever it wants, if he is elected he would undoubtedly give high priority to the carrying of concealed weapons nationwide. So, we would all have the same intimidating, deadly conditions as now exist in the Fountain Valley council chamber: a thought that is more than enough to make everyone “uncomfortable”! May God help us.

JACK MILLER

Tustin

*

What is with the Fountain Valley City Council? Why are they so preoccupied with the weapon carried by Conlosh? The citizens of Fountain Valley voted for him knowing full well he was a full-time law enforcement officer and his council peers knew that when he took office.

He is there, in part, because he is a police officer with a proven record of dedication to his community. Are the council members so naive as to think a firearm is nothing more than a fashion accessory for a police officer? People trust him because of who he is and what he does. For crying out loud, he’s one of the good guys!

You would think the rest of them would have the maturity to understand that and welcome the extra security afforded by his training and background. I don’t think their expressed concerns speak well for them or their perception of law enforcement. What a shame.

MIKE KELLY

Huntington Beach