LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

To the editor: How many more lives must be lost to gun violence?

Police officers stand along the Las Vegas Strip near the Mandalay Bay resort and casino during a shooting at a country music festival Oct. 1.

The NRA and many of their supporters argue that any gun-control measure would create a slippery slope.

They should realize that we are already on a slippery slope — a blood-soaked slippery slope. How much slipperier does it have to be before they come to their senses?

MICHEL SOUBEYRAND

Holland

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Gun-death hysteria is being overblown

Every time there is a senseless act of violence in this country, the left drags out someone who knows absolutely nothing about guns to tell us what rights we need to give up. 

In The Blade’s case, it was Dr. S. Amjad Hussain, who clearly demonstrated that he is clueless when it comes to guns (Oct. 9, ‘‘Condolences seem hollow when no action is taken after tragedies”).

Dr. Hussain spoke of the “insanity of possessing assault rifles and semiautomatic rifles.” I seriously doubt that he could tell us the difference between the two. Just for the record, semiautomatics, which fire one round each time the trigger is pulled account for more than half of the sales of new firearms in the U.S.. They are routinely used for hunting, target shooting, and self-defense.

Dr. Hussain may be interested to know that gun homicides in 2010 were 49 percent lower than they were in 1993. The decline is despite the fact that there was a huge increase in the number of guns in our society.

Dr. Hussain said we should “revisit” the Second Amendment. Well, Dr. Hussain, how about revisiting something that does fall in your line of expertise? Researchers from Johns Hopkins say that the third-leading cause of death in the United States is “medical errors.” 

JOHN F. WEBER

Swanton

Exxon: We have some algae for you

I saw a commercial on TV a while back about Exxon Mobil called “Energy Farmer,” and there was some sort of harvesting machine in the green water. The announcer was telling about how Exxon Mobil can extract algae and turn it into bio fuel.

Well, someone should invite Exxon to Toledo and have at it.

STEVE SABLE

Marsrow Avenue