This is Viewpoints for Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Cochran appearance

We have heard a lot about freedom recently — freedom of speech, religion, to protest, of gun ownership, etc. Freedom is one of the most unique aspects of being an American. Freedom is one of the most cherished American characteristics.

On Sunday July 24, Kelvin Cochran, the former fire chief of Atlanta, will speak about losing his job because of using his freedom of speech to express his religious beliefs. He will be speaking in Warner Robins at Second Baptist Church at a special event honoring all first responders in Middle Georgia — police, firefighters, nurses, doctors, EMS personnel and all others who come to the aid of people in life-threatening situations.

Cochran now travels throughout the nation encouraging Christians to stand up for their beliefs and to speak out when the opportunity presents itself. Everyone, especially first responders and their families, is invited and encouraged to attend the meeting and hear Chief Cochran at 10:30 a.m., Sunday at Second Baptist, 2504 Moody Road in Warner Robins.

Get out of NATO

America pays substantially more than the other members of NATO. Terrorism is the most critical situation and is growing (witness Nice killings). Bombing ISIS has been a futile, dismal failure. Each member of NATO should immediately provide troops to encircle every ISIS stronghold to eradicate them with overpowering numbers. Just prior to attacking advise friends to leave by a certain date and time.

If the members refuse, rescind our membership and pull all of our troops out of harm’s way. We have sacrificed thousands of troops and billions of dollars only to be seen as losers again like in Vietnam.

Are we safer?

A lengthy piece by Walker Smith has stuck in my mind. In it he made fun of President Obama and Democrats for trying to control gun ownership. He said their actions should bother any thinking person and that “more rational folks recognized the dangers” of such efforts. According to the data, if a person owns a gun, the likelihood of harm through accident, homicide, suicide and having that gun taken and used for harm greatly increases. Rationally, then, my family is in greater harm with a gun; I only feel safer. He mentions how the NRA fought to stop any congressional action. To be clear, the NRA is a relatively small group, some of whom even favor more reasonable regulation of sales and ownership. What Smith and others often fail to recognize is that the real money that drives the positions and loud voice of the NRA comes not from membership dues but from gun and ammunition manufacturers. Their profits soar based on the pretense of protecting people’s rights.

Where rights are concerned, we know that the Supreme Court has declared gun ownership to be a right. But even a slow-witted Democrat can read the Second Amendment and recognize that the Founding Fathers were committed to defense against bad government because they had witnessed and suffered from such. We no longer need a “well-regulated militia,” especially because it could not protect against any modern standing army. Nowhere is there any mention of self-protection as related to gun ownership.

Whatever can be said in defense of the AR-15, it is a military weapon designed to maul and kill human beings. It is shameful that this weapon, first choice for those who have had the desire to murder large numbers of people in the U.S., is now marketed to adults and even children as a sporting weapon.

Finally, it seems hypocritical for those at the Republican Convention to have outlawed the presence of guns at their meetings since this party as a whole tends strongly to claim that the presence of more guns in public gatherings makes us safer.

Like button

Too bad you do not have a “like” button for your Letters to the Editor. If so, Arthur Brook would get my “like” and an “amen” to his comments on “Actions, not platitudes” printed in Sunday’s July 17 paper.

A well-deserved spotlight

Kudos to Charles Richardson for the great article about the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Georgia in Sunday’s paper. I am sure most residents do not know what a great asset this organization is for our area. Prior to moving to Macon nine years ago, I lived in northwest Indiana and had the privilege of being affiliated with the B&GC of that area for more than 30 years including a term as president of its board. The quality of the staff is tops and their concern for the advancement of the children they serve is beyond reproach. This is not a “baby-sitting” organization, and I applaud the current leadership for its reaching out into the community to serve more children.

The whole story

Much of the unrest and riots by blacks and others after blacks have been shot or harmed in by police is fueled by the news media. Not necessarily because they publicize blacks being shot and killed, but they do not publicize white people cops shoot. Check the FBI stats. Up until the last year or so police shot more whites than blacks, but nobody knows it. I really believe many of our inner-city people believe cops only shoot black people, thanks to the news media, and in my opinion the media does it on purpose with malice. Come on media, all lives matter. Tell the whole story.

Wrong influence

A lot has been said lately of the Baton Rouge shooter being a Marine. With every Marine being first a rifleman, obviously the Marine Corps trained him how to shoot a rifle. However, it has been longer since he was in the Marine Corps than the entire time he spent in uniform, and his time with the black separatists did more to influence him to evil than his time in the Corps influenced him to good. Marines don’t fight because they hate what’s in front of them but because they love what’s behind them. A more appropriate headline — if you must — would be, “The shooter was a black separatist who honed his shooting skills in the military.”

This story was originally published July 19, 2016 at 9:00 PM with the headline "This is Viewpoints for Wednesday, July 20, 2016."