As a child, I owned a “Red Ryder” BB gun. No, I did not put my eye out. When I was 12, my cousin’s husband gave me a single-shot .22 caliber rifle. As a Marine during World War II, he gave me a long safety lesson on how to handle a firearm.

Later I owned other guns and went both bird and deer hunting. I also enjoyed target shooting. When I was in the Army, I took an oath “to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

This includes the Second Amendment. It also includes the First; but a wise Supreme Court justice stated that freedom of speech did not give one the right to yell “Fire!” in a crowded theater.

So there needs to be a little common sense in the ownership of guns. Who needs a 30-round banana clip? If you can’t hit your target in a few shots, maybe you should not be allowed to own a gun. An assault rifle has one purpose, to inflict the maximum number casualties in the least amount of time. Only the military and law enforcement should own assault rifles. In the hands of an untrained civilian they do more harm than good.

Harry Upton

Russellville