I'm pro gun, and pro gun control. In the wake of the shootings in Connecticut, I feel it is the responsibility of lawful, reasonable gun owners like myself to speak up and let the world at large know the NRA doesn't speak for me.

Guns should be regulated like cars. They should be registered, each one should require insurance, and I don't think that mandatory safety education is out of line either. Unlike cars, I'd like to see stiff penalties for owners who fail to secure their guns, in the event that those guns are stolen and used in a crime.

I believe that if these common sense rules were applied, we would see fewer people with large collections of guns, fewer guns being stolen, and fewer tragedies in the news.

The idea that I might need my grandfather's hunting rifle to defend against my own government is ludicrous. Ever since the advent of the machine gun, (to say nothing of tanks, stealth fighters, and tactical nukes) my own home arsenal and the Second Amendment along with it, has been rendered obsolete.

Ross Chaney

Belingham