Open Forum

I have never been as offended by anything in a newspaper as I was by the Mike Peters political cartoon which ran on Monday, April 2 depicting the children of people who own guns as killers. With one swipe Mr. Peters, and by publication, this paper, has managed to malign, slander and defame a large portion of your readers. That Mr. Peters or anyone else would accuse my children, or the children of my friends and relatives of being murderers simply because their parents own guns is beyond belief and beyond the pale of decency and reasoned discourse. My two sons, straight A student athletes, musicians, active in church, work and study, well thought of by their friends, teachers and other adults who know them, are not murderers, nor does anyone fear they one day will be. Their father owns guns, they own guns, their friends' parents own guns, their friends own guns and, miracle of miracles, none of us are killing each other or anyone else!

Mr. Peters' cartoon is made even more offensive by the attempted depiction of a supposedly "innocent child" who, without an evil thought or impulse in his/her heart, mind, or character needs only the addition of a firearm to become a homicidal killer. What claptrap! "Innocent children" don't murder people and guns don't make people killers. Evil people with malicious minds and hatred in their hearts murder other people and it is the makeup of their hearts and their character that makes them killers, not the weapon in their hands.

The readers of this paper deserve better than to have their children called killers and themselves called accessories to murder. Provide a forum for opposing views but keep this kind of hate-filled name calling off these pages.

Neal Gaalswyk

East Gull Lake