ANN WORTHINGTON, San Clemente
What an incredible waste of time for the San Clemente City Council to consider declaring San Clemente a Second Amendment Sanctuary. The resolution proposed by Gene James is unnecessary and misguided.
I don’t want to live in a city that believes guns are more important than people. By passing a resolution that effectively states “we support gun owners,” it disgraces the rest of the people who believe the world is safer with fewer guns.
It also ignores the fact that people use guns every day to kill other people. We will never forget the killing of Kurt Reinhold, an unarmed man, on the streets of our city by an Orange County Sheriff’s deputy.
Finally, the resolution discounts the lives of hundreds of innocent people killed during mass shootings.
It’s unfortunate if people in San Clemente feel unsafe in their homes, but openly welcoming gun owners is not the solution. The best way to protect ourselves is to lock the doors and windows of our homes, install a security system and motion-sensor lighting, own a dog, and know our neighbors, so we can take care of each other.
We already have laws in place that allow citizens to purchase guns. There is no credible threat to repeal those laws. Any changes considered by Congress or the State of California focus on illegal firearms, not the right of citizens to buy or own guns.
Gun owners don’t need more support in San Clemente. Our city council should focus on actual issues like homelessness, affordable housing, stopping the toll road, reviving our hospital, rising sea levels, maintaining parks, economic development, providing youth programs, improving infrastructure, and supporting our seniors.
