Pitts Jr. misfires

I refer to the Jan. 30 column, “Nation needs gun dialogue,” by Leonard Pitts Jr., and am incredulous at the allowance of editorials not based on factual information, which could easily be checked using any search engine.

For example, Pitts states, “In a democracy, nothing is supposed to matter more than the will of the people.” The United States is a republic not a democracy, and I note a successful guide called the U.S. Constitution controls the scope of government action, not the whim of the moment.

He decries that the deranged shooter of Rep. Gabby Giffords was able to purchase a gun, and promotes the need for new, unnamed regulations, regardless of their effect on the rights of U.S. citizens, and ignores most importantly that victim Giffords has not called for additional regulations.

Also, violent crime has steadily decreased, along with gun-related murders and accidental deaths coexistent with increased ownership of guns in society and licensing of concealed weapons. Pitts needs to avail himself of facts and accessible information rather than pushing his own liberal agenda.

It is The Spokesman-Review’s responsibility to publish credible, factual information, even if classified as opinion. This column was neither.

Chris Pritchard

Mead