Urban laws threaten cattlemen
Re: “Ranchers, farmers vow to fight,” April 16 news story
I did not grow up on a farm or ranch but did spend many summers at my uncle’s farm. I learned early on to stay clear of bulls, especially in the breeding season. They can be very dangerous. In fact, my great grandfather was killed by a bull.
I also recall times could be hard for my uncle and when money was needed they had to sell cattle — regardless of the age of the livestock.
The proposed laws would not allow artificial insemination or let a farmer or rancher choose the age when the animals were taken to market.
Remember that the recently passed law that will reintroduce wolves in Colorado was passed due to a heavy “yes” vote from urban areas. What do people who live in the city know about wolves? What do the people who live in the city know about the cattle business? Would it make sense for rural folks to dictate bike lanes or traffic signals? Likewise, it doesn’t make sense for city folks to dictate the cattle business. These proposed laws will not only add economic hardships to Colorado’s agricultural sector but city folks better get ready to open up your wallet at the grocery store as meat prices rise.
Cliff Wetherill, Arvada
When guns are for self defense
Re: “Polis signs 2 gun bills into law about a month after shooting,” April 20 news story
If the article describing House Bill 1106 is accurate in that it requires “people to secure their firearms when they are not in use,” then I have a suggestion. The gun owners who have a weapon to protect themselves and their family, quickly should the need arise, will find that gun to be very useful as a paperweight in one’s drafty living room.
Stan S. McWhinnie, Denver
First, Second Amendments can’t cancel eachother out
Re: “Gun owners, please, offer your solutions,” April 14 letter to the editor
The letter-writer implores gun owners to offer solutions to the gun violence that has proliferated within our society.
The internet and multimedia technology have allowed mass shooters to become worldwide names that live in infamy. If it “bleeds, it leads” mentality provides these killers a worldwide stage. Social media allows us to criticize, bully, and spew hate and violent speech while hiding behind a username with no accountability. Social media further isolates us and breaks down our community and social structure. The entertainment media sells and glorifies gun violence through movies and extremely realistic and violent video games. This is all protected by the First Amendment.
Gun control advocates argue that our founding fathers did not know about AR-15s when they wrote the Second Amendment. I would argue that our founding fathers did not know about the World Wide Web, social media, violent video games, violent movies, and hate speech when they wrote the First Amendment. You can limit the Second Amendment but with that, part of the solution is the need to limit our First Amendment right to free speech. You can’t limit one without the other, and that is a hard pill to swallow.
Jonathan Gray, Denver
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