Open Letter to the NRA

Having been a lifetime member of the NRA for over 40 years, it is with regret that I terminate my membership. This is the only way to send a message to an organization that refuses to print letters expressing views that are contrary to the NRA leadership.

For years, I have read Wayne Lapierre’s paranoid rantings. His so called “press conference” on Friday was the final straw. To ignore the fact that it is way too easy for “bad people” (his term not mine) to obtain weapons of mass carnage, and instead, advocating turning our schools into armed fortresses, is a disgrace and an embarrassment. The NRA’s views are not only contrary to a majority of Americans, they are also at odds with numerous law enforcement agencies and, I believe, a majority of responsible gun owners.

Rather than working with lawmakers on responsible and effective restrictions and, at the same time, preserving our second amendment rights, the NRA has chosen to espouse impractical and unrealistic solutions.

I will be urging other members of the NRA to terminate there membership with the hope that the NRA leaders will eventually get the message that they have become part of the problem instead of helping with a solution.

Michael Abajian, MD

Montpelier