I am writing in response to Mr. Rihl's letter Wednesday concerning guns and violence in United States school systems. I cannot even begin to put into words the tremendous feeling of disgust I experienced while reading Mr. Rihl's opinion. Granted, no single person has the answer to the problem of gun violence, and in that respect I agree with him. However, everything else he said was incomprehensible. Guns are part of the problem; how can anyone argue that fact? They are more than mere metal and gunpowder. They are murderers and thieves of life, along with persons using them improperly. Children have access to other means of violence; I don't dispute that. Society needs to take a look at why guns are so readily accessible to our children.

Sure, there are parents out there working 40 hours per week to support their family, but I fail to see how this fact relates to loving their children less than parents who don't work as much. Mr. Rihl stated that, "In most families, parents are working 40 hours a week and have no more energy to love their children." This is a very ignorant statement. All human beings have the "energy to love someone." It is part of our physiological and psychosocial beings. Gun violence is a result of a combination of societal problems, such as social and mental disorders, poor gun control legislation, and lack of parental involvement, just to name a few. There are many contributing factors to gun violence and no one person has the solution, not Mr. Rihl and certainly not me. This problem has deep roots, and it is going to take a group effort to eradicate them.