LETTER: Ban semi-automatic, automatic weapons

My thanks to the brave students of Parkland, Fla., and students throughout the United States for formulating a pointed message for sensible gun regulation.

I support hunting and a hunter’s right to own a rifle to pursue his or her game.

I do not support ownership of semi-automatic and automatic guns by the general public.

These aren’t hunting rifles.

They were manufactured for military use and their intent was to maximize killing.

So I commend the banning of bump stocks, and I encourage enhanced background checks. But I am with the students who call for a ban on semi-automatic and automatic weapons.

When we place as much value on the lives of our children and grandchildren as we do on defending ownership of automatic weapons, we will be a saner and more civilized society.

Fayette Krause,

Port Townsend