Violence

Thomas Cahill (letter, March 26) has every right to be angry. Damned angry. Our hearts and prayers go out to Cahill and his mother. Random, senseless violence recently visited our family when our son, Ryan, and his girlfriend, Laura Previde, were the victims of a freeway shooting which left Laura paralyzed. Other victims can truly understand the pain, violation and rage associated with such despicable crimes. I urge Cahill to turn his anger into "positive determination," and get involved, to end this heinous violence, and reclaim our homes and neighborhoods.

I usually don't agree with Archbishop Mahony, but this article points out the eminently disgraceful situation in our country. Guns and violence, they go together like cigarettes and cancer. For years, the cigarette companies denied that cigarettes were a cause of cancer until overwhelming statistics proved otherwise. The National Rifle Assn. is taking a similar stance in the denial that guns have anything to do with violence. But in Europe, Canada and Japan, among others, there is a fraction of the violence and a fraction of the amount of weapons in the hands of the general populace.

Bill Moyers is absolutely right on target in his assessment of violence shown on TV and, in particular, the violence shown on the commercial networks ("Public Broadcasting Takes Stand on Juvenile Violence," Jan. 7). It has always surprised and amazed me that Sunday nights (the night I have considered to be the real family night) is the night often chosen to exhibit movies with the most horrendous of violent themes. I think that the new House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, would better serve the American people by increasing funding to PBS rather than even suggesting that it be dropped from government funding because I am sure that such wonderful children's shows as "Sesame Street," "Barney and Friends," "Mister Rogers" and others contribute positively to our young population, and, for their parents, such gems as "Masterpiece Theatre" and "Nova" (just two among many)

In response to the ad for ABC News' report entitled "Guns" (Part A, Jan. 24): Not only were all the people shown in the ad killed by guns, but all the gunmen were just that--men. Maybe we should simply make it illegal for men to use guns since all thinking people realize most of the violence perpetrated on this planet results from male behavior. Better yet, let's start educating boys to express anger in nonviolent ways. DEBRA J. DeWEESE Santa Barbara

Re "Stop the Violence; Kids Are Watching" (Orange County commentary, Dec. 16): If the ability to analyze issues and make crucial distinctions before drawing conclusions is the mark of an educated mind, then Adrienne Hurley needs to go back to Logic 101. 1. Hurley states that violence doesn't solve anything. Really? European nations invaded or threatened by Hitler might want to disagree. And surely the survivors of the Holocaust would protest that holding hands with a fine gentleman such as Hitler and singing "Kumbaya" just wouldn't have accomplished what warfare did. 2. Having taught university students at all levels, I would expect that freshmen and sophomores might not yet see the distinction between the deliberate murder of civilians on one hand and civilian casualties as the unintended consequences of war on the other.