LETTERS: POLICE OFFICER FAVORS PROPOSITION B

To the editor:

This letter is in response to your March 15 editorial, "NRA jumps into collective bargaining."I have been a police officer for 22 years. I am not adamantly opposed to allowing honest Missourians to legally carry concealed handguns for self-defense. I also object to your statement that most police officers oppose Proposition B. I have never been polled by your newspaper about my opinion on Proposition B, nor have you polled the many police officers I know. Your comment also ignores the endorsement of Proposition B by the Missouri Deputy Sheriffs Association and the St. Louis Police Officers Association.

I am a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association. There are many police officers and other public employees who are NRA members. Why is the NRA interested in collective bargaining? Because the NRA membership said it should be. The involvement of the NRA in political issues other than gun control seems to bother some career politicians. Is it because of the potential clout of the NRA's 2 million-plus members? The NRA has always been a friend and supporter of the police, a political agreement that is mutually beneficial to both groups, not an evil pact.

The decision to carry a concealed weapon for self-defense is not to be taken lightly. It comes with tremendous responsibility and liability. If you don't want to carry a handgun for self-defense, don't. But do not deny others the right of self-defense. My opinion on Proposition B: Vote yes to legalize concealed-carry for self-defense. It's not the honest citizens I fear. It is the criminals who prey upon those honest people.

ROBERT F. (BOB) BOSSE

Cape Girardeau