Letters: Readers discuss real talk on guns, downtown baseball and sexual harassment
Just say it
The best solution to gun violence is transparency and honesty.
Many left-wing politicians try to convince us that if we simply had more background checks and stricter gun laws, the Las Vegas and Texas shootings could have been prevented.
No background check would have stopped the Las Vegas shooter. They could have checked for mental illness, felonies, watch lists and more, but he would have been cleared on everything.
The shooter in Sutherland Springs, Texas, was not legally allowed to purchase a firearm, yet the background system failed to stop him, showing how ineffective it is.
The only law that would have stopped these men from buying guns would have been an all-out gun ban. With such a radical agenda, Democrats would never get re-elected.
Background checks mask some people’s opinions that all guns should be banned. All this does is perpetuate a cycle of lies while American lives are lost.
If you believe the only way to stop crime is a ban on all firearms, come out and say it. Liberals need to step to the plate and acknowledge that they want to take away guns. The first step must be to understand what the options are.
Layne Nichols
Kansas City
Downtown baseball
When comparing some truly great cities around our nation with Kansas City, one thing becomes apparent: Many of the others have Major League Baseball stadiums in the immediate downtown area.
If we built a stadium downtown, the baseball park would have access to our amazing streetcar and other public transportation options, requiring less parking than is needed at Kaufman Stadium.
There’s also the advantage of putting our beautiful downtown and the new developments on exhibit for everyone who comes to visit our city for baseball. The Power & Light District could be used to a greater extent for game-related activities.
Although there’s nothing wrong with our current baseball stadium, moving to a stadium downtown would increase business, promote attendance and truly showcase our city. The chaos of scheduling two sports teams in the same complex would be fixed.
The Royals may not have done particularly well this year, but maybe what we need for another World Series is a new ballpark.
Catherine Smith
Kansas City
Not so fast
The Nov. 14 story, “Wall Street takes note of KCI’s victory” (6A), was good news for all the supporters of a new single terminal at Kansas City International Airport, noting that Moody’s Investors Service applauded the vote.
Important facts are often quickly forgotten. Remember the 2008-2009 recession? The U.S. Department of Justice earlier this year said Moody’s failed to adhere to its own credit rating standards and fell short on its pledge of transparency in the run-up to the recession.
Moody’s officials admitted they sold their ratings and sold out investors.
Before Kansas City revels in Moody’s sanguinity on the new airport, the supporters should remember the “Moody’s blues.”
Brian Mullies
Blue Springs
The end result
We have heard many sexual assault allegations in the past couple weeks that have been met with outrage and disgust. Powerful men have been stripped of the power and reputation they once held.
As a woman in America, I should be thrilled. I should be congratulating and praising the people who helped bring down these sexual predators.
Although I support the public outrage and the brave women who have come forward, I can’t be as thrilled as I know I should be — not while we have a man who has continually been accused of horrific sexual harassment occupying the most powerful office in our country.
When the “Access Hollywood” bus tapes were released last year, yes, there was outrage and disgust. But it didn’t stop 46.1 percent of the electorate from voting for him.
By voting for Donald Trump, Americans said that this behavior was acceptable.
Come on, America. We can do better.
Charlotte Hall
Liberty
Kansas City’s letters of thanks
As the holiday season approaches, we want to hear what you’re thankful for. Submit your letter at kansascity.com/letters and we will run the best over Thanksgiving weekend.
This story was originally published November 18, 2017 at 8:30 PM with the headline "Letters: Readers discuss real talk on guns, downtown baseball and sexual harassment."