Second Amendment is outdated

Rep. Dave Reichert’s op-ed [“Let’s work together on gun control,” Opinion, Jan. 16] shows how out of touch he is with many of his constituents. He is condemning the [Vice President Joe] Biden commission before it is completed and uses the Second Amendment as his rationalization.

The last time I read it, the amendment said “to maintain a well regulated militia” and the “arms” they had were muskets. No one is saying take away all guns. What is crazy is having a former sheriff imply that high-capacity magazines and military-style weapons are fine for the general public to own.

We need to start somewhere. Tougher laws on gun violence, yes, maybe even metal detectors in some locales, as needed, but decrease the availability of the weapons of war and eventually there will be fewer massacres.

--Zenda Boss-Hall, Bellevue

Executive orders are the only route to progress

In his column “Let’s work together on gun control,” Rep. Dave Reichert cites his work with the King County Violent Firearms Crime Coalition back in 1999 as an example of bipartisan cooperation. Interesting that he couldn’t come up with any more recent examples.

Too bad President Obama can’t work with the coalition. Instead, he has to work with a Republican Congress that opposes anything he proposes, even if it was a Republican idea to begin with. Executive orders are the only way he is going to make any headway on gun-violence issues.

--Jon L. Schunke, Covington