An Open Letter to Rep. Lee Zeldin and His Congressional Colleagues:
Once again, the nation mourns a horrific and senseless loss of innocent children. Not on the battlefields of foreign wars that go largely unpublicized, but in their own hometown, while in the very classrooms meant to teach and guide them to become educated and responsible citizens. Members of our Congress have repeatedly and continuously had opportunities to demonstrate responsible civic actions and to ensure that the hopes and dreams of these young lives be safeguarded. You have failed them. You have failed their families. You have failed their communities. You have failed the nation. The blood of these children, and the victims of countless other mass shootings, drips from your hands.
You have demonstrated an unquestioning allegiance to the NRA and their highly irresponsible and extreme policy positions. Your “A” rating from this organization, as well as the contributions and support you have received from them, over the course of your career, has come with a very high price indeed. The price of slaughtered children, in exchange for money and support to your uninspired campaigns. You must now fully bear this shame. You have created this grotesque crisis through your greed and political ambitions. Incident after incident, you do nothing to address this tragic crisis. May the grief and emotional burden be lifted from the shoulders of suffering families and be placed squarely upon your own.
As behavioral health professionals, we recognize the need to swiftly identify and appropriately address the needs of troubled individuals, who may be capable of perpetrating violence. However, this is insufficient in a climate largely created by lawmakers like yourself. The access to firearms designed to carry out mass murders has been ensured through your very public consent. You have ignored the lessons of social sciences. You have ignored the powerful narrative of statistics. You have ignored the welfare of our families and communities. You have dutifully carried out the NRA agenda with great success. The results of your efforts will be remembered by constituents, who have had quite enough of a culture of senseless gun violence, that you have helped make possible. Members of Congress like yourself who have been willingly manipulated by the gun lobby, in defiance of all logical arguments, will be replaced.
Your NRA-driven agenda has made weapons of war easily accessible, absurdly available in astounding numbers and irresponsibly unregulated. Your voting record speaks for itself. It shouts a radical and dangerous ideology, destructive to our society. Your agenda has been heard, like assault rifle gunshots, loud and clear. We the people, now have the opportunity for our voices to ring out loud and clear, with our votes in November. We shall vote for those who share our values of sensibility and sensitivity. Your actions have spoken far louder than your misleading words ever will. Your policies will not change. Your blame shifting will not change. We shall now be agents of change. You must and will be replaced.
Goodbye, Mr. Zeldin.
Ian Lyons, director
Clinical Care Solutions Inc.
Riverhead
Editor’s note: The “In My Opinion” column is open to anyone who wants to submit a viewpoint on any topic. The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the point of view of RiverheadLOCAL’s publishers. We welcome submissions. Be sure to include your email address and daytime phone number. Click here to submit your opinion.
The survival of local journalism depends on your support.
We are a small family-owned operation. You rely on us to stay informed, and we depend on you to make our work possible. Just a few dollars can help us continue to bring this important service to our community.
Support RiverheadLOCAL today.