To the editor:

This past Saturday, I participated in the state Attorney General’s Gun Buyback Program in Plattsburgh. It was well organized with law enforcement from the AG’s office and Clinton County. A total of 256 firearms were surrendered.

Should I be worried about Second Amendment rights? At the moment, I think the more pressing and greater issue of the day is the unfathomable number of mass shootings in America. As of Tuesday morning, according to gunviolencearchive.org, there have been 185 mass shootings in the first quarter of this year. It is hard to imagine that the greatest country on earth should also be the epicenter of senseless deaths due to gun violence.

“Thoughts and prayers” to the victims’ families are not enough, and sound hollow and insincere after a while. I hope and pray that our government representatives will put their grievances against each other aside, and enact legislation to begin to tackle this scourge upon our land. Please, find ways to get involved by contacting your government representatives and participating in your community in some way.

Sincerely,

Ann Monroe

Saranac Lake