Editor:

In response to Paula Huff's editorial entitled "Leave me and my guns alone" (Feb. 16), I am compelled to comment. My comment is not that she does not have a right to her guns! She does, as do we all. My comment is that she neglected to include the fact that personal possession of guns increases the chances of her death and those of loved ones close to her. I appreciate the fact that many people, in this day and age, feel comforted with a gun by their side they may never use. I see this also in the elderly population who may hoard pills to take if their life-threatening illness gets out of hand. They seldom use them, but are comforted with their presence. Nonetheless, to accurately cite all the facts about why one needs and is entitled to a gun, without including the fact that it increases the odds of being killed, is to not give the whole story.

Robert L. Wrenn
pyschology professor