Email Responses - Let's see them

[Sthomas229]

Dear Mr. Thomas,

I appreciate your e-mail. Please know that I am an ardent supporter of our 2nd Amendment rights. I am sure there will be many bills introduced during the upcoming session on both sides of the 2nd Amendment issue, and I encourage you to consider testifying on any bills you feel strongly about.

Thank you,

Delegate Cathy Vitale
Anne Arundel County, District 33A
Lowe House Office Building
6 Bladen Street, Room 154
Annapolis, MD 21401
O-410- 841-3510
F -410- 841-3180

 

[Sthomas229]

Dear Mr. Thomas,

Thank you for sharing your concerns with me about possible new gun regulations that may be debated during the next Maryland Session. You and I are in agreement about the importance of maintaining 2nd Amendment rights in a time when understandable, legitimate sorrow and concern about the atrocity in New Town is being used by some as an opportunity to attack this important, Constitutional right.

During my first two years as a State Delegate I have been a strong supporter of the right to keep and bear arms responsibly. In that time I have co-sponsored legislation protecting legal gun owners rights, and in addition also co-sponsored legislation supporting concealed carry laws and state reciprocity involving the transport of firearms though Maryland.

I expect that this will be a tough legislative season in Maryland for gun owners in the wake of the horrific shootings, but I will continue to stand up for gun rights of legal owner’s and the protection of the Second Amendment. Attacking lawful gun ownership sends a troubling signal that the government not trusts its citizens and believes they should have fewer rights during dangerous periods. Ultimately, we need to recognize that we need a change to a culture of responsibility (which includes parents and close friends of these criminals) and a new vigilance in the area of mental health. Those are two areas that I plan to work on more closely in the upcoming Session and beyond.

Again, thank you for contacting me and sharing this information and for your support. Please feel free to contact me anytime at Justin.Ready@house.state.md.us or 410-841-3070. I look forward to hearing from you anytime.

Sincerely,

Justin Ready
Member, House of Delegates
District 5A/Carroll

These and a bunch of automated "I received" messages.

 

[Gladius]

Dear Mr. Rodriguez:

Thanks for keeping in touch with me. It's nice to hear from you.

I support the Second Amendment rights of gun owners. I also support several common sense measures to protect police and the public from becoming victims of gun violence. Most recently, I cosponsored the TRACE Act (S. 469), which would require ballistic fingerprinting of all firearms manufactured in the United States . I believe that it's important for law enforcement to be protected from dangerous weapons on the streets, and have every tool available to solve crimes.

I have also been a strong supporter of the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant (LLEBG) programs. These programs have been essential in the effort to reduce crime and gun violence in our neighborhoods by providing funding for the personnel and technology to fight crime. COPS also funds programs that help educate our youth about crime and gun violence.

I appreciate learning your views on gun control. Please do not hesitate to contact me with your concerns on other federal issues.


Again, thanks for contacting me. Please let me know if I can be of help to you in the future.

Sincerely,
Barbara A. Mikulski
United States Senator

Only reply I've gotten out of the dozens sent in the past month.

 

[rambling_one]

Thank you for contacting my office. I appreciate hearing from you, and I want you to know I received your email. If you have a scheduling request or need immediate assistance, please call my office at 410-841-3800.

As Speaker of the House, I often receive email from around the State encouraging me to support or oppose various proposals. I appreciate everyone who takes time to share their opinion. But I may not have the time to respond to every email since my priority is to my constituents in District 30.

If your email pertains to the status of a particular piece of legislation, I hope you will visit the General Assembly’s website at http://mlis.state.md.us. The site provides a wealth of useful information about the legislature, hearing schedules, briefings from the Department of Legislative Services, and bill information.

Again, thank you for contacting me. I appreciate your input.

Michael E. Busch, Speaker
Maryland House of Delegates

 

[Klunatic]

Just sent a reply to Brian Frosh:

Senator Frosh,

Perhaps you can enlighten me on a few points in regards to your email.

1. How do you propose to protect our children from someone with an assault weapon?
2. These illegal weapons you speak of, can you identify what these weapons are?
3. Were any illegal weapons used in the Sandy Hook and Columbine attacks?
4. How will banning any weapons stop a madman on the steps of our children’s schools?
5. What exactly do you propose to do to actually prevent a person from carrying out such an attack in the future?
6. For you to blithely state that armed staff at schools won’t protect our children is both ignorant and arrogant on your part. Why do you have armed guards at the State house in Annapolis if this is not an effective solution?

In response to your obviously slanted reply. Armed school resource officers have stopped numerous armed attackers trying to enter school property. It may be true that the school resource officers was outgunned and pinned down by the Columbine killers, the precious few moments he kept the shooters at bay allowed other students and staff to escape. An even more effective school resource officer prevented a tragedy a few years ago “On Monday morning, August 30, 2010, Thomas Richard Cowan loaded 13 bullets into two handguns, left his German shepherd chained to the fence and drove eight miles from his home in Kingsport to Sullivan Central High School in Blountville, Tenn”. He was met a the schools door by the Principal and Carolyn Gudger, the school resource officer, drew her gun, then shielded the principal’s body with her own. She then kept the suspect occupied until police arrived and eventually shot Cowan to death. Here is a link to the complete story http://www.tricities.com/news/article_35434f30-00d3-522f-98f1-58f372591713.html .

I await your specific answers to my questions.

Sincerely,


Klunatic

 

[Mr H]

I may have to respond to that one.......

:[

 

[Wynter]

I got this one from Ron Young's associate:

Thank you for contacting Senator Ron Young’s office regarding your position on gun control laws. He recognizes the seriousness of this issue and the impact it is having on our local community, as well as our nation.
Senator Young believes very strongly that private citizens should be prohibited from possessing automatic and semi-automatic weapons. Additionally, the Senator feels that gun shows as well as retail outlets that sell firearms should be held to the same strict criteria regarding to whom these weapons may be sold.

I will make sure Senator Young receives a copy of your email so he can review your comments firsthand.

Again, thank you taking the time to share your views regarding this grave issue facing our nation.
Best Regards,

Caitlin Dunn
Constituent Aide
Senator Ronald Young
District 3, Frederick and Washington Counties

District:
253 East Church St., Suite 100
Frederick, MD 21701
(301) 662-8520

 

[Rusty Jeep]

Emailed all of my Congressmen, here's the response from Andy Harris

So I emailed the President and all of my Congressmen through Congress.org. It's dead simple to write a short letter and send it out so please do it if you already haven't. Here's the response I got back from Andy Harris. Let me know how you think he did.



Thank you for contacting me about the recent Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut and your concern about the potential erosion of our 2nd Amendment rights. As an educator and father of five, two of whom are still in school, the horror that took place on the morning of Friday, December 14, 2012 is unfathomable. My deepest thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of the 27 victims and the Newtown community.

We all must work together to prevent these types of tragedies. I believe we have to start by addressing the culture of violence that has consumed our country. Our news media, movies, television shows, and video games display endless violent images that glorify and inspire this behavior. We have to stop sensationalizing these murderers. According to KidsHealth, the average child spends 28 hours a week watching television and it is estimated that by the time this child leaves elementary school, he or she will have witnessed 8,000 murders and over 100,000 other acts of violence (and this does not include violent video games). According to The Parents Television Council, by the time children reach the age of 18, they have seen more than 40,000 murders and 200,000 acts of violence. I believe this is a major contribution to the problem.

As a physician, I also feel mental health care reform needs to be a part of the discussion. It is important to remember that those with mental illnesses rarely commit acts of violence and this low incidence must be put into perspective. However, we need to make sure children and young adults with mental illness are diagnosed and have access to proper therapy in order to help them cope with their condition. Studies show that more than 10% of children in the United States may benefit from some sort of mental health treatment, but most do not receive help. There is a shortage of resources and services available to serve those that need mental health care support. Furthermore, where these resources exist, their implementation could be improved and used more effectively.

Like you, I agree that we must enforce to the fullest extent possible our current gun control laws that protect people from danger, like preventing gun ownership by criminals or those suffering from a severe psychological disorder that could result in a violent act. Currently, over 4,450 crimes related to guns exist on the federal law books, and tens of thousands have been proposed in the Federal Register. According to the Brady Campaign, Connecticut has the 5thtoughest gun laws in the country including an assault weapons ban. Norway, a nation with some of the toughest gun laws in the world, not too long ago had to deal with a mass murderer killing over 80 people, most of whom were children. Illegal use of a firearm, as was the case with the Sandy Hook shooter, should always be prosecuted to the fullest extent.

I believe that by addressing our country's increasingly worrisome culture of violence, and implementing strategies to generally improve our mental health system, we can lessen the occurrence of these tragedies by targeting the root causes of mass murders. I am grateful for your comments, and you may rest assured that I will keep your views in mind as legislation on this issue is discussed. I hope that you will feel free to contact me on any issue of importance to you or your family in the future.


Sincerely,

Andy Harris, M.D.
Member of Congress

 

[pilotguy]

I just sent this off via AGC. I feel that we need to focus the gun debate back to the real problem. And although I don't want to see any bans or mag cap limits, I really truly feel that if we were able to deal with the gang violence we would make huge strides in reducing violence and death in Maryland.

I am writing you as a father and former police officer here in Maryland. I have seen gun violence first hand and also worry about the world in which my daughter has to grow up. I know from direct experience that an assault weapons ban and a magazine capacity limit law would not reduce the death and violence we see on our streets.

We are plagued with gang violence and I would ask that you give your time and attention to providing additional tools for our police officers, prosecutors, and courts to help combat the runaway gang violence on the streets of Maryland.

I would ask that we provide better programs in our elementary and middle schools to steer at risk youths away from the gang life. The earlier we start the better

I would love to see assistance for single mothers to help provide child care while they are working two or three jobs to support their families. Single parents have the hardest time of all, because in order to provide a better life for their children, they have to be away from them more. More before and after school care, as well as weekend organized activities would give children an outlet to steer them away from gangs.

Through my experience as a police officer, I personally know the rates of violence with semi-automatic weapons is negligible, and although passing an "assault weapons" ban sounds like a good idea, the ban would not prevent any of the gang violence we see in Maryland.

So I urge you to stop contemplating any further gun laws and to start helping Marylanders to deal with our gang violence epidemic.

 

[gswayne]

Just got this from Cardin's office...typical "I feel your pain" and I am considering all sides crapola.

Dear Mr. XXXXX,

Thank you for your thoughtful comments regarding new gun control legislation. Delegate Cardin is committed to hearing from both sides of the debate before making an informed decision on any upcoming legislation. Your opinion is very important to him. As the legislative session continues and specific bills are introduced, I look forward to hearing from you again on this or other matters that are important to you. Thank you again for taking the time to explain your position.

Best regards,
--
Joshua Greenfeld, Esquire
Legislative Director to Delegate Jon S. Cardin District 11, Maryland House of Delegates

House Office Building, Room 304
6 Bladen St., Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 841-3833, (301) 858-3833
1-800-492-7122, ext. 3833 (toll free)
e-mail: Jon.Cardin@house.state.md.us
fax: (410) 841-3373, (301) 858-3373

 

[pilotguy]

Cardin is fully anti-2a:

Throughout the legislative session, I will need all of your support in passing several important bills. My legislative agenda this year includes legislation to make our kids safer by outlawing cyber-bullying, banning assault weapons, and fixing the problems surrounding speed cameras. We will help create a healthier state by offering tax incentives for healthier lifestyles and increasing primary care. Finally, we have to move to limit the influence of money in politics by passing campaign finance reform.

 

[BenL]

I love some of the replies I'm getting. They're basically:

Dear Citizen,

Thank you for contacting me about that thing you are concerned about. I, too, am very concerned about that same thing. As you are probably aware, I have been a strong supporter of the thing you care about for my entire career of public service and will continue my support of that thing in the future. You and I are on the same page concerning the thing you care about.

Thanks again,

Senator Scumbag

Have a large number of very angry constituents every showed up on the front lawn of some politician's home? Do you think that would be effective?

 

[jac43k]

Received this today.

Mr. Cook,

Thank you for relaying your thoughts on gun control. I wanted to inform you that Senator Reilly will not be supporting additional gun legislation.

Sincerely,

Kerry Doyle
Legislative Aide
Senator Edward R. Reilly
District 33, Anne Arundel County
phone (410) 841-3568
fax (410) 841-3067

 

[Knuckle66]

I just got this back from Delegate Mike McDermott

Liberty and Safety Must Walk Together

by Delegate Mike McDermott

The easiest political solution in response to the murderous rampage in Connecticut would be to point the finger at something...anything...and ban it to the abyss. We could then pronounce our children to be “safe” and accept the kudos for our “success”. Politics as usual.
On the books, we have thousands of gun laws obeyed by our good citizens while ignored by criminals. Most of our mass shootings have been perpetrated by those suffering from mental illness who were not armed with “assault rifles”. The massacre at Virginia Tech involved a handgun and resulted in significantly more victims.

In order to solve the problem, let’s begin by confessing that we cannot stop it from happening again. We cannot fix all the sick, broken people determined to do others and themselves harm. We cannot take away all of the guns. We cannot afford cops at every entrance to every school.

We can, however, harden the target and limit our vulnerabilities if we become aggressive in our response to potential threats. There are school districts in our country which have adopted a proactive approach to security threats. Within their schools are certain staffers (known only to the administration) who carry concealed firearms within the school. These trained individuals are designated as “Guardians” and they represent a vigilant line of defense for those we must protect. They are equipped and ready to stand in the gap. Like Sky Marshals, School Guardians remain behind the scenes unknown to all, but prepared nonetheless.

We can opt to provide less lethal technology, such as Tasers, to select staff within our schools. While their effective range is limited, they could provide a line of defense for those who currently have nothing at their disposal. This would require minimal expense and training and could be in place within a matter of weeks.

How I wish one or more of the staff at Sandy Hook Elementary had been a “Guardian” or equipped with a Taser. How differently might the outcome have been.

We must change the way that we view mental health issues and options in our country. We closed the doors on institutions during the 1980’s only to provide no alternatives. The results surround us and it is politically incorrect to even discuss the issues. If we feel your conduct or actions place our society at an undue risk, your liberty should be in jeopardy. We recognize this when it comes to passenger aircraft, and it is time we recognized it outside of the airports as well.

The media must police itself or be subjected to fines for sensationalizing instead of simply reporting these types of tragedies. Most of these murdering crazies seek celebrity status, even in death, and the electronic media is generally only too glad to oblige. Why do we understand this when it comes to streakers at a televised event, yet fail to grasp it in these situations? There is a balance missing that the media desperately needs to find or we can find it for them.

Preparing our children to take their place in civil society is the responsibility of parents. Teachers, mentors, and the rest of society can only reinforce what parents are instilling. There are some who advocate taking certain guns from responsible citizens while simultaneously letting junior play the most hellish video games available night and day. What’s wrong with that picture? Training a child is the toughest, most important job if we are to preserve a civil society for the coming generation. In this, we must hold each other accountable. We simply must stop subsidizing and making excuses for antisocial behavior.

I will introduce legislation in the next two weeks which would:
•Authorize a Maryland School District to implement a “Guardian” program;
•Authorize a Maryland School District to issue Taser style less-lethal weapons to select personnel within a school;
•Authorize persons who possess Conceal-Carry Permits along with Active or Retired Law Enforcement Officers (who are certified to possess firearms) to carry a concealed firearm on the campus of a public school.

It was Benjamin Franklin who proclaimed, "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Let us be a people who truly understand how to provide safety while maintaining our liberty.

 

[jkray]

I have now emailed all 3 of my delegates and my senator multiple times without so much as an auto response. looks like they are gonna have to start trying to dodge my phone calls now

 

[Knuckle66]

email response from Ted Sophocleus:

I am sure this issue will be presented to the General Assembly this year and we will work to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens of this State while protecting our children and all citizens. Careful review and open dialogue is called for at this time. I am also a father, son, grandfather and understand your emotions and concerns.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance in the future.

Ted Sophocleus

 

[SWO Daddy]

Anyone else get this condescending email from Ted Sophocleus?


From: "Sophocleus, Ted Delegate" <Ted.Sophocleus@house.state.md.us>
Date: Jan 10, 2013 11:13 AM
Subject: RE: Vote NO on any new gun legislation
To: "SWO Daddy"

Dear SWO Daddy,

I am sure this issue will be presented to the General Assembly this year and we will work to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens of this State while protecting our children and all citizens. Careful review and open dialogue is called for at this time. I am also a father, son, grandfather and understand your emotions and concerns.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance in the future.

Ted Sophocleus

 

[SWO Daddy]

email response from Ted Sophocleus:

I am sure this issue will be presented to the General Assembly this year and we will work to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens of this State while protecting our children and all citizens. Careful review and open dialogue is called for at this time. I am also a father, son, grandfather and understand your emotions and concerns.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance in the future.

Ted Sophocleus

Haha...

 

[Mr H]

Anyone else get this condescending email from Ted Sophocleus?


From: "Sophocleus, Ted Delegate" <Ted.Sophocleus@house.state.md.us>
Date: Jan 10, 2013 11:13 AM
Subject: RE: Vote NO on any new gun legislation
To: "SWO Daddy"

Dear SWO Daddy,

I am sure this issue will be presented to the General Assembly this year and we will work to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens of this State while protecting our children and all citizens. Careful review and open dialogue is called for at this time. I am also a father, son, grandfather and understand your emotions and concerns.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance in the future.

Ted Sophocleus

He's said worse....

 

[lawrencewendall]

email response from Ted Sophocleus:

I am sure this issue will be presented to the General Assembly this year and we will work to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens of this State while protecting our children and all citizens. Careful review and open dialogue is called for at this time. I am also a father, son, grandfather and understand your emotions and concerns.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of assistance in the future.

Ted Sophocleus

Same one I got from him.