Oppose proposed gun, education legislation

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

To the Editor:

If you are concerned about children’s health, gun violence, and education, well, The Libertarian Wrecking Crew in Concord has promised a full agenda for the coming term starting in January 2012. Here are some highlights:

Repeal Insurance Coverage for Children

HB 309 repeals mandatory insurance coverage for treatment of Autism, certified midwives, children’s early intervention therapy services, testing for a bone marrow donation, people with deafness and hearing loss, and obesity and morbid obesity.

Some Republicans on the committee opposed the bill because it doesn’t go far enough. Yes, you read that right: Some Republicans oppose it because it does not go far enough. This could only happen in a Legislature controlled by an extremist like “Wild Bill O’Brien.”

Speaker “Wild Bill O’Brien” want guns for all.

Lessons from last year taught us that “Wild Bill O’Brien” runs the State House like a Wild West saloon – those who disagree with him are thrown out face first. However, the consequences for Granite Staters is much more sobering.

“Wild Bill O’Brien” wants to remove all impediments to owning and carrying a weapon in our state. That includes near schools, churches, and government building. The Tea Party’s HB 536 would make a weapon permit optional for anyone, regardless of mental capacity.

Once the license is made “optional,” his next goal is HB 334 which takes away local control from cities and public colleges/universities to have their own weapon policies. O’Brien doesn’t like gun-free zones, so his objective is to give everyone a gun, even though he thinks college kids are “young, foolish, and vote liberal.” Please support our local and state police, as well as, our governor’s opposition to these gun laws.

Public funding of religious schools?

We should all be suspicious when our Libertarian Republicans take on education. They have shown us already an inability to provide a future well-educated work force. However, CACR 8 is a different sort of attack on education. It’s a constitutional amendment that would allow the public funding of religious schools, which our state Constitution now emphatically states that no person (i.e. taxpayer) should ever have to subsidize. 

After decades of fighting over how much money we should send our schools, how can we even begin to justify diverting public money to fund religious education? Is “Wild Bill O’Brien” willing to enforce the same rigorous public school educational standards on religious schools? My guess is no.

Please write a letter to your local paper and urge the defeat of CACR 8.

For a complete list of the bills attacking NH citizens go to www.gencourt.state.nh.us/house/caljourns/calendars/2011/houcal2011_70.html.

RAY IANNUZZELLI

Amherst