The latest mass murders in Ohio and Texas are once again a very real reason to enact universal background checks utilizing a national data base.

It is truly unfortunate that an additional 33 persons and counting had to die at the hands of two unstable individuals, and their deaths have finally prompted our president to call for stronger background checks.

The people besides our president who need to listen to their constituents are in the Capitol in Washington, D.C., and the NRA leadership. Maybe they are waiting for such a tragedy to hit closer to their home to do the right thing and support and enact purposeful gun control.

In many states currently it takes longer to obtain a driver’s license or a marriage license than it does to obtain a weapon’s permit. That is a travesty.

Unfortunately, the people who really need to read this will probably never see this letter. 

Robert H. Strick

Norwich