Dear editor,
I read with interest the article in the Nov. 16 Iola Register by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
“Common sense dictates that if youth under age 21 are not deemed to have adequate mental development to responsibly drink alcohol, they also should not be trusted to possess guns that can be fired on a whim and kill instantly.”
For years we had a draft at the age of 18. Then we had a lottery system and then no draft at all. Even with no draft, young adults at age 18 have for years been able to join the military voluntarily, at age 17 with consent of parents.
Maybe we should raise the age to enter the military to age 21. I can assure the public that all military personnel are trained thoroughly on the AR-15 and safety is priority one.
It seems hypocritical to say you cannot buy a firearm until age 21 and yet can join the military at age 18. I suggest we are fortunate to have these 18-year-old volunteers especially when they make up less than 1 percent of our total population.
We should remember it’s the National Guard’s role to protect and defend democracy, the Constitution, rule of law and we the people from domestic terrorism.
Remember it was the National Guard that helped save our democracy on Jan. 6, 2021. It’s sad that they were not there sooner. Hopefully, the January 6 Commission committee will shed some light on the matter.
I suggest common sense is lacking in a lot of people, no matter their age. We have a lot of loose nuts in this world and some of them are serving in Congress. These people are 21 and older.
I’ll go a step further and suggest when military personnel are home on leave they should be able to show their military I.D. and be able to drink alcohol if they so choose, no matter their age. I believe it comes down to common sense and a person’s age has nothing to do with it.
As always,
Robert Ivan Franklin,
Iola, Kan.
