Kansas Aug. 2 abortion amendment is anti-freedom. Noting that isn’t anti-Catholic bias
Rights are the issue
My June 29 commentary in The Star asserted the truth: The amendment to the Kansas Constitution on the Aug. 2 ballot would result in curtailing the religious rights of women who believe they own their bodies, and that all medical procedures are their personal choice. Such is the fervently held religious position of most Americans, who are pro-choice.
In reply, Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas called me anti-Catholic. I am not anti-Catholic. I am pro-First Amendment, forbidding government interference in religion.
Naumann is at best being disingenuous. He contends that he is not attempting to impose the views of his church on the people of Kansas but, instead, is only trying to allow Kansans to exercise their democratic rights. The truth is the opposite. The people of Kansas already possess those rights that the archbishop opposes. Currently, most women who choose to undergo an abortion are permitted to do so, within limits.
No one who opposes abortion is compelled to undergo an abortion. Women, not the state, choose. That is the essence of freedom.
Archbishop Naumann and his allies seek to remove our rights. As he wrote in The Leaven on May 20, it is his fervent wish to ban all abortions in Kansas.
- Rabbi Dr. Mark H. Levin, Prairie Village
Stopped shooter
A shooter at a Greenwood, Indiana, shopping mall recently shot and killed three people and wounded at least two others, and wanted to shoot even more. Fortunately, he was stopped before he was able to commit more mayhem. Greenwood is a suburb of Indianapolis, a day’s drive from Kansas City.
The shooter was stopped by a 22-year-old man who was legally carrying a handgun. This good Samaritan used his handgun to kill the shooter before he committed mass carnage. Police reported that the criminal had a rifle and several magazines of ammunition. Emergency personnel arrived on the scene to treat the wounded while police secured the area.
Greenwood Police Chief Jim Ison had high praise for the 22-year-old: “The real hero of the day is the citizen that was lawfully carrying a firearm in that food court and was able to stop the shooter almost as soon as he began.”
Statistics from the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Crime Prevention Research Center show concealed carry holders stopped potential mass shooters more than 60 times between Dec. 17, 1991, and May 25, 2022.
- Kevin Lindeman, Kansas City
The what ifs
I live on 21st Avenue in North Kansas City, two blocks from where a young police officer was shot and killed Tuesday. (July 21, 1A, “Man charged in North Kansas City officer’s killing”) On that morning, another young man, in a few short minutes — maybe only seconds — made the decision to carry out that shooting.
What if he hadn’t had a gun in his vehicle? What if guns were actually difficult to obtain?
That thought should give us all pause.
- Jennifer Martino, North Kansas City
Worthy words
I’ve taken The Star for a very, very long time, so I’ve read a lot of sports columns over the years. And there have been a bunch of incredibly well-written columns by some incredibly talented writers.
Nothing lasts forever, however, so periodically, I have been saddened by the loss of a columnist who could not possibly be replaced. Joe Posnanski, in particular, comes to mind, but there were several others. But each time, impossibly, someone stepped into some awfully big shoes and somehow filled them.
That thought crossed my mind when I read Sam McDowell’s Sunday commentary on the Royals’ 10 un-players. (1B, “Some Royals unhappy with players’ vaccination decision”) That whole column was golden, but one line in particular stopped me in my tracks:
“It’s a personal choice, said four of the seven … as if we needed confirmation that a decision to stiff-arm the world’s best option to slow a virus that has killed millions was made for anyone other than themselves.”
Congrats to Sam for a superb column, and to The Star for sharing him with us.
- Paul L. Schenk, Parkville
It’s over
I am done supporting the greedy, selfish, narcissistic players now on the last-place Royals team. They don’t give a dang about the team or our city, so why should we be expected to support their million-dollar careers?
Stay home until the Chiefs’ kickoff.
- Christopher Stanfield, Overland Park
