With the Orlando nightclub massacre fresh in everyone's minds, President Barack Obama and the liberals in this country are moving to exploit this latest shooting to push for even stricter national gun control laws ("Obama embraces Orlando families, appeals for gun controls," June 16).
Meanwhile, conservatives and the NRA have dug in their heels to preserve what gun rights we as citizens still have in this country before we become England.
But the question that I ask is: What are the biggest changes this country has experienced in the last 25 years that can be directly attributed to what we're seeing today?
My guess is (1) Foreign intervention: When will we learn that we cannot tell other countries how to run their affairs? If our national interest is at stake, so be it. Go to war but give the military the resources to win decisively and then get out. When other countries and their two-bit dictators see that we're serious we won't have half the nonsense now going on around the world.
On top of that (2) accountability: In today's society no one seems to be accountable for anything that they do. The grievance industry in this country makes everyone a victim of something. Therefore, no matter what you do wrong there's always a reason for it, and someone else is to blame.
And (3) illegal immigration: Unfettered and unchallenged illegal immigration has caused more strife in this country than most people will ever realize. The 12 million or so illegal immigrants who are living and working in this country are taking jobs away from Americans who are already here.
Please don't give me that nonsense about these are jobs that Americans don't want to do. Go to any unemployment office and ask any legal resident of this country who is currently out of work if they would take a job doing drywall, painting or landscaping — and see how fast your van fills up with workers.
Finally (4) God: As our society becomes more secular we have taken God out of almost everything — schools, public buildings, statues and so on. This is the most direct cause of the moral decay that has plagued our country over the last 25 years.
You can pass all the laws you want, but unless we fix these things our society will remain bitterly divided and we will never be able to stand united against foreign threats like ISIS.
Mark Wilson, Fallston