Dear Editor:
In his Jan. 21 submission Mr. Sampson while repeating the narrative that the government is coming for our guns, which is pure nonsense in terms of the legislation actually proposed except for those living in the paranoia of "black helicopters" landing in our neighborhoods to confiscate weapons, ended his presentation with a citation from Gov, George Wallace regarding the similar worthlessness of both political parties.
I would note that a recent felon arrested in San Mateo County near San Francisco was found to possess 16 weapons including two assault rifles and 10,000 rounds of ammunition. I would hope that Sampson supports the premise that at least the weapons of convicted felons should be confiscated.
More importantly I was dismayed at the quote representing Gov. Wallace as a reputable source in our civic debate. On Jan. 14, 1963, this same Gov. Wallace enunciated his infamous declaration, "S egregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever." This same Gov. Wallace required federal action to gain admission for two black students into the University of Alabama in June, 1963. This same Gov. Wallace represented the hostility of the white southern establishment to civil rights reform, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Of course any reader of this submission who harbors reactionary opposition to these protections of the rights of our citizens of color will surely join Sampson in his lauded reference to Gov. Wallace. I judge Gov. Wallace as a political Neanderthal from an era that was determined to keep our fellow African-American citizens "in their place" and would hazard a guess that regardless of party affiliation significant majorities of Americans would recoil at the principles espoused by Wallace.
My question for Sampson is whether he could not find a more reputable source for his condemnation of both parties. I know such sources must be there. So, Mr. Sampson, does your infatuation with the absolutist views of Gov. Wallace include his undiluted devotion to the 10th Amendment to the point that the rights equally guaranteed to our citizens of color are fundamentally at the whim of states? If this is not the case, you would have advanced your proposition with greater credibility if you had selected a worthier messenger to support your judgment than a racist governor determined to preserve white supremacy by complicit non-governmental terror and governmental repression.
Please proceed, Mr. Sampson!