After discussing this with my brother, Ron L above, and while wordy and rough around the edges, attached is a draft of a letter going out to the heads and councils of both Detroit and Wayne County's administrations. While blathering on a bit, I've found that thinking "positive" garners a better response and consideration than a simple "You suk, and your laws are stupid."
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Dear Mr./Mrs./Ms. (Insert official’s name here)
Having been born and raised in Detroit, and a Metro Detroiter all my life, I want to express my regret and disappointment in hearing that Detroit and Wayne County is jumping on the bandwagon bringing lawsuits against firearm manufacturers. I have previously agreed with and supported the administrations of the city and county, as the administrations always seemed to possess a vision that assured a successful future for the metropolitan area. I find that I may have been sadly mistaken and in fact, my wife is now struggling with the decision of whether or not to take a job in the city.
This is a major step backwards on the path of growth and revitalization that recently drew huge commercial benefits to Detroit and Wayne County. I am concerned for the city and county that before long, recently developed or relocated corporations will have second thoughts about investing their time and money into Detroit. Will they fear a city and county who will file suit on specuous or ill-advised reasons for the sole purpose of bolstering the administration’s coffers? Will Compuserve fear a suit because someone with a computer purchased through them is involved in child pornography? Will the casinos fear lawsuits because gambling addicts may take to stealing and robbing to feed their “disease”? Will a brewery be taken to court for a convenience story owner selling alcohol to minors? Will an auto maker or auto dealer be held responsible for selling an automobile to a person that might one day cause a fatal collision? I feel as though Detroit and Wayne County have taken to nothing more than “ambulance chasing” or a legal form of extortion. F. McKinney Hubbard once wrote, “When a fellow says, `it ain't the money but the principle of the thing,’ it's the money.” I fear that the Detroit and Wayne County administrations are beginning to shift their focus from the political and moral principles for continued growth and success to cold hard cash.
Filing suit in such a frivolous manner is an admission that the city and county has thrown up its hands and given up on fighting crime, and now only wants to blame others for policy shortcomings. May I remind you that crime does not reside in an inanimate object. Crime, violence, and evil reside in the hearts and minds of those with no regard for others and no regard for laws. The laws and court system should be used to prosecute criminals but are instead being twisted and overrun by those more willing to spread a collective blame across society rather than explore and address the real issues leading to lawlessness. My understanding is that an impetus for this suit is an undercover video documenting illegal firearm transactions. This would be an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the willingness to take a tough stance on real crime and prosecute those guilty of breaking existing laws already in the books. Instead, the administrations would rather file a suit at taxpayer expense hoping to reclaim a few desperate dollars and ignore the real social- and principle-driven issues that actually lead to crime and violence in the first place. I want to believe that the city and county administrations are better than this.
Simply writing more and more laws and filing egregious suits such as this is akin to placing patches and fingers into leaks in a dam, while the bedrock, the very foundation, that the dam is built upon crumbles underneath. I know it is within the collective talents of the city and county administration to look beyond the finger pointing that is eroding our society, and address the root causes of violence that lie beneath the surface like the bulk of an iceberg.
The success of the Devil’s Night fire programs demonstrate how community policing and activism can unite citizens and law enforcement professionals and work toward a common goal, without holding responsible the owners of gas stations or the manufacturers of Ohio Blue Tip matches. I urge you to withdraw the lawsuit and instead, channel your resources and talents, indeed the resources and talents of the Detroit and Wayne County administrations, toward a more responsible solution that will garner more productive and longer lasting results.
Sincerely,
Donald J. LeHue
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Phew! Told ya. I'll let this roll around in my noggin overnight and take a fresh look tomorrow, edit whatever I may need to, and off it goes. Thoughts?
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Don LeHue
The pen is mightier than the sword...outside of arms reach. Modify radius accordingly for rifle.
