Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Children playing with weaponry?


Editor,

While reading Mark Naymik’s take on children playing with Marine Corps weaponry (Plain Dealer, Child’s play at Marine Week events isn’t innocent fun to some Adults, June 17th), I was reminded of the actions of the Late Edward J.  O’Donnell. As a U.S. Army artilleryman, he was a survivor of combat in Italy, France and Germany during World War Two. Returning home here he was apparently greatly disturbed to find his nephews playing “war” with toy guns. According to his son, Edward F. O’Donnell, his father not only broke the toy guns in front of the nephews but scolded them as well. He then took them to Lakewood’s Adler Sporting Goods and bought them baseball bats, balls and gloves.

As an American military veteran myself, I support defense spending versus military spending and remain very well aware of the sacrifice it has taken to restore peace. But the handling of weapons by children is out of place in America, or anywhere for that matter.

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