Letters: Praise for Fumo forgets his support of the NRA
It turned my stomach to read how local top pols, who claim to be working to make Philadelphia safer, stood up for former State Sen. Vincent Fumo during sentencing deliberations, even praising him for the "tremendous good" he did ("Rendell lends support to Fumo," Tuesday).
Fumo has long been the prime gun-lobby promoter and water- carrier in Harrisburg. The National Rifle Association and gun industry had the luck to have had the most powerful Philadelphia Democrat in their pockets for decades. Fumo blocked sensible regulation of the illegal handguns that devastate the region's communities.
Fumo can brag about the dollars he brought to Philly, and his political pals may praise his prowess. But they ignore the untold millions spent on law enforcement, emergency care, long-term rehabilitation, incarceration, and more - on both sides of the Delaware - to combat Philly's overactive illegal handgun trade.
Fumo deserves praise not from those seeking to cut the carnage of gun crime and violence, but from the gun lobby and industry that promote death and destruction, because much of the "tremendous good" Fumo did was for those who prey on the region.
Bryan Miller
Executive director
Ceasefire NJ
