Regarding the March 8 letter "The scourge of guns": Eve Carson's death was very tragic, but don't blame me or the NRA. As a gun owner, a shooting sports enthusiast and an NRA member, I never condone anything but the most responsible and safe use of firearms.

When a person drives a car through a group of people to do them harm, do people automatically call for the banning of that manufacturer's autos? When a person uses any other kind of tool to do harm to fellow humans, is there a call to banish these tools?

A firearm is a tool whose purpose is to place a small amount of metal accurately at a point in space. I use this tool to break small pieces of clay in the air or to punch a hole in a piece of paper or cardboard. My children use these tools under my supervision to do the same things, and they learn responsibility.

I am saddened by Eve Carson's senseless death, but I am in no way responsible for it, nor is the NRA. Instead, blame the person who took the life. It was the killer's choice, and it is the killer's responsibility for that decision.

John Grimes

Raleigh