To reduce shootings, we need to fund mental health services

In the Nov. 25 article regarding the study of resource officers in schools (“Study: More officers in schools doesn’t deter crime”), I was surprised to read the quote from the executive director of the Association of National Resource Officers: “When people see a police officer, most people are going to go away.” He indicates the study goes against logic and common sense in how people react around police.

Unfortunately, it is generally the case that the individuals who commit these horrible acts of violence are experiencing mental health issues, often untreated. They are not thinking in a way that is logical, and therefore do not behave as “most people” would.

While there might be many options for deterring mass shootings, one of the best is to have adequate funding for mental health services. This could be achieved with strong advocacy from the public and a firm commitment from our legislators to expand access to healthcare by expanding Medicaid. This is certainly an option I will be working to achieve.

Pat Adams

Retired director , Edgecombe-Nash Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, Substance Abuse Services program

Rocky Mount

Cooperate with ICE

Two illegal immigrants who were transporting 24 pounds of methamphetamine were arrested on Monday, Nov. 26 (“Wake deputies seize 24 pounds of meth, arrest two men from Charlotte,” Nov. 27). They would be afforded protection from the threat of deportation by the Wake County sheriff-elect’s stated change in policy.

I understand that Gerald Baker, the sheriff-elect, has stated that he will no longer cooperate with ICE to identify and deport illegal aliens involved in criminal activity when arrested by the Wake County Sheriff’s Department under his leadership.

I seem to remember swearing to enforce the laws of the city, county, state and cuntry when I was sworn in to be a law enforcement officer back in the 1970s. Why would any elected official want to take this stance in Wake County? Why would anyone want to protect from deportation those involved in criminal activity, when they are shown to be here illegally?

Steve Trexler

Raleigh

Climate reality

Dealing with the reality of climate change in a meaningful way should not be politicized. It is unfortunate that our president dismisses the government report (“Climate change could triple the frequency of large wildfires, says new federal report,” Nov. 23).

President Trump’s response to the report’s conclusion that human activity is contributing to global climate change is “I don’t see it.” Rather than refuting the report based on science, he says that it is a feeling in his gut that leads to that conclusion. He doesn’t want to accept the report’s conclusion because it means that his energy policy will need to be replaced with forms of clean energy, and soon.

This is a time when we need our president to show leadership by acknowledging reality and outlining a clean energy plan that will harness American innovation and the collective energy of us all. Such an action would encourage bipartisanship, create jobs, reduce the need for centralized power plants, and open the door for energy independence for businesses and individuals.

William Delamar

Durham

Promoting fear

I was disheartened to read about the Crime and Place app Nov. 27 (“App steers you away from local crime; but does it magnify fear, social divisions?”). In a time when fearfulness is stoked and maintained, I’m hard-pressed to think of anything more effective than constantly updated data on where to avoid at one’s fingertips.

This puts a unique spin on Franklin’s statement “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.” Only in this case, in order to protect our loved ones, livelihood, etc., we ultimately safeguard ourselves from others for an illusionary peace of mind, sacrificing inclusion and denying ourselves the possibility of something greater.

Inadvertent or not, this makes me concerned for a now not too distant future, where the fear of one another, having not been dispelled but promoted, causes us to revert, not advance.

Molly Cassidy

Raleigh

Looking back

Twice this week I have read about former leaders being appointed to their former jobs. It would appear to me that political groups and universities could find qualified and enthusiastic new blood rather than going back to the past.

Bill Fitzgerald

Pinehurst