The president, Dorchester Court and guns in today’s letters to the editor.

Pick of the day: The new arms race

The proposal to have an armed guard in every school is terribly naïve. A single gunman can easily be overwhelmed by an assailant — even more easily by several assailants. Our children will not be safe until we have an armed guard in every classroom.

To afford gunmen, we will need to fire teachers. Granted, this may lower the quality of education, but isn’t it obvious that the safety of our children is more important than their education?

We must be aware that increased protection will lead to increased sophistication and violence by armed assailants. We will need to repeatedly expand our armed defense. When dangerous people see that our schools are protected, they will target churches, hotels, restaurants and businesses. Gunmen will be needed to assure our safety in all those places.

Some people who were with me on our church mission trip to Guatemala deplored the gun-carrying guards who stood in front of many stores, but I know we felt more secure because of their militant vigilance. I am confident that with a committed effort to fight violence with violence, our nation can catch up with Guatemala.

MALCOLM BROWNLEE

ROCKBRIDGE BATHS