I would like to respond to some of the individuals who opined to my father's recent letter to the editor regarding "pappy's shotgun."

First, I've been shooting with my father since I was 8. Some writers responded to my father's comparison of the lethality of a shotgun with the AR (or AK) style rifles that President Obama and other progressives would love to ban them out of civilian existence.

Many Americans who know little to nothing regarding ballistics opine nonetheless. Fine, but now it's my turn. Pappy's old side-by-side can, for example, shoot No. 4 buckshot, in which each shell consists of 27 bullets that are larger caliber than the bullet the AR shoots (.24 caliber, vs. .22 caliber).

Do the math. Pull the trigger on the shotgun twice and 54 bullets move down range. Do so on the AR and 2 rounds go down range. As far as distance goes, how far is it from one side of a standard school room or mall store or theatre? Thirty feet? A hundred feet? Still, very well within the lethal range of a shotgun loaded with these rounds, which are lethal out to 100 yards or more.

JACOB TURNER, Pasco