THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT

                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, June 12, 1994                    TAG: 9406100026 
SECTION: COMMENTARY                     PAGE: J4    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: Short 
DATELINE: 940612                                 LENGTH: 

CRIME MAKERS

{LEAD} It seems to be an article of faith among liberals and many newspaper writers that ``guns cause crime.'' How then, exactly, does this happen? Do guns give off evil the way plutonium emits radiation? If this is true, then why weren't there any incidents of violence around the gun show in Hampton several weeks ago?

I've owned guns for more than 20 years, and I've never known any gun to just jump up and go off. I have known of people who have handled guns carelessly, often with tragic results. Those people will never admit to carelessness; they blame the gun instead.

{REST} When people who may be inclined to crime know their actions will result in a serious stretch of hard time, or a three-minute ride in ``Old Sparky,'' they may think twice.

It's people who break laws who cause crime, not guns.

EDWARD F. GEIS

Eure, N.C., June 3, 1994 by CNB