Originally published on this website July 18, 2000
AARP
601 E. St. N.W.
Washington, DC 20049
Dear Sirs:
It has recently come to my attention that AARP does not support the Bill of
Rights, and in particular the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In view
of your lack of support for our Constitution, I request that you immediately
cancel my membership in AARP and refund any unused membership fees to me at:
Ron Dotson [address1] [City, State Zip]
It is inconceivable to me that an organization such as the AARP that claims
to represent a huge group of elderly citizens would not support the right of
those same citizens to defend themselves with the most effective means possible.
Firearms, and in particular the handgun, have always been know as the
"great equalizer." With a firearm, a little 80-year-old lady in a
wheelchair is as formidable an opponent as a muscular criminal in his prime. In
fact, millions of people defend themselves with firearms every year - many of
them elderly retired citizens. Just recently, there was a case of an 83-
year-old gentleman whose home was broken into late at night by a criminal with a
crowbar. Underneath his bed was a handgun he had not fired in 25 years. He
retrieved the handgun, and not knowing whether it would still fire after all
those years or not, aimed it at the intruder and pulled the trigger just as the
intruder broke open the bedroom door. The handgun still worked. I'm happy to be
able to report that the elderly gentleman survived unharmed but the intruder,
who happened to have a history of robbery and assault, died from his wounds.
Were it not for that man's gun, he would be the one who died and the criminal
would have gone free to prey on others.
Criminals and wacko's can always get handguns just as drug users get drugs,
even though they are illegal. I strongly urge you to reconsider your ill-advised
position on firearms and self-defense, and to support the right of elderly
people to own guns so they can have a fighting chance against stronger
aggressors. I would like to be a part of AARP, but I cannot in good conscience
do so under these circumstances. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Ron Dotson
