Do not replace one tragedy for another

I received the Independent Record of November 26 and was interested to read the letter regarding Syrian refugees written by Ron Jones. I would like to comment on his article. I think Americans have "put their chins into the wind" enough regarding Muslim visitors, students, and refugees. I was able to observe the Boston Marathon Bombings as they happened. I also viewed the Twin Towers take-down as it happened. One of my fellow New Hampshire residents was beheaded on video by these loving people.

Do you realize the Paris bombing was centered on an American cultural event? Maybe Mr. Jones is too insulated in far off Wyoming. Yes, there is plenty of room in Wyoming, but I am not so "better" that I don't have a healthy fear of any more annihilation attempts by these terrorists - they terrify me and, I believe, any other right thinking individual. Mr. Jones probably knows there are no crowds for marathons, sporting events, huge business complexes, etc. in Wyoming. Maybe he feels he is safe there.

If the effort to embrace these refugees is successful, I am sure they will be the recipients of more support than we are giving the American Indians on the reservations, or the African American citizens who are burning with rage at their perception of the treatment and support we are giving them. I recently saw a cartoon that indicated there were 10,000 M & M's in a jar and only 10 of them were poison. "How many would you eat?" Maybe a chocoholic would eat twenty and take a chance none were poisoned. That is playing Russian Roulette and I don't think sane people do that either. The next series of attacks is imminent anywhere in the world. Choosing to replace the tragedy facing innocent refugees with increasing the likelihood of calamity to freedom-loving people all over the world, and especially on our shores, is simply flawed thinking. We should not, and cannot, replace one tragedy for another.

Noreen (Cook) Pramberg

HSCHS Class of 1951

Exeter, New Hampshire.