Aiming at wrong target

In response to the intention to ban airguns (your report, 27 August), it seems yet again that the symptom rather than the root cause is to be addressed.

Most people's experience of firearms is through films and games that project the image of people pointing guns at people and firing them. This is unlikely to change as a result of legislation, so this message will continue to filter through.

On the other hand, shooting sports, which would be affected by a ban, bend over backwards to inculcate the message that firearms of any sort should not be pointed at people, loaded or unloaded, and explain the consequences.

By proposing to ban airguns, an opportunity for responsible education is chipped away, leaving us with just the culture that celebrates pointing and shooting weapons at people.

TOM HARRISON, Inchbrakie Drive, Crieff, Perthshire