Total madness has taken hold

Wallingford, Conn.: I’ve been watching the tragedy in Las Vegas and it makes me so despondent. We have become such a noncaring society when it comes to our fellow man. I don’t understand what is going on in the mass murderers’ minds. What do you they get out of murdering all these people? They’re saying on TV that the shooter had a total of 42 guns between Vegas and his home. Why does any one person actually need all the guns?

And of course, Congress will do nothing because the NRA has the Republicans in its pockets. (I am neither a Republican nor a Democrat.) It’s my understanding that there is currently a bill in Congress to making it easier to buy silencers. I don’t know a lot about guns but if they were allowed in Vegas, wouldn’t a lot more people have been killed because they would not have heard the shots?

I try to be positive about most things, but something like Vegas and Newtown, where all those children were killed almost five years ago with nothing since done just makes me angry. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to change the Constitution and take guns away from responsible people, but we need better laws, like people on the no-fly list should not be able to get a gun.

And yet on the other hand, hearing all the stories out of Vegas of heroes helping people to survive, both first responders and civilians, gives me hope. Those are the things I choose to remember.

Barbara Boucher

Existential crisis

Howard Beach: As the authorities seem to be at a loss in attempting to determine a motive for the horrible shooting spree in Las Vegas, and at the risk of sounding morbid, I submit a theory about what motivated the perpetrator: Perhaps the shooter had a preoccupation with his own death and could not reconcile himself with the lack of control he had over when and where it would occur, or could not reconcile himself with the inevitability itself. So he would take into his own hands the only matter of death that he could and he would see to it that others would go first — many, many others. When escape was closed off to him, he took control in the last manner left to him, thus finally freeing himself from his obsession. Richard O’Connor

College dropout

Brooklyn: To Voicer Laurel Turnbull: Well stated. I, too, will no longer cast my wasted vote in any future presidential elections because of this math formula with the Electoral College deciding the rigged outcome. In my lifetime, I voted for four Republican candidates and five Democratic candidates. I’ve always prided myself on putting country above party. Over the decades, our presidential elections were stolen from the majority voter count. Because of the math formula, the Electoral College gave us this crazy character now sitting in our White House. God help us all.

Lou Martinez

Hopes and prayers

Brooklyn: A devil is running our country. May God help us and God bless America.

Josephine Sendra

On bended knee

Albany: No one has the right to take away the people’s choice of expression. Signed, a 72-year-old white veteran. Bill Collins

What’s in a name

Brooklyn: Instead of repeal and replace, why don’t we just keep and rename it Trumpcare. He will never know! Estelle Abramowitz

Myths and truths

Brooklyn: The Republican Party has spent the last 40 years convincing the American electorate that there are too many government workers as well as too many agencies and regulations. The result has been drastically reduced agency budgets. We recently had major hurricanes hit Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The damage is going to run upwards of $100 billion. Most of that is going to be financed by American taxpayers. The bulk of the manpower that will respond is made up of government workers. Since a new tax cut planned by President Trump would at least in the beginning increase the deficit, great care must be used to make sure that emergencies can be dealt with. It is no good to get a little tax cut and severely slash vital government programs. Alan Podhaizer

Pick one

Westport, Conn.: We can continue to be the world’s benevolent mother-in-law and soon go broke. Or we can fix our health care system, repair and modernize our infrastructure and pay down the national debt. We can’t do both. America, make a choice!

James Giambalvo

Italian unity

Brooklyn: Re the Columbus statue at Columbus Circle: Take it down! That’s right, take the statue down, smash it into a thousand pieces and bury it at sea. Since this controversy started, I have yet to see one mass rally, protest or demonstration on behalf of the Italian-American community for the preservation and defense of Columbus’ legacy.

(Meaning: That’s a shame.) Are we going to wait around while watching reruns of “The Sopranos” or eating Sunday gravy? Until the mayor’s panel decides to remove the statue, and then it’s too late.

— Italians wake up! Only we can defend our heritage!

Robert Aimetti

A mayor’s priorities

Middle Village: Kissing butt is one way for Mayor de Blasio to get votes, so he created a commission to review statues for potential removal. Based on whose judgment — the radical left? Every dictator did the same — like burning books. De Blasio should fix all the cracks, holes and uneven streets that prevail in Rego Park, Forest Hills and elsewhere. Afraid to take a stand, he allows his following to voice their own symbols of hate in our city. Nothing from City Hole. He is hard up and will pacify any groups that he hopes will vote again in office. Not only Italians revere Columbus, but all the people who love our country. Joe Laszlo

Leader who follows

Flushing: Mayor de Blasio has no leadership — he follows. He went along with the excesses of many men and women. He condemned statues to come down and picked on Christopher Columbus at 59th St. He did not concern himself deeply about evaluating the situation as a thinker should, but went along. He has betrayed the Italians here in New York and should not talk of any “Italianistic feelings” he holds, as he is not Italian. Charles J. Lercara

Cross Bronx vex-pressway

Dallas: Dear Mayor de Blasio: I travel the Cross Bronx Expressway very often when I am in New York. I spend no more than half my time in Queens. I am totally puzzled about why there are no cameras on that very congested expressway. I know you put cameras in Queens, to make sure everyone meets the speed limit of 25 mph, because my sweet, 85-year-old aunt got a ticket! This makes no sense. Ninety-five percent of all trucks drive in the left lane. They just don’t care what the signs say because it doesn’t matter. Driving would be so much safer and New York would make so much money — money needed to help the city pay police officers, firefighters and teachers. It would certainly ease the traffic and make the left lane much safer. I don’t know if you travel on the Cross Bronx Expressway, but you should during heavy traffic times. Money is spent on so many other STEVE MARCUS/REUTERS things; one of them should be these cameras. Mitch Goldminz

On the sidelines

Park Ridge, N.J.: The Giants are dropping like flies. Like my friend Gary would say, if it gets any worse they are going to have to go upstairs to the clubs and get the bus boys and the waiters to have enough people to play the game. Maybe they should just forfeit the rest of the season and let the players get healthy for next year.

Steve Ostlund

More downs

Maspeth: While I was waiting for a bus the other day, I got into a conversation with a guy who also happened to be a fellow Big Blue fan. Odell Beckham Jr. and Brandon Marshall were the topic. We asked ourselves: Can OBJ responsibly come back, and how much does Marshall have left in the tank? Talk about a total wipeout. Get better soon, guys. Maybe the young guys can keep up a winning streak, especially if they can develop chemistry with No. 10. I’ve got a feeling the GM will end up on his way out, probably at the end of the season.

John V. Accardi

Toilet humor

New City, N.Y.: Larry David is just so very, very funny and witty. Especially when he was in the bathroom on one of his hilarious sitcoms, and his urine hit the picture of Christ on the wall. Yuk! Yuk! Yuk! Yuk! What a piece of feces. Joseph Human