SO WE have had another well-publicized shooting, this time at the Empire State Building, and in this one the police ended up wounding more innocent bystanders than the shooter (“Wounded bystanders in N.Y. all hit by police,” Page , Aug. 26). The National Rifle Association will come up with its usual elaborate justications for permitting virtually unrestricted access to firearms and, as usual, no one who opposes them will receive any significant amount of political support in Washington or in our state capitals. Once again this leaves the rest of us pondering this question: Why is it so difficult for gun owners and gun enthusiasts to understand the simple truth of the proposition that, when more people have more guns, more people will shoot more people?

LIONEL SAMUELSON

Brewster