Editor, Gazette-Journal:

I flat out could not believe your editorial of June 27 ("Righting a wrong").

"If someone breaks the law and commits a crime, he should have his rights taken away, along with whatever other punishments the courts deem proper. However, if he has served his time behind bars and paid his debt to society, that same person should have his voting franchise restored. That’s just plain common sense."

Let’s just try a little "common sense." The person does not "repay" anything. They are put in jail as punishment. The convenience store is not un-robbed. The victims are not un-traumatized. Nobody is un-raped. The idea that the perpetrator is repaying society is irrational. What has been taken, most often cannot be returned. We need to return these people to society in a condition that does not pose a threat to others, not as rehabilitated voters. One could even imagine a situation where the released felon’s vote cancels out the vote of his victim....