The N.R.A. and Hunters - It's Complicated - NYTimes.com Re "I Hunt, but the N.R.A. Isn't for Me," by Lily Raff McCaulou (Op-Ed, April 25): Amen to Ms. McCaulou. I have owned guns and hunted all my life. I have never owned a weapon for self-defense and have never felt the need. I used to belong to the National Rifle Association but resigned under protest years ago when it began to support public access to Teflon-coated bullets, automatic weapons, assault rifles and laws that encourage everyone to "carry" concealed. The N.R.A. wants me to fear for my life. It has succeeded. Now I have to be concerned that some gun-toting wacko will decide that I looked at him funny and will shoot me because he "felt threatened." Thanks, N.R.A. The rifle association has little to do with hunting or public safety. It has long since lost its way. JEFF BURNS Littleton, Colo., April 25, 2012 Last year, I bought my first hunting license since 1966 and hunted deer for 30 days of 32 available to me. In the 1960s, I was a member of the National Rifle Association, but this time was put off by its extreme positions on gun control. I agree that the greatest threat to our hunting rights is diminished access to land. Most of us must make a long commute to public land, where we see more hunters than game. Ah yes, another noble hunter has come forth to decry her soul mate, the National Rifle Association. What a great cover these wagging fingers provide for their gun source. What noble concern for wildlife and the environment they pour forth. But the American nonhunting majority isn't thrilled by the killing of myriad species for fun (in Minnesota a bill was pushed to "hunt" sandhill cranes)! The nonhunting majority also has a right to be furious about the toxic lead unleashed into its environment by hunting. Lily Raff McCaulou should save her violins for those children, dogs and "nongame" species that are accidentally killed or maimed by hunters. I read Lily Raff McCaulou's article with some interest as I, too, am a hunter who is not a member of the National Rifle Association. I found myself in agreement with many of her positions on habitat and conservation, but her views on gun control were simplistic at best. Most important, however, was her statement that the N.R.A. has never been about hunting. Many of my friends are N.R.A. members who hunt and would take great exception to that statement. The rifle association is a leader in conservation efforts and hunter education programs in the United States. In fact, hunters, depending on age, may have to take a hunter safety course developed by the association to get a hunting license. Much of the N.R.A. program Under Wild Skies is dedicated to conservation activities worldwide sponsored by the association. JAY KELLEY Levelland, Tex., April 25, 2012