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Not carrying a gun for self-protection is selfish because:
▪ You think the police should drop whatever other case (or donut) they're dealing with and save you instantly
▪ You don't mind depriving your family of your lost income
▪ You don't mind depriving your family of your love
▪ You don't mind depriving your family of your experience
▪ You don't mind depriving your community of your leadership and charity
▪ You don't think your family members are worth defending
▪ You don't mind witnessing the murder or rape of your wife, daughter, sister, or mother
▪ You don't mind witnessing the murder or torture of your husband, son, brother, father
▪ You don't mind your children or spouse witnessing your own rape or murder
▪ You don't mind your family having to pay your hospital bills
▪ You don't mind your family having to pay for your burial
▪ You don't mind inconveniencing all your relatives and friends when they have to rearrange their schedule to attend your funeral
▪ You don't mind society having to feed, clothe, and house your murderer for the rest of his life
All that seems kinda selfish to me.
The opposite of love isn't hate; it's selfishness. See what Packing Pretty has to say about why you should carry a gun. It isn't about selfishness!
If you're a responsible adult, get a gun, learn how to use it, learn the law, get a permit where required, then carry -- everywhere and anytime you're allowed!
If you deal with a business that doesn't think your life is worth defending or doesn't trust you with a gun, stop it -- and tell 'em why!
If your local or state government doesn't think your life is worth defending or doesn't trust you with a gun, elect a better government!
This past Saturday night (sometime after midnight), Evan and 2 coworkers (one male and one female) were walking to where their car was parked in downtown San Jose following an event. As they walked down the street, they approached 4 young men sitting on the steps of a church talking to each other. Just as Evan walked along side them, one of them jumped up and slugged Evan in the mouth, knocking him to the ground. Evan pulled the assailant to the ground and was slugging him as the other three got up to join in the assault. Evan's friend kicked the guy Evan was fighting with in the head, knocking him to the ground. The assailant picked himself up and he and his three friends took off (after grabbing the female coworker's purse). Both Evan and his friend are both very strong (they both are very fit and lift weights) and I think the four thugs decided fairly quickly they were no match for the two of them.
ReplyDeleteI thanked God that no weapons were used. I am thankful that none of the attackers chose to use a knife or gun on Evan when they attacked him unsuspectingly. I am thankful that he didn't have a gun on him as it is possible that if he had been able to get a gun out and use it, one of the other assailants might have a gun and decide to retaliate.
Evan came home with a lip split all the way through from the initial blow as well as a few goose eggs on the head from hitting the ground and getting hit. His knuckels are beat up from hitting his assailant. No knife or gun shot wounds.
Tell me how you think that scenario would have played out had he been armed.
I'm in full support of owning a gun to protect yourself in your own home (although I don't personally own a gun). But I'm worried about taking justice into our own hands on the streets. I'm worried that our community will become more like a war zone when people feel free to carry guns and use them to exact their own definition of justice as we hear about daily in many of our large cities throughout the United States.
There is no possible law that would have stopped Evan's attackers from possessing and using any sort of weapon any more than laws against assault and robbery stopped the attack. By definition, criminals don’t obey the law. They'll assault and rob and have weapons regardless of the law.
DeleteAnti-gun (and in the UK and some US jurisdictions, anti-knife) laws only deny good people such as Evan, the right to the best beans of self-defense – a gun (second choice, a knife).
It's pretty obvious that I am an advocate of responsible people being armed if they so chose. I am also an ardent advocate of proper training – even in jurisdictions where training is not required. I, like many other firearms trainers, not only teach gun owners how to shoot, but skills that help them to avoid having to use the gun.
One of those skills we teach is awareness training. Most people go through life with absolutely no awareness of what's going on around them – especially when using a cell phone, listening to an iPod, talking with friends, or watching TV or Batman movies, or listening to sermons in church. We teach people how to recognize a potential threat and how to avoid or mitigate it. That awareness likely would have saved Evan a bit of pain.
Having a self-defense gun is never about "taking justice into our own hands on the streets" or even in the home. It's only about protecting ourselves and our loved ones long enough for the police to arrive – and they rarely are on the scene in time to prevent or even stop a crime. They usually arrive just in time to file a report and, if they have time, to start looking for the attacker. It’s a lot like the EMTs driving the ambulance or having a fire extinguisher. Somebody has to provide first aid to sustain life or control the fire until the professionals arrive.
The "justice" doesn't come because a person shoots an attacker. Justice comes later – in court – where the attackers are tried and convicted and the defensive shooting is rule justified.
Another thing that we teach is that nobody is justified in using deadly force to stop a crime that is not life-threatening or that would not result in serious injury (permanent disfigurement or disability). Nobody has a right to pull a gun on anyone else simply because he's scared, feels threatened or even if he's injured. Even the mere display of the gun or knife is using deadly force and must be justified. When attacked, the victim must decide whether he faces a fatal or crippling injury. He can pull his weapon only if the answer is yes. And then, he must use his training in how to defend the gun from being taken by the attacker. Anyone who doesn't understand and accept this concept should not have a gun for self-defense.
One study (www.tinyurl.com/muvpl) indicates that approximately 2.5 million criminal attacks are stopped by the mere presence of a firearm – usually without the firing of a shot.
Guns save lives.