Mind Shift On Personal Defense
Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2008 7:22 pm
This is a piece from my blog. It contains little that the regulars here don't already ascribe to, but it may just help "the cause".
The attacks in Mumbai have presented an opportunity for Americans to come to a deeper and perhaps more thoughtful realization about responsibility for personal defense. Americans need to become armed,to become well-trained and to be prepared. It may not be possible for civilians armed with handguns to end an attack by heavily armed terrorists but it certainly may be possible to mitigate the damage and to reduce the body count. If the body that doesn't get counted is your own, then it seems to me that's reason enough.
It is not at all beyond reason to imagine a Mumbai style attack taking place in New York City, or Las Vegas or Miami. Just imagine if Americans were inculcated with a self defense mindset as we have seen in Israel where so many terrorist attacks have actually been stopped by one or two armed civilians.
Like it or not the world has changed, it is a very mobile and dangerous place. We are no longer protected from dangers by the oceans, and while our government is figuring out what to do about the larger issue of global terrorism we must have a plan to defend ourselves as individuals. Unfortunately in the U.S., there still exists a mindset that our government can protect us from danger. Despite the best efforts of the brave women and men of law enforcement we know this is not so. Here in America it takes on average eight minutes for police to respond to a 911 call. We saw all too clearly at Virginia Tech what can transpire in a few minutes when there is no capability to fight off even a lone crazed gunman. That rampage was in every way a terrorist event.
On September 11,2001, the United States government failed at the single most important function that it has been entrusted to perform, namely the protection of American citizens from foreign aggression. If we demand too much from government, it's partly because the need for the state to defend us increases in proportion to our inability to defend ourselves. This among other reasons is why law-abiding Americans, many of whom have been disarmed by gun control, beg for police protection despite the terrible violations of civil liberties that such protection entails-like curfews, anti-loitering laws, and civil asset forfeiture. The anti-gun paranoia foisted on Americans is a causative factor in pushing us toward a police state. We must not allow this to happen.
Armed civilians can and do deter crime everyday in America. Its important to remember that even evil people calculate the costs of a misstep. Criminals rob convenience stores and pizza delivery guys whom they know are unarmed. Criminals do not rob police stations, because the criminal’s personal risk of getting caught and killed is too high. It is known that Nazi Germany did not invade Switzerland largely because they knew they would encounter fierce resistance from armed citizens. Armed citizens can mean safer workplaces, shopping malls, schools, and other public venues.
Armed civilians just might save your life when terror comes to call, but you should be prepared to save yourself, from terror whether it comes in the form of an organized attack on your city by a band of terrorists, a crazed gunman in a local mall ,or the sound of breaking glass in your home in the dark of night.
The attacks in Mumbai have presented an opportunity for Americans to come to a deeper and perhaps more thoughtful realization about responsibility for personal defense. Americans need to become armed,to become well-trained and to be prepared. It may not be possible for civilians armed with handguns to end an attack by heavily armed terrorists but it certainly may be possible to mitigate the damage and to reduce the body count. If the body that doesn't get counted is your own, then it seems to me that's reason enough.
It is not at all beyond reason to imagine a Mumbai style attack taking place in New York City, or Las Vegas or Miami. Just imagine if Americans were inculcated with a self defense mindset as we have seen in Israel where so many terrorist attacks have actually been stopped by one or two armed civilians.
Like it or not the world has changed, it is a very mobile and dangerous place. We are no longer protected from dangers by the oceans, and while our government is figuring out what to do about the larger issue of global terrorism we must have a plan to defend ourselves as individuals. Unfortunately in the U.S., there still exists a mindset that our government can protect us from danger. Despite the best efforts of the brave women and men of law enforcement we know this is not so. Here in America it takes on average eight minutes for police to respond to a 911 call. We saw all too clearly at Virginia Tech what can transpire in a few minutes when there is no capability to fight off even a lone crazed gunman. That rampage was in every way a terrorist event.
On September 11,2001, the United States government failed at the single most important function that it has been entrusted to perform, namely the protection of American citizens from foreign aggression. If we demand too much from government, it's partly because the need for the state to defend us increases in proportion to our inability to defend ourselves. This among other reasons is why law-abiding Americans, many of whom have been disarmed by gun control, beg for police protection despite the terrible violations of civil liberties that such protection entails-like curfews, anti-loitering laws, and civil asset forfeiture. The anti-gun paranoia foisted on Americans is a causative factor in pushing us toward a police state. We must not allow this to happen.
Armed civilians can and do deter crime everyday in America. Its important to remember that even evil people calculate the costs of a misstep. Criminals rob convenience stores and pizza delivery guys whom they know are unarmed. Criminals do not rob police stations, because the criminal’s personal risk of getting caught and killed is too high. It is known that Nazi Germany did not invade Switzerland largely because they knew they would encounter fierce resistance from armed citizens. Armed citizens can mean safer workplaces, shopping malls, schools, and other public venues.
Armed civilians just might save your life when terror comes to call, but you should be prepared to save yourself, from terror whether it comes in the form of an organized attack on your city by a band of terrorists, a crazed gunman in a local mall ,or the sound of breaking glass in your home in the dark of night.