"Gun Free Zones"
Generally Aren't
Gunning for freedom
Guns are a tough subject.
The gulf between those who own them and those who want them gone
forever is about the same as between those who support and those
who oppose abortion - with fewer pleasantries exchanged. Still,
I'd like to spend a few words on one aspect of the topic.
You have to go back a ways to find this one, but it happened.
Several years ago, an individual who couldn't hack the program
and who'd flunked out of the Appalachian Law School grabbed a
gun and decided to vent his anger. He killed three people and
injured three others. His rampage ended, according to the story
I read back then, when several students subdued him. In other
stories, it was reported that "students overpowered a gunman,"
students "helped subdue" the killer, or "the gunman
was tackled by several male students before being arrested."
I remember thinking that these were some gutsy students - an opinion
that remain unchanged even when I learned what had actually happened.
When the shooting started, two students ran to their cars and
got their guns. Then, along with another student, they approached
the gunman. Seeing the armed students coming, the gunman dropped
his firearm. The students then overpowered him without firing
a shot of their own.As regards this incident, the New York
Post reported that, "out of 280 separate news stories
in the week after the event, just four stories mentioned that
the students who stopped the attack had guns."
The fact is that there are many other instances wherein firearms
are used to stop or prevent mayhem from occurring. What's distressing,
however, is that when such incidents occur, you seldom hear about
them and that's not good. It's not good because without such facts,
it's hard to form a reasoned opinion.
I know that many who don't like guns. I know that there are some
who think gun owners are nothing more than armed Neanderthals.
Fine. If you'd like, we can sit down and have a healthy debate
on this topic since I know that the vast majority of gun owners
are extremely responsible individuals with a deep regard for safety
and an abiding respect for the law.
What actually brings me to this topic, though, is the fact that
- following a shooting at the recent Folklife Festival - Seattle's
Mayor Greg Nickels signed an executive order asking all departments
to come up with a plan to ban guns on all property owned by that
city.
What stands out in my mind is that, if you look
at all of the shootings that have occurred in "Gun Free Zones,"
it's obvious that the rules are obeyed only by law-abiding citizens
(aka: victims) and are completely ignored by criminals. Were it
otherwise, we could easily expand upon such ideas and simply post
signs everywhere saying: "No crime beyond this point"
and what a wonderful, fear-free society we'd all then have.
It'd be great if we lived in a world wherein people intent on
perpetrating acts of violence weren't present. It'd be great if
we lived in a world wherein protection for all was only seconds
away. It'd be great if we lived in a world wherein, when confronted
by goblins, each of us knew with certainty that we could turn
them away on our own.
Unfortunately, we don't live in such a world and protecting ourselves
sometimes requires a lot more than harsh words, flinty stares,
or - in other cases - asking for mercy from our assailants.
Even with what's out there, though, most individuals opt to never
carry a weapon of any kind. It's a personal choice that I respect
because to arm oneself for self defense is a tough proposition.
It requires thought, a moral decision, commitment, courage, and,
yes, training.
The thing is, there are those who do choose to legally carry a
firearm. Perhaps such individuals transport large sums of money.
Perhaps they or a member of their family have been beaten or worse.
Perhaps they've been threatened by someone they consider dangerous.
Perhaps they've simply chosen never to be a helpless victim. For
whatever reason they choose to do so, I fully support, understand,
and applaud their choice because the idea that such legally armed
individuals might be present when some crackpot snaps gives me
far more comfort than any useless sign telling me that I'm entering
a "Gun Free Zone."
I just wish that I could honestly believe that Mayor Nickels considered
any of the above before proposing yet another feel-good, do-nothing
fiat that will have no tangible effect whatsoever on the goblins
walking amongst us.
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