Gun Bans Kill People

We know the story now, a man, a US Army Major, buys some guns, then uses them to go and kill his fellow soldiers in cold, calculated blood. He knows that he will be able to do this because soldiers on the base are not allowed to carry weapons. On an Army base?

If there is one place where weapons training is thorough and extensive, it would be at Ft. Hood, TX. I don't know the reasons behind the gun ban on base, but I don't see the need. In fact, just like the criminal element outside the gates of Ft. Hood know, if they are in an area of very intense gun control, then they are likely to be the only ones with guns and hence, they are safe to carry out their bad deeds.

Just days later, after Ft. Hood, here in Orlando, FL we found ourselves at the mercy of another crazed idiot as he brought down town Orlando to a halt . He walked into the 8th floor of the Gateway Center on the north end of down town and opened fire on workers there, a firm he was fired from 2 years prior. He ended up killing one young man and injuring 5 others.

This tragedy and Ft. Hood could have been stopped; not by banning guns but by promoting their use! Banning guns will never keep guns out of the hands of people meaning to do harm. Police rarely intervene in a crime but follow up to catch the bad guys after the fact, and God Bless them for it. But even though their mottos are usually to "serve and protect", they rarely get the chance to do the "protecting" part of that goal.

The madman at Ft. Hood was stopped by a heroine, a mom and a reservist, and now, a national treasure. Sgt Kimberly Munley heard that there was a shooter while in her vehicle, and raced to the scene. This was after he had shot and killed 12, and injured more than twice that. (one soldier died a day later to make the total 13) She saw the man, walking up on a wounded soldier crawling away from him, and as he pointed his gun at the man on the ground, Munley opened fire on him, and he shifted his attention towards her. She may have saved that man from execution. She then proceeded to open up on him, and he did the same, hitting her three times, one in each thigh and one in the hand. But she kept firing, both within 25 feet of each other, and struck him 4 times, dropping him. See her story here.

Putting guns in the hands of good, background checked, trained citizens gives you and me the best protection of all. Yes, I know that both of these evil doers got their guns through proper channels, but so do millions of people every year, and they don't shoot up military bases or office buildings. But if others, people of level heads and training, had guns in their reach on those days, the tolls would have been much lower.

If just one or two people in the Gateway Center would have been carrying that day, after the first few rounds, maybe this man would have been stopped, and I mean shot to death. And maybe, just maybe, if some of the non-coms, Sargent and the like would have been allowed to carry side arms, then maybe this terrorist would have thought twice, or at worst, been stopped right after he got off his first few rounds.

Just last night here in Orlando, a young lady, protecting her home, shot and killed a man trying to invade her home. The other two men with him ran off. Criminals are cowards and they will not risk breaking in a home if they feel the owners may have a gun. This is the example of why the 2nd amendment is really in our constitution, not only to protect us from a government gone crazy, don't get me started, but to also protect our lives and our family's lives. The young lady had 3 kids in the home, and she had a gun....what would you have done?

"...from my cold dead hands..."

Night shoot at Knob Creek gun range, West Point, KY.

Today is an historical day, the day our Supreme Court of these Great United States upheld one of the most fundamental rights we have, the right to bear arms. The challenge was the District of Colombia, Washing DC, and its practical ban on handguns of any kind being owned by its population, even in their own homes for self defence. The court found that the 2nd amendment applied to individual rights, a sticking point for years and years with the "control" crowd. The SC has made its ruling, coming down on the side of the peoples right to have a gun for self defence. Here is the majority opinion; http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/07-2901.pdf

"The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a
firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home." Supreme Court, District of Colombia-V-Heller, June 26, 2008

This really says it all, the right is unconnected to service in a militia. It is an individual right, the right of the "people" to bear arms.

This ruling shows the importance of having the right person in the White House and also in the Senate. The only reason we, the people, were handed this ruling is the fact that Pres. Bush was in office and he made two appointments to the US SC that were approved by a Republican controlled Senate at the time. If Gore was the president we would have had a totally different out come. Even though we don't have the strongest conservative nominee in John McCain, he still strongly believes in and holds dear the words of the US Constitution (okay, McCain/Feingold, not so much) as what our founding fathers meant to say. And only those words, and the documents they were founded on should be considered when interpreting what is law. Nothing after that, accept rulings by the Court its self, should be considered. Even if he's not our favorite, we will have much more chance to influence him to our way of thinking than Senator Obama. Better "center-right" than "far-left". He has said that he will use Scalia, Roberts and Alito, as examples of the kinds of judges he will nominate. We will have to hold him to that.