Posted on 11/10/2009 12:07:19 PM PST by neverdem
There is little to salvage from last week’s mass murder at Fort Hood, Texas, but there are some stark realizations this heartbreaking horror exposes. One is the wishful but mistaken notion that such incidents can be prevented by laws prohibiting or strictly restricting access to firearms. The Second Amendment not with standing, U.S. military bases prohibit unauthorized personnel from carrying firearms on base. Access to military weapons is carefully restricted and weapons are secured in armories.
Never the less, even within the well regulated conditions of a military base, a man was able to acquire and conceal two powerful personal handguns which he used to murder 13 people and wound dozens of others.
The argument that a prohibition against firearms will eliminate the possession of firearms by anyone is clearly refuted by the ample empirical evidence that prohibition simply does not succeed in its intended objective when the subject of the prohibition is something that enough of the population wants. No matter how draconian the restrictions or dire the legal consequences prohibition is defeated by desire.
Prostitution, booze, and drugs are or have been prohibited by law with no appreciable effect on eliminating any of them. In fact, illegal drugs consistently find their way into prisons—the most secured, restrictive institutions in society. Obviously, if prison inmates can gain access to drugs, and military base personnel can gain access to guns, in spite of heavy security and strict prohibitions, how will laws prevent anyone from having either?
While good people are rightly concerned and alarmed by the lethal violence visited on society through the device of firearms, rational people understand that there is no legal magic wand that will abolish such violence simply by prohibiting possession of the device. People who want guns will get them. People who want to harm others will do so, but the amount of harm they can do could be reduced if more people were armed rather than disarmed.
If among the murdered and wounded at Fort Hood any had been armed, the slaughter would have been less. The gunman would have been confronted by people who could defend themselves rather than by helpless victims. Free people should not only be able to arm themselves, they should be able to carry those arms on their person as they do their cell phones. Self defense is among the most basic of human and civil rights.
Those who fear a dangerous wild-west scenario if citizens were freely armed should consider that there is danger now. There are not enough armed police to be everywhere all the time, and anyone can be caught in a situation as occurred at Fort Hood. Most people who drive cars do not drive them recklessly, and most people who own a gun do not go about shooting others without just cause.
Another realization coming out of the Fort Hood incident is that twisted minds often wrap themselves around fixed ideologies. That, however, does not prove a cause and effect relationship between a particular ideology and the detrimental behavior of those with twisted minds.
The murdering major at Fort Hood was a devout Muslim who was heard to shout “God is Great” as he mercilessly and methodically shot his victims. Not unexpectedly, after the shootings there soon followed threats against mosques and condemnations of Muslims.
If murder and savagery can be eliminated by eradicating a religion, then not one but nearly all religions, and many political ideologies, must be eliminated as well. Damaged psyches, weak minds, and evil souls embrace and employ ideologies to justify their heinous actions and to salve their psychological pain. These disordered minds can be found within the Christian, Muslim, and Jewish faiths. There are also practicing paranoids preaching hyper-patriotic versions of political ideologies who can become mass murders for the cause. Recall Timothy McVeigh.
Eliminating entire categories of people based on their religious or political beliefs will be ineffective in riding society of senseless violence. Savagery and mayhem lurk under even the thickest veneer of civilization. Wackos will simply blend in to what ever social milieu is available and pervert any ideology to validate their homicidal violence.
Unless and until science can develop a flawless wacko-meter that detects these aberrant personalities, they will always be moving unidentified among us. Ironically, the perpetrator of the Fort Hood massacre was a psychiatrist, the closest thing we have to a wacko-meter. So, maybe we should round up all the shrinks.
There are no ready remedies to prevent further incidents as occurred at Fort Hood, but there is awareness, for those with open minds, that police state restrictions or targeted pogroms would not only be ineffective, they would undermine the very essence of freedom and justice upon which this nation was founded, and eventually make victims of us all.
Wow, this coming out of a California newspaper?
Sound reasoning.
I have carried for years & while not a panacea, it at least affords one the chance to save a life.
This is a very well-written article. If one is to learn anything from the Ft. Hood tragedy it is the need for Americans to be permitted to arm and defend themselves. Imagine if the two police officers had not been present to stop this killer. There would have been many more deaths, likely until he ran out of ammunition.
Preventing military personnel from being armed on a military base is insanity. Preventing Americans from being armed is just as foolish. Someone like this could just as easily appeared at a shopping mall, a park, a ball game...the list goes on and on.
The idiot Bill O’Reilly keeps saying this terrorist “had access to military weapons”. None of his guests have pointed out to this moron that the terrorist used a privately-purchased, non-military issue pistol. He probably wouldn’t understand that anyway. I remember O’Reilly claiming the NRA wanted citizens to own “bazookas”. His stupidity really irks me.
All of our local schools have “Gun Free” signs at the entrance.
What a brilliant way to inform the cowards that our schools are soft targets.
This is just one of many reasons we homeschool.
This should teach us that there is no “behind the lines” anymore. Also, never fully trust a Muslim.
Most Military Officers and Senior NCOs have a HUGE Gun Grabbie bent for SOME reason(I do nor know why). Any Comments?
As a friend recently explained to me, military officers face less risk of negative career repercussions from a terrorist shooting up people at an army base than they would if a soldier misused a gun and caused a deadly accident.
If murder and savagery can be eliminated by eradicating a religion, then not one but nearly all religions, and many political ideologies, must be eliminated as well.Yeah, those terrorist Amish should be the first to go. </sarcasm> (if it's needed)
So much for a fast reaction. Unfortunately, it is typical of what can be expected in these situations.
It was surpassingly lucky the first 2 cops showed up (around 10 minutes into the slaughter) and they were able to take Hasan down without dying first themselves or who knows how many more would have died? Hasan had plenty more ammo, targets, and time available.
If a few soldiers in the building had been personally armed with CCW weapons it might have made a huge difference.
Instead, as usual, the unarmed victims were sitting ducks in a legally mandated Gun-Free Zone,... "gun free" except for their Islamist executioner, of course!
>>>There are no ready remedies to prevent further incidents<<<
If Maj. Nasan had started firing in a room filled with armed soldiers, he would have gotten off only one or two rounds before being sent to those 72 virgins. As Mr. Heinlein said, an armed society is a polite society.
Preparing to be flamed..
No "Let's Roll" moment. Hmmm
Why don't we let the people we entrust with defending the country defend themselves?
No gun rules do not help. Rules are there to keep the good folks good. Bad folks don’t give a **** for rules.
Sure.....
Most youths entering the military are immature little zits that go hog wild when they get that paycheck. They become Rambo but don't want the discipline that goes with the training. There are too many who are kicked out because of "unable to adapt". All the leadership needs is an idiot with a gun who decides he doesn't need discipline and wants to get revenge.
However, I believe anyone who completes an accredited ( by military instructors) carry course and been signed off by his chain of command should be able to carry a weapon on post.
This is from Santa Barbara????? They’re liberal even for the land of fruits and nuts. The times, they’re definitely a’changin!
O’Reilly is a jerk. You think he’d feel more responsibility, sharing initials with the Bill of Rights, but oh, well...
He’s correct about the right of self defense, but that’s not
the gist of his article. He goes off the deep, deep end later in the piece.
“Most”? I can’t say for sure, I did meet some. In very broad, general terms, the higher up the chain of command, the more of a politician to some degree. The plural of anecdote ain’t data, though.
I was acquainted with enough outstanding NCOs and Officers that I am not in the least concerned with where their sensibilities are on, well anything really. — (If things ever got really bad, I am going to have to think a while what is gonna happen when some knothead asks “Hey, um,.. Uh, you got an extra rifle or something I can borrow? I’ll buy it from you..” The problem is people have been so worked over for whatever reason, to view firearms as having no legitimate purpose, except for the military, which they oftentimes work to undermine. That this makes no sense whatsoever doesn’t seem to matter. A firearm is no different on one level than a weed-whacker, an axe, a tractor trailer or anything else. Since they cannot make distinctions of any kind with respect to behaviour, they tend to gravitate towards the inanimate object, which of course has no say in the matter.
Read it again, carefully this time. For just one minor, nit. He says “was” where “is” works fine. The perp is still alive, afaik. I like consistency when I read something. The nutjobs like to mix a little sugar in with their poison. Just because he recognizes a right of self-defense (duh) doesn’t really mean his other points are agreeable. Jus’ sayin’.
He attempts to be a "common sense" populist. He lost me.
They are afraid of the junior enlisted personnel doing something stupid. It's not like junior enlisteds have a spotless history, so I can see their reasoning. They didn't have to volunteer. Once they become NCOs, they should be trusted with firearms. If they can't be trusted with firearms at that point, then they shouldn't be NCOs. At Fort Hood, it took four minutes for the cops to arrive.
Thank you. I was wondering where this goofball finds Christians and Jews shooting people.
WTH. Is this the PC sensitive version?
If they stopped production and sale of handguns the underworld would be in business overnight, and they wouldn’t be cheap either.
Great article, but I am shocked that "never the less" made it into ANY newspaper...just amazing.
I agree with you. I read a lot of “pro-carry” gun articles. This one was OK, but he lost me when he got away from why it makes sense to carry and allow citizens to legally arm themselves, and then tried to equalize all “religions” as capable having their own homocidal maniacs.
To me, if one is a Christian, they don’t pull a gun and senselessly kill another human being. If one is a Muslim, his religion may allow it, if he practices Jihad. What I am saying is if I meet a practicing Christian at the workplace, I have no problem trusting him. If I meet a practicing Muslim on the workplace, I might have a hard time turning my back to him....
Why the Berlin Wall fell (Times of India nails it)
Some noteworthy articles about politics, foreign or military affairs, IMHO, FReepmail me if you want on or off my list.
WAC (Washington Arms Collectors) gun show this weekend.
I might wander over there to see if there are any more guns I can control!!
The ones I know are some of the biggest "gun nuts" around, including Marine, Air Force and Army officers. Don't have much experience with Squids, not since I was in ROTC anyway.
The state's CHL/CCW process should be sufficient. Generally you must be 21, and that elimintates most of the immature types.
Alternatively, just set a minimum rank (in each series, enlisted, warrant, and officer), say E-5, O-3 and W-3. (LTs are just as irresponsible as young enlisted, ditto Jr. warrants) That would eliminate both the newbies and youngsters, their platoo sergeant can protect them, it's his/her job anyway. :) )
I know. huh.
I haven't read all the replies yet, but would someone point out WHERE mosques or mooslimes were threatened after this mooslime wacko murdered our troops? And please DON'T cite CAIR, those mooslimes in CAIR are terrorists themselves.
Toward FREEDOM!
“Not unexpectedly, after the shootings there soon followed threats against mosques and condemnations of Muslims.”
“I haven’t read all the replies yet, but would someone point out WHERE mosques or mooslimes were threatened after this mooslime wacko murdered our troop”
BINGO.
His comments on religions are ludicrous - note he is also into abortion for population control.
What a pig.
Abortion is pro-life
By RANDY ALCORN — June 9, 2009
http://www.thedailysound.com/randyalcorn/060909rot
I strongly concur. The key issue is that only one of those faiths has religious texts that are overflowing with “subjugate and kill the unbeliever” rhetoric (not just one or two obscure passages), has practiced this without fail since its inception, continues to do so today, and is really a political-religious system in the way that the others simply are not.
Refusing to recognize these extremely consequential differences is a major failure on the part of the writer. He gets a lot right, but he got that part very, very wrong.
So the easy answer to your first paragraph is to allow officers and NCOs to optionally carry sidearms when wearing their ACUs. Maybe we restrict butterbars. :-)
Additionally, those with CCWs and/or other approved training get to carry concealed on post, just like in the civilian world.
Problem solved.
I am frankly surprised we have not had an incident like this before now.
You and I see this similarly, re: NCOs. See my previous post.
After the 1991 Tailhook party, a couple flag officers and dozens of other officers either retired or had their careers ruined because of some drunken revelry that hurt no one.
It is highly doubtful that anyone will be held responsible for the Ft. Hood massacre.
Such is PC.
Thanks for the ping!
bang
You can skate on hell now.
I guess there’s hope in the 2nd Amendment war.
I guess someone forgot to tell Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and Kim Jung Il about that.
O’Reilly has been less informed than usual this past year.
Fixed it. Folks start wrapping your minds around the Holiday shopping season that begins the day after Thanksgiving and will end on December 24th. My guess is that at some point in that wonderful time of gift buying and giving, some muzzie maniac (or a team) is going to open up on the sheep with an illegal full auto AK47 yelling ALLAH-HU AKBAR and it will be up to the armed sheepdogs in the crowd to stop him or them. If you have a carry permit, carry all the time. If your wife or husband wants you to go shopping with them, GO and ... carry. Don't shove a mousegun in your front pocket either. Serious guns/calibers for serious times. Remember that a concealed firearm is supposed to be comforting not necessarily comfortable. But there is a way to have both.
Terrorists may appear as suicide bombers. Remember the incident back in the 1980s in Jerusalem when an Israeli shopper managed to stop a suicide attack in her grocery store by observing that the palestinian was strangely garbed for the month of JULY in a neck to floor heavy coat. As he opened the coat to reveal the bomb strapped to him, SHE smoothly drew her pistol from her purse and shot him thru the head. He dropped without exploding the device. Stay SHARP. Stay observant and as my friend Squantos says: STAY SAFE!
That's easy or maybe it is for me as a teacher in a public high school for 20 years. It's the educational system. They're taught that guns are evil except for the military and the police. So when they enter the military or the police most that really like guns amass a huge selection of guns because they think their teachers would "approve" (they wouldn't). But the system says that anybody who has a gun outside of the two aforementioned professions is evil. Most of the guys I know on active duty right now (sons of my friends many of them) say they love the 2nd Amendment and in the very next breath say they would use deadly force to confiscate the guns from the American populace on the orders of Presidential Authority. This is what scares me so! We all saw the dry run already take place! Spell it: K-A-T-R-I-N-A. This is why the Oath Keepers came into being. These are folks whose parents raised them right to know that orders that spring from an illegal or illigitimate intrepretation of the Constitution are not to be obeyed, ever! This is the next to the last line of defense. WE are the last line of defense. The third box upon which the Republic must rest. The three boxes of freedom: Ballot box; jury box; cartridge box.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.