Another Case in Point

Since we've been talking about massed shootings, it appears that we've been provided with another case in point. An armed assailant invaded a missionary school in Arvada Colorado killing two and then hours later and 80 miles away he attacked a church after Sunday services killing two more and injuring five.

When I said that the media is to blame for glorifying the acts of these animals and inspiring other such sick individuals to emulate the actions of others, there were those who tried to deny the media's guilt in that arena. Unfortunately for them and their point of view another sick individual arrived on our television screens... One Matthew Murray.

Prior to engaging in his shooting spree in Colorado Springs, Matthew Murray made a posting in an online forum that stated:

"You Christians brought this on yourselves I'm coming for EVERYONE soon and I WILL be armed to the @#%$ teeth and I WILL shoot to kill. … God, I can't wait till I can kill you people. Feel no remorse, no sense of shame, I don't care if I live or die. …" (Emphasis mine)

When taken by itself the post is nothing more than the troubling babble of a sick youth...

However it proves my point when one considers the writings of Dylan Klebold's comrade Eric Harris:

"I'm coming for EVERYONE soon, and I WILL be armed to the (expletive) teeth, and I will shoot to kill."

Well now, what have we here? Is Murray emulating another sicko the media paid the wages of infamy? I think so. In fact it's a little hard to deny. So I think we can rest the case. The overblown media coverage of these incidents inspires others to emulate them. The media is a part of the problem.

So moving right along...

Liberals will no doubt tell you that stronger firearm control laws would have prevented this tragedy.

Do me a favor if you will. Go look up the word "illegaler" in any dictionary. I'll wait here while you do it.

What did you find? Did you find that there is no such word? That is right, there is no such word as "illegaler", such as "let's make it illegaler for the mentally ill to own firearms".

The mentally ill are already legally precluded from owning firearms. It is therefore illegal. You'll note that this prohibition did not stop Matthew Murray from getting weapons. That is why there is no such term as "illegaler" If something is already illegal and that fact does not dissuade someone, piling more laws on top of the issue also will not stop them.

Moving right along...

There was a great deal of disagreement that an armed civilian could have made a difference in the Omaha mall shootings. I then provided you with an experienced shooter who had the perfect opportunity to stop the ongoing bloodshed but who did not because he lacked the tools to do so. I now provide you with our newest lady hero, Jeanne Assam:

This lady, armed in a public place, stepped forward and stopped a crazed murderer. There is still some debate as to whether her shots actually killed the shooter or if it merely convinced him to end his assault by taking his own life. There are accounts that she was a former police officer, but the fact remains. She was nothing more than a civilian with a concealed carry permit.

This lady stepped forward. Murray was armed to bear. She had a simple pistol. Murray had a semiautomatic rifle, two pistols and nearly 1000 rounds of ammunition. Murray was set on causing massed death and destruction. Jeanne Assam was armed not only with her pistol, but with a courageous heart, faith and a desire to protect the innocent.

Murray certainly didn't bring 1000 rounds of ammo to use as ballast for his lifeless corpse. He brought it with the intent to use it. There can be no further question that armed law abiding citizens can and do save lives and that disarming law abiding citizens costs lives.

Some of you are going to try to claim that her training as a police officer in some way made her more qualified than a mere civilian to react in a stressful situation. Well what about me and my brothers and sisters? All of us veterans have been trained how to handle a weapon in a stressful situation. Do we get excused from your gun grabbing? What about gun club members? Most of those shoot far more rounds and are every bit as, if not more proficient with their weapon than an ex-police officer. Do they also get excused from your gun grabbing? What about the shooters themselves. Most have little if any formal training and they are perfectly capable of handling a weapon in a stressful situation with devastating efficiency.

When it comes down to it, it's not the training (although it can help) it is the individual and the availability of equipment that makes the difference. I've seen highly trained individuals freeze under the stress of such situations. Training may help, but it is certainly no absolute determinant.

The gun control debate is over. Those advocating this arcane notion have based their arguments on supposition, belief, guesses or voodoo chicanery but certainly not facts, figures or studies. They have used us all as guinea pigs. Their actions make them complicit in the murders of thousands of innocent people because they took the weapons away from their protectors and left them naked before the icy scorn of their murderers.