Hazardous Dissension
Having been a lawman for many years, I personally appreciate and respect the augmenting effect that an armed citizenry has on keeping crime under control. It was, and still is, a comforting concept to most officers who enforce the law. The reason is simple; a large outbreak of crime can quickly overwhelm the police, and the size of the outbreak is relative to the local jurisdiction. For this, and other reasons, the concept of an armed citizenry is important enough to have its assurance embedded into our Constitution as the law of the land.
A 2013 poll conducted by PoliceOne.com, which drew 15,595 completed responses from verified law enforcement professionals found that the overall attitude of law enforcement is strongly pro-gun rights, with the belief that an armed citizenry is effective in stopping crime.
A recent video made by a police chief in Texas represents a consensus of those who protect the public for a living:
Published on Dec 10, 2015
Dec. 9, 2015 - Texas police chief, others urge citizens to arm themselves. DALLAS (AP) -- A Texas police chief who warns President Barack Obama in a social media video that trying to disarm Americans would "cause a revolution in this country" is the latest law enforcement official to urge citizens to arm themselves in the wake of mass shootings.
Randy Kennedy, longtime chief in the small East Texas town of Hughes Springs, about 120 miles east of Dallas, says in the video posted this week on his personal Facebook page that the Second Amendment was established to protect people from criminals and "terrorists and radical ideology."
"It's also there to protect us against a government that has overreached its power," Kennedy says in the video. "You are not our potentate, sir. You are our servant."
He warned people in his town to prepare themselves: "Be ready when the wolf comes to the door, because it's on its way."
Law enforcement officials in Arizona, Florida and New York also have recently prompted citizens to arm themselves - some using similar comments aimed at terrorism.
Kennedy said his call to arms was the result of his disappointment with Obama's Oval Office speech Sunday in which the president vowed the U.S. will overcome a new phase of the terror threat that seeks to "poison the minds" of people here and around the world. The police chief told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he's not asking residents to turn into vigilantes or "become super action heroes."
He said feedback on his video has been supportive for the most part.
Do we really have an government administration that has such a blatant disregard for law and order that they are crazy enough to dissent from the founders, and try to disarm American citizens?
That kind of thing is what the 2nd Amendment is designed to prevent.
Every law-abiding citizen should be trained in the use of firearms, and enjoy the freedom guaranteed by our Constitution.
I can help.
/fl