Gun in Your Hand
Fellow Americans,
In the October 6th edition of the Citizen-Observer newspaper, I read how G. Robert Bauer II opposed Missouri’s latest conceal-carry law. I respectfully disagree with Mr. Bauer, citing the following scenarios:
· You’re asleep in bed when suddenly you’re awakened to the sound of your back door being smashed in! Do you grab the phone, call 911, hide in the closet, and wait for the police? Or, do you grab your gun and defend your family?
· You’re driving home with your family from your child’s ball game. You’re stopped at a traffic light when suddenly someone sticks a gun in your face and demands your vehicle! Do you grab your phone and call 911, or grab your gun and defend your family?
· You stop at your local convenience store for a cup of coffee when suddenly you find yourself in the middle of a hold-up! Do you grab your phone and call 911, or grab your gun and defend yourself and others?
My point is simply that we are our own first responders. Whether a fire, medical emergency, or armed criminal action, the responding personnel are actually the second responders. It is my responsibility to my family to protect them from such violence. I’m not saying that a firearm is the answer in every crisis situation, but I would rather have gun and not need it than to need a gun and not have it!
I also disagree with Mr. Bauer’s assumption that the police will be more “trigger-happy” (my words, not his) due to this new law. I believe most police officers are well-trained and well-disciplined, and conduct business with the mindset that everyone they contact during the course of a shift may be armed. Although anything can be used as a weapon, a loaded gun on a shelf, if left alone, can no more cause injury than a kitchen knife on a counter or a tire iron in a tool box! It is the user of such instruments who should be blamed for the violence. Criminals will always get guns unlawfully, so why punish innocent, law-abiding citizens by taking our guns, especially since it is our Constitutional right to possess them?
Please study our founding fathers and learn why they were so passionate about self-defense, and then teach others. May God bless you and the United States of America!
Dan Landi
Kidder, MO
