On the morning of April 20, 1999, 12 children and one teacher were brutally murdered while attending school at Columbine High School in Colorado. In the one place where our children should be safe, in the one place where we should ensure their safety, we failed, and 13 innocent people lost their lives. There are no excuses that will suffice, there is only regret and haunting thoughts of what could have prevented this terrible day.
For educators and law enforcement, those that dedicate their lives to protecting our children, nothing was ever going to be the same. There was a silent vow to do everything possible to prevent another day like Columbine High School experienced. In every way possible schools were made more secure; school security personnel were added, uniformed school resource police officers were stationed at our schools, surveillance cameras installed, new security procedures were practiced and drilled, lock-downs were now as much a part of a school day as the old fire drills. But the old fire drills never generated the anxiety that comes with an "active shooter" drill in the hallways of our schools. The vow to protect our school children after Columbine was a solemn oath kept by law enforcement and educators to this day.
The tragedy did not change everyone, not everyone took steps to protect our school children from another day like April 20, 1999. The gun lobby and the National Rifle Association still fought for their right to sell any bullet and any gun, even assault weapons. Military-style semi-automatic assault weapons have only one purpose, to kill people in large numbers. No hunter needs it and no individual needs it to protect their home. Assault weapons were used in both the Columbine High School and Aurora Movie Theater massacres. Even though both of these deadly events occurred in Colorado, an 18-year-old in this state can still buy a deadly assault weapon, but it is illegal for that same 18-year-old to buy an alcoholic beverage; there is something extremely inconsistent and illogical about that fact.
The simple fact is that Congress is afraid of the NRA, afraid to do what is necessary to prevent future carnage resulting from the use of assault weapons on innocent people and children in our schools, our movie theaters, or anywhere else. Continue to allow law abiding citizens to have firearms and shotguns, but no assault weapons. We all need to stand up to the National Rifle Association and say
enough is enough, no citizen should own a military-style assault weapon.
.http://www.lapdonline.org/all_most_wanted http://finance.townhall.com/columnists/johnransom/2011/06/10/states_help_us,_criminal_illegals_swamp_budgets,_prisons/page/full/
That might explain your anti-social behavior that is directed at firearms-owning veterans that understand the FBI's Uniform Crime Report and Center For Disease Control reports that you. Seriously, why are you so angry at me? I served my country, got a great college education, make a good living, care for my family, and we ALL go to the shooting range together. Why do you hate people you never met?
* The Armed Citizen July 24, 2012 7/24/2012 Raymond Hiles, 25, was arrested after being treated for a gunshot wound to the neck. He was shot after breaking into the home of Fred Ricciutti, an 84-year-old Korean War veteran. Ricciutti had been asleep with his wife, who was ill at the time, and heard a noise at about 4:30 a.m. He then saw someone come into the room. Ricciutti quickly drew a gun from a nearby drawer and shouted a warning at Hiles before firing once. (York Daily Record, Elizabeth, Pa., 5/10/12)
The Armed Citizen July 17, 2012 7/17/2012: Police were called after a man shot a pit bull that had attacked his 11-year-old son. The dog belonged to a neighbor and had broken free of its leash before it bit the boy. The boy’s father retrieved a handgun and fired one shot when the dog lunged toward him. The wounded dog ran off, but was later located and taken to be euthanized. The boy was treated for his injuries and is expected to make a full recovery. (The Press-Enterprise, Riverside County, CA, 4/8/12)
* The Armed Citizen July 10, 2012 7/10/2012: Willie White, 75, was watching a basketball game at about 1:15 a.m. when he heard a steady banging at his door. White armed himself with a rifle before an 18-year-old intruder was able to kick in the door. White said, “I was nervous—I figured if someone’s hostile enough to break your door down, he’s capable of anything. So once he came inside my house, I shot him.” The intruder sustained a single gunshot wound that proved fatal. His two accomplices fled the scene. (The Detroit News, Detroit, MI, 3/29/12)
The Armed Citizen July 3, 2012: Rev. Henry Guyton, 71, a Baptist church pastor, called 911 one afternoon when a man at the church began acting as if he was having a heart attack. The man, 38-year-old Jesse Gates, left the church after being examined by EMS. Gates returned to the church later that day carrying a shotgun. The reverend’s grandson, Aaron Guyton, 26, spotted the shotgun and locked the doors. Gates, however, kicked open a side door of the sanctuary and pointed the gun at the pastor and congregation. As a concealed carry permit holder, Aaron acted quickly to detain Gates at gunpoint until police arrived. Everyone was reportedly unharmed. (goupstate.com, Boiling Springs, S.C., 3/25/12)
The Armed Citizen June 26, 2012 6/26/2012 Just after 2 p.m. one afternoon, a woman was home alone when she heard a knock at her door. The two men at the door began inquiring about a friend of hers. Suddenly she was forced back into the house at gunpoint and into a closet. That closet, however, was where the woman kept a gun of her own. She fired at the intruders causing them to flee. One of the intruders suffered a gunshot wound and collapsed on the sidewalk outside. He was later pronounced dead. The woman was uninjured. (KCTV5 News, Kansas City, Mo., 4/9/12)
The Armed Citizen June 19, 2012 6/19/2012: A man came to the door of Herschel Matheny, 82, and Jacqueline Hicks, 75, one morning and asked to use their telephone. When the man was given a phone to use, he reportedly stabbed Matheny in the chest and demanded money from Hicks. While giving the man the impression she was leaving the room to get money, Hicks retrieved a firearm instead and forced the man to leave. Matheny was taken to a hospital and is expected to recover. The suspect is at large. (The Southern Illinoisan, Herod, IL, 4/24/12)
The Armed Citizen May 29, 2012 5/29/2012: Dale Vigliarolo and his wife were walking into Holiday Market when they spotted 43-year-old David Shuten in the parking lot wilding a large hunting knife. After a failed attempt to break into a vehicle, Shuten turned his attention to a nearby couple with an infant child. As Shuten approached the family, Vigliarolo drew his .38 Special and demanded he drop his weapon. Shuten dropped the knife and sat on the ground until police arrived. He was then transported to a nearby hospital for psychiatric evaluation. (Royal Oak Review, Royal Oak, Mich., 3/14/12)
The Armed Citizen May 22, 2012 5/22/2012: Miguel Lopez Hernandez, 25, and an armed accomplice entered Kelly Jewelers. The accomplice produced his handgun, ordered the store manager to get on the floor, then tossed a roll of duct tape to Hernandez. The manager, however was quickly able to retrieve his own handgun. The armed assailant dashed out the door upon seeing the firearm, leaving Hernandez armed only with the roll of duct tape. Hernandez was arrested and is under investigation for aggravated robbery; his accomplice remains at large. (KSL 5 News, Midvale, Utah, 3/10/12).
The Armed Citizen May 15, 2012 5/15/2012 : Four armed intruders began to kick down the door of a two-story apartment, so the three inhabitants locked themselves in an upstairs bedroom and exited onto the balcony where they had no escape. One of the occupants grabbed a rifle kept in the bedroom. One of the home invaders, dressed in camouflage with a black cloth covering his face, managed to kick open the bedroom door. The occupant raised the rifle and shot one round at the intruder, causing the home invaders to flee. Derrick Timmons, 20, was pronounced dead when his body was later found. The other offenders are still being sought by police. (The Courier Herald, Dublin, Ga., 3/15/12)
The Armed Citizen May 8, 2012 5/8/2012: Between 2 and 3 p.m. a woman was stopped along the highway when a man approached her car door. He pulled out a knife that appeared to already have a bloody blade and demanded that she go with him. He threatened her, telling her that if she did not comply she would “end up like that woman on TV.” The woman believed he was referring to a missing teacher confirmed dead just days before. She told the man to wait while she got her cigarettes, then reached down and pulled out a gun. The man quickly fled. (Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Bozeman, Mont., 1/14/12)
The Armed Citizen May 1, 2012 5/1/2012: Police received a call from a 15-year-old girl claiming there was someone trying to get into her house while she was home alone. She reported that she heard the front door jiggle, looked out the window and saw two men there. One man managed to get into the garage where he was attempting to steal a pickup truck. After retrieving her father’s handgun, the girl confronted the man in the garage causing him to immediately flee. His accomplice, who had already made his way inside and was ransacking the contents of the home, quickly followed suit. (The Daily News, Texas City, Texas, 1/15/12)
The Armed Citizen March 29, 2012 3/29/2012: Early one morning, a resident awoke to the sound of someone shuffling around inside his home. He grabbed his gun and proceeded to search the premises and discovered a man hiding in his basement. The resident fired two rounds from his firearm striking the suspect both times. The injured suspect reached his vehicle and fled the scene. The suspect was later hospitalized; in his wounded state he had struck several parked cars and then crashed the vehicle about a block away. (Associated Press, FL, 12/21/11)
The Armed Citizen March 21, 2012 3/21/2012: A would-be burglar was arrested after a homeowner called 9-1-1 while detaining the criminal at gunpoint. The intruder, 22-year-old Jacob Pino, entered the home wearing several layers of clothing, gloves, a black nylon mask and shoes covered with plastic bags to avoid leaving identifiable prints. A backpack containing a 22-cal. handgun and a money clip belonging to the homeowner was also recovered at the scene. (The Pueblo Chieftain, Pueblo, CO, 12/14/11)
The Armed Citizen February 23, 2012 2/23/2012: Food delivery drivers have statistically one of the 10 most dangerous jobs in America. Whether that weighed on the mind of a Papa John’s delivery driver when he obtained a concealed-carry permit isn’t clear, but he was glad he did when a man stuck a stolen pistol through his car window and said, “What you gonna do is drop off that money.” The driver drew a .38-cal. revolver and emptied the cylinder. The wounded assailant dropped his pistol and ran into a house across the street, where he was found by police. (The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN, 11/05/11)
The Armed Citizen January 11, 2012 1/11/2012: Hard-working attorney Curt Crowley was at the office late one evening when he heard a filing cabinet open and close. Knowing he should be the only one in the office, he retrieved his .40-cal. handgun, peered out the door and discovered a burglar rifling through cabinets. “I told him to freeze, but not in language you can repeat,” Crowley recalled. “He ended up begging me not to kill him.” Crowley held the suspect at gunpoint until police arrived. (The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, MS, 10/10/11)
Don't expect me to buy into Obama's anti-2nd Amendment propaganda when HE and his ATTORNEY GENERAL ERIC HOLDER knowingly and willingly let THOUSANDS of illegal semi-auto firearms get into the hands of Mexican and American drug gangs so that it would create a backlash against lawful semi-auto firearms. What Obama and Holder did was commit high crime -- a FELONY -- that resulted in the DEATHS of innocent people and American Federals agents. So don't try and make me look like I am a criminal for minding my own business and safely using firearms -- go talk to Obama and Holder and ask them WHY they allowed drug gangs to obtain arms from the United States.
Here is Obama's Watergate -- Washington (CNN) -- The House of Representatives voted Thursday to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt for refusing to turn over documents tied to the botched Fast and Furious gun-running sting -- a discredited operation that has become a sharp point of contention between Democrats and Republicans in Washington. The House approved a pair of criminal and civil measures against the attorney general, marking the first time in American history that the head of the Justice Department has been held in contempt by Congress. House members approved the criminal contempt measure in a 255-67 vote. Almost every House Republican backed the measure, along with 17 Democrats. Shortly thereafter, the civil measure passed in a sharply polarized 258-95 vote.