Here in Alabama during the civil rights struggle there was an unwritten rule about the use of force. It's why white racists used firehoses and dogs, but not guns. The unwritten rule was that if a *certain* line was crossed (pun intended for those who like to light up such things), then there would be a bit more than retaliation.
Well, we all know now that the story eventually turned out fine for all involved...but in the heat of the moment it was the fact that Blacks in 'Bama were armed that kept everyone from ....ummmmm....losing their cool, so to speak.
And lets just say that you get a lot fewer cross burnings in even the most racist of regions...when everybody knows that everybody else is armed.
Which suits me just fine, I might add.
