One thing that consistantly angers me over the media's reporting of firearms use, and especially when a felon or other nutball is stopped by firearm using citizens is the difference given between LEO's and citizens who are legally carrying.
While it is fine that these two were in law enforcement, all the proposed legislation (50 state reciprocity for carrying, carrying on aircraft, etc) are usually for law enforcement or ex law enforcement only. The law abididing citizen is left with his posterior hanging over the abyss, with no hope in sight of ever getting the 2A enforced as written. Considering the odds that an armed citizen would be much more likely to be on the scene of an incident which could be stopped by either simply the perp seeing a firearm drawn, up to the use of deadly force, it follows, if this were a logical world, that the armed citizen is more of a deterrent to crime than the LEO.
If one does not know who is carrying, the odds of successfully completing a crime decrease drastically. Robert Heinlein had it 100% right when he wrote "An armed society is a polite society".
I find it incredible that the armed citizen is treated (by press,politicians, and LEO's alike) as anywhere from a non entity to a criminal themselves. Whaat is even MORE incredible, is the father of it all, the original sin, of course being GCA'68, is not only blatantly racist, being concieved and written IMHO, due to the rioting in various cities, but also supported by government in response to the Kennedy (2), King, and the Evers shooting, but also in response to the as usual "Silent Majority" who were, at that point in time, scared s**tless by the events which were occurring.
The other interesting thing is that none of this news ever made it into military channels, whether by deliberate design or simply the beginning of the anti-2A bias which is now so obvious. As a member of the Armed Forces during this time period, one JUST DIDN'T HEAR ANYTHING. NOTHING HAPPENED. Nothing about the rioting, and only the usual pabulum when it came to notables being assassinated.
Considering (adjust your tinfoil hats here folks) the distinct possibility of either official or quasi-official governmental involvement in every single high profile shooting of the '60s, is it any wonder the media got off to a wonderful supercharged start down the "Gun Control Superhighway". I know that prior to the mid 1960's, there was virtually no press at all about firearms use, except to report facts. After the '60s we started down the path we stand on today.
Keep the Faith for Freedom
MAY GOD BLESS AND DEFEND THIS HONORABLE REPUBLIC
Greg
As for these laws being limited to present and former LEOs, that is obviously based on the same sort of statist thinking that put us in this mess, to begin with. BTW, in New York, I've had to fight off or elude would-be muggers on several occasions; only once was a witness able to get the police there in time to help me. r in, and then leave out the emergency exit.) The thinking behind a law that gives special treatment to LEOs is the thinking that forces citizens to be slkaved of the state, whom the state in turn owes nothing (Dial 911 and Die). Such laws will have no benefit.
Regards,
Mark
P.S. What is "2A"?