In Case You Were Wondering...

"Every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle. We have called by different names brethren of the same principle." Thomas Jefferson


"I am a Republican, a black, dyed in the wool Republican, and I never intend to belong to any other party than the party of freedom and progress." Frederick Douglass

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Showing posts with label founding fathers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label founding fathers. Show all posts

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Would you rest the fate of your family in a can of pepper spray?

"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state,
the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."
Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

Numerous American cities and towns have banned ownership of handguns or guns in general. Their thinking is that if handguns are banned then no one will own guns in their fair cities. Yet major cities like Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Chicago and many others continue to fight handgun violence on a regular basis. What happened to this law that was supposed to protect people?

Aren't the handgun laws in place to ensure that only the police and criminals have handguns? If the laws were properly obeyed by the populace then that means that the average law-abiding citizen would have to rely on a functioning "911" system, or perhaps a can of pepper spray when assaulted by a handgun weilding criminal. And since all handgun wielding criminals are such kind gentlemen they believe in fair play and will always give their victims a chance to call "911".

Right...and I just saw a pig flying outside my window. Why don't law abiding citizens have the right to...well their 2nd Amendment "rights"? Doesnt' our Bill of Rights attest to our right to keep and bear arms? If everyone had their rights intact, I think some of these handgun murders would decrease. Once you level the playing field the bad guys have to think a little harder before they go around shooting people reaching for their pepper spray. Have you ever tried to spray that stuff into a stiff wind? Can you see asking a mugger to move downwind so you can spray without getting a mouthful of spray yourself?

Furthermore, I'm concerned about a government that want's to abridge access to my rights. I have no desire to use a gun illegally but I do have a desire to defend my family and myself if assaulted with one. What am I supposed to do? Call "911" and hope the operator is awake and on the job? Is the bad guy going to be fair and judicious and wait for the police to show up? I don't think so. I need to be able to defend my family in a similar or superior manner than the one I am being assaulted with.

After spending 10 years as a military officer I understand the concept of "Fire Superiority". It means suppressing your enemy's firepower with superior firepower of your own. Ya can't do that with a stun gun! Especially if your batteries are dead.

Having been shot at before and feeling the heat of bullets narrowly missing my head, I know the helpless feeling of standing there with no way to get the bad guy to stop shooting. It's a feeling that I don't relish. No one does. However, that experience taught me some important things: I know that if I had been able to return fire, I would have because while scared I did not panic and I had my thoughts and wits about me. I even saved the guy who was with me from getting shot. In the midst of bullets cracking around my ears I thought clearly enough to act and to help someone else. I was calm enough to return fire if I had could have. However, since I wasn't in a position to, I grabbed my bewildered friend by the arm and ran as the bullets whispered death threats in our ears.

Secondly, the guy that was shooting at me was shooting because he knew I had no way to defend myself and had he known that I was similarly armed...there would have been no gunfire at all! We might have had a conversation about our differences. What a novel idea!

A government that seeks to disarm the populace should be held in suspicion. Even our founding fathers recognized the need for well armed militias. They understood that the people sometimes needed the ability to defend themselves against...their own governments.

No, I'm not some militia nut looking to hole up in the hills with cases of Spam. They're kooks and crazies. But I do feel strongly that the 2nd Amendment bears protecting. Once you abridge a person's right to defend themselves in the face of danger, you slowly begin to marginalize them a valuable human beings and citizens in the land of the free and the home of the brave. It says..."the government is all you need for personal defense. The government does not trust your ability to know when or how to defend yourself. Leave that to us."

Friends, having been shot at and held up in numerous stick ups...I know that the government was nowhere to be found when I needed them most. Thank God for his providence and protection because without them, I wouldnt be here today.

Know your rights. Many have bled, died and sacrificed for us to have them.







"Love your neighbor as yourself and your country more than yourself."

Thomas Jefferson

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Where Have Our Leaders Gone?

I have recently begun studying the Consitution and the Federalist Papers. I'm surprised by just how fascinating it is to read for myself the intentions of our founding fathers. I also posted some very interesting and timely quotes from some of our founders at the bottom of the blog.

It occurred to me as I read that the times when our country got itself in the most trouble was when we strayed farthest from our founding principles and from God. When you read some of the quotes it's easy to see what I mean. Our nation was destined to happen and that is because God was part of who we were. He was in the fabric of our country; our spiritual DNA.

My concern today is not only for the lack of God in our nation but also for the lack of strong leaders. Where are the leaders who reflect back on constitutional values and fundamental principles when making decisions about what is best for our nation? Thomas Jefferson once wrote that he had no interest in seeking any public office. Yet he was a great president. Today, it pays to be a politician and therefore you have people spending fortunes to get elected.

I'm excited about the historical significance of the upcoming election and at the same time I am saddened that our poor choices for president may boil down to Sen. John McCain and Sen. Hillary Clinton. Is this the best America has to offer?

The black man in me wants to vote for Barack Obama out of some sense of pride yet there is not one thing I agree with the man on. The best thing to come out of his mouth is his message of uniting our nation. Those words could be and likely are lip-service, but what are we left with? Will the part of me that cheered to see the acquittal of a guilty OJ Simpson vote for Barack? I pray that I display integrity and responsibility in my voting decision.

The people I'd like to see running for the highest office have names like Colin Powell, Fred Thompson, Herman Cain, Rick Santorum, Duncan Hunter, JC Watts or Condolezza Rice just to name a few. I'd even welcome Sen. Joe Lieberman for his honesty and integrity and his stance on defense. However, these individuals lack either the desire or wherewithal to mount and sustain an effective presidential campaign. Like Thomas Jefferson before them they possess some of our most cherished principles as evidenced by their lack of desire to run to the front to satisfy their ego while at the same time possessing the natural ability to lead and inspire.

I have been trying to convince myself that Barack is the right choice for our nation. Truly, he appears to be a genuine and sincere candidate and he clearly inspires his audiences. Yet when I watched the attached video I am reminded once again that our greatest leaders are not running for president.

As an American, I will support our chief executive, whoever he or she may be. As a patriot I will continue to yearn for the leaderhip of Washington, Franklin, Hamilton, Jefferson, Paine and Adams.





"Love your neighbor as yourself and your country more than yourself."

Thomas Jefferson
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