Violence Begets Violence Part One
Publicola - long screed on the necessity, if you carry a gun, to know when and when not to use it and to be willing to use it when necessary. Most people can handle the mechanical aspects of not shooting someone they don't intend to stop, but being willing to shoot when necessary is rather more difficult. I'd say that it was more difficult for me before I had kids, but it has become rather easy now. Threatening my kids' safety is a very dangerous endeavor. Don't. [publicola]
The saged Col. Jeff Cooper put the whole matter in perspective:
"One bleeding-heart type asked me in a recent interview if I did not agree that 'violence begets violence.' I told him that it is my earnest endeavor to see that it does. I would like very much to ensure -- and in some cases I have -- that any man who offers violence to his fellow citizen begets a whole lot more in return than he can enjoy." -Jeff Cooper, "Cooper vs. Terrorism", Guns & Ammo Annual, 1975
Now imagine if Ted Bundy was simply a guy who was shot & killed when he tried to break into the house that Joni Lenz lived in? Prosecutors often encourage women to testify at rape trials by pointing out that their testimony can keep what happened to them from happening to someone else. The same logic applies when you encourage people to kill those who are trying to kill them. Criminals don't always progress to more brutal or heinous crimes, but odds are if they're going to kill you that they won't have an occupation change immediately afterwards unless they're caught. Enough of the folks who do go on to commit more violent acts could be stopped by one of their early victims.
I'm not saying that the 12 year old you see shoplifting should be killed to keep him from becoming the next Bundy (he should be disciplined by his parents to prevent that). But the formidable looking guy in your living room at 2:38 a.m. isn't trying to sign you up for the local glee club & probably isn't interested in reforming his ways.
Previous Posts:
Teaching Pigs to Sing
Travelers Insurance: Drop Dead
Redefining War Crimes out of Existence
Block Attacks Rockwell for 'Extremism'
Meth Gun for drug detection
The Better Bitch: Condi or Hillary?
Japantown, R.I.P.: An American Holocaust
Chapter One: The Web of Trust
Murdering the Group, Saving Individuals
The Weight of Evidence