Well, in the old west days, it WAS up to each individual to protect himself. Many carried guns just for that purpose. The result? Near anarchy that we remember as colorful, but which in fact was brutal, unlawful, and unjust.
We progressed past that point, with well established laws and law enforcement. The system is far from perfect, but much better than cowboys slinging guns and vigilantes swinging suspects.
I don't want to see us go back to that era, but I fear that is where the NRA wants us to go. Some seem to be police-wanna-bes, ready to play hero and go blasting the bad guys. Others have been genuinely duped, I believe, to see this as a need to repel foreign invaders (movies like Red Dawn did not help with this).
The anti-government paranoia breeded by the NRA results in monsters like Timothy McVeigh, who talks about the kids he blew up as 'collateral damage'. Between him and the other right wing radical wackos, we're slipping towards a lawless abyss. I think Charlton Heston believes he'll whip out his six shooter and save us all in the end. It's getting delusional, and dangerous. |
