American Old West, circa 1910. A burly man walks into the local watering hole with his .357 Magnum on his hip and orders a whiskey drink. Now fast forward to American West 2010 as a burly man walks into a modern day drinking establishment with his .357 strapped to his hip and orders – a vente soy iced white mocha, no whip cream.
That’s the scene now at Starbucks now as they allow patrons to openly carry guns inside the store.
For what reasons gun carriers feel the need to bring guns into a place frequented by hipsters and guys writing screenplays on their laptops completely eludes me. And though the guns are not allowed to be loaded, gun rights advocates say they are making a statement by carrying the guns.
What happened to just wearing a T-shirt to make a statement?
This “guns and coffee” issue is the culmination of America’s rise in gun culture which was already huge. And gun aficionados seemed to be trying to bring back the Wild, Wild West.
Case in point in late February of this year in North Pensacola, Douglas Weinberg was awakened by his wife saying she observed someone inside the back yard creeping along the fence.
Reportedly there were some burglaries in the neighborhood, so instead of Weinberg doing the proper thing and calling the police, he armed himself with his black semi-automatic handgun and exited his residence cowboy style to see a white-colored vehicle exit a side street one house from his.
His neighbor, Jerry Stefani, stepped outside too with his revolver in hand, and they both began yelling at the three occupants in the vehicle as they entered Stefani’s truck to pursue the vehicle.
The white car got stuck in the mud and the occupants began to run, all the while they were being shot at by Weinberg and Stefani.
Turns out the three occupants of the white vehicle were actually delivering newspapers for the Pensacola News Journal. They only fled because they observed that the two homeowners were armed with guns and believed they were about to become the victims of a robbery.
Because of this cowboy mentality, three innocent men could have been harmed. The sudden rise in gun advocacy came when it seemed eminent that Barack Obama would become president.
Guns and ammo were flying off the shelves as people feared that “Obama’s gonna take our guns away.” This hasn’t been the case. Obama and his top allies have largely been silent on issues such as reviving an assault weapons ban or strengthening background checks at gun shows.
In fact, before being elected, Obama supported the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down Washington, D.C.’s handgun ban. And Obama signed the legislation as part of a broader bill, that allows licensed gun owners to bring firearms into national parks. So where exactly is this fear coming from?
Hint – his name starts with an “L” and ends with an “imbaugh”.
Some perspective for the president Washington, D.C at one time was the murder capital of the world with such gun violence that the city banned hand guns and the NBA team, the Washington “Bullets,” changed its name to the innocent sounding “Wizards.” So before we yell, “Regulators. Mount up,” let us remember that a false sense of fear and more guns will not make us safer.
6 comments
I have seen the USA change over the past 40 years into some thing I don't understand. The rules have eroded into sinful self absorbed indulgance . Just what is it you want ? The good Lord will judge us all in the end so resist as long as you feel you can but the day will come you will have to answere for your actions befor God ,weather you believe in him or not.
The founding fathers had a vision with God as the center of the whole thing . That's what the problem is for this country , that God you cannot remove . As you attempt to remove his name from the schools , court rooms , ect. your efforts are becomming clear to me your feeling a guilt and pain you can't quell . Sad story isn't it ? So in closing do you still want to attempt removing my weapon and meet the big boss himself ahead of schedual?
Rob Rowlison