Free In Idaho!

Then you’d better stop by the porch for a minute, and see what Tam has to say.  Mull that over awhile…

I’ve been reading all of the posts about defending yourself that are popping up on the blogs of late.  Zavier has a good one.  Breda’s is a must read, and if you haven’t read it and those of the three other ladies she links to, go over and read them first.  Check out Robb Allen while you’re at it.  The idea that we’re all responsible for taking up our own self defense is one of the core beliefs most of us hold in common, and I believe it is firmly emplanted in our Constitution.  What many are writing about is the loss of that idea in our culture, and I agree, as a nation we’ve seemingly let go of something that even 50 years ago was a core belief for a majority of citizens.  As a people, we’ve been sold the “enlightened” idea that nonviolence is always best.  And along with that baloney we’re told that the police, or the government, can and will take care of us, even protect us.  You have to buy both, and it seems a majority of Americans have bought both, and are relieved to be both morally better and protected at the same time.

The stories that Xavier, Breda, and the rest are telling prove otherwise though.  Life is not safe, and this world is full of predators and prey.  We all know these things, and most of us celebrate (some more publicly than others) both our decision to be responsible for our own defense and our freedom to do so by getting a carry license, acquiring a suitable personal tool (along with the training and practice that requires), and then actually moving through life prepared to defend ourselves and those around us.

But I think we sometimes miss opportunities to “spread the freedom”, to pick a phrase.  Two incidents in the last two weeks lead me to say that.  The first occurred in an office setting where a number of folks were sitting around discussing daily events.  One man mentioned he had a concealed weapons permit.  The man next to him asked if he “had it on him”.  “Oh no, I never have it on me here.  Besides, it’s too big to carry here in town.”  From there, the conversation went to other things.  An opportunity to teach was missed, but not the chance to brag .  The second happened just two days ago.  The setting was a group assembled to discuss the logistics of setting up a new business in one of the smaller towns on the east side of the state.  The gentleman whose business this will be turned the subject to office security.  During that discussion someone asked about a dog.  He allowed as how he had a great blue healer (Aussie cow dog, for you non-Idaho folks)… “trespassers will be herded into the back room, where they will be licked to death”.  Then he mentioned he had a concealed weapons permit.  A woman in the group, a recent California transplant, sharply inhaled and asked in a much higher pitched voice than usual, “whatever on earth do you have THAT for?”.  He explained that he frequently has guns in his truck, going to and from hunting, fishing, and hiking.  He explained that with the CWL he was better covered “legally” for having a gun in the truck.  Alright, as far as it went, being a calm, logical, and legal answer that made sense. 

Those are pretty much wasted opportunities though, for spreading the idea of responsibilty and freedom.  Do you think it would be a great opening for a real conversation?  Instead of sidestepping the conversation about the real reasons we carry by talking about hunting or hiking, or how big the damn thing is, what if we went right to the heart of the matter and chose instead to talk about what it means to be a free, responsible citizen?

“What on earth do you have THAT for?!”

The initial thought is “Oh hell, why’d she have to ask me that?”  We know what the average joe and jane thinks about guns… the culture has been deftly steered in a direction that predisposes so many people to believe we gun owners are all potential school shooters.  Shouldn’t we answer in our own self defense here as well? 

“Well, I’m glad you asked that question.  I learned a long time ago that the most precious thing I have from living in America is the opportunity and the responsibility to take care of myself.  I can work at what I want, play how I want, worship the way I believe, and say what I think.  I am free to look at life and the world and then make my own decisions about how I want to live.  And with that freedom comes responsibility for myself and my own actions.  Nobody else is responsible for feeding me, clothing me, taking me to the doctor, or paying my mortgage.  Nobody else can protect me from bad animals or bad people, and they aren’t responsible for that…I am.  One of the preparations I have made for taking care of myself and my family is to learn how to use a gun, get the necessary license, and to actually carry it.”

I know, wordy.  But hey, it’s a start.  There has to be a better way to approach these kinds of situations without doing the embarrassed sidestep, or worse, the gun-nut wacko, cold dead fingers routine.  Molon labe means something… to us.  Most of our everyday friends and workplace acquaintances aren’t there yet though.  I believe in teaching liberty and responsibility together.  It’s what we tried to teach our kids, and the way we’ve chosen to live our lives.  We tried to teach them that you cannot demand “Leave me alone” without also promising “I will take care of myself”.  The world is not a safe and cuddly place, even here in America.  So I say, let’s be prepared for the opportunity to suggest a different road to someone who hasn’t seen it yet; or worse, saw it on the map and thought “here there be dragons” meant where we live, not where he lived.

Update: in my catching up on reading other blogs this afternoon I found The Mad Rocket Scientist’s post from earlier in the week And I Carry Concealed.  Recommended Reading if you missed it, and kinda fits the directon of all these posts.  Hat tip to Random Nuclear Strikes for the link to it.
 

Sunday Music today is “We Shall Behold Him”