The December 5th 2007 Westroads Shooting
(A year later, all the remembrances and vigils can’t erase the ignored truths herein)
A Failure of the “No Guns” Policy That Openly Existed
Courtesy of tutswords.com
Our hearts weep for those affected by the tragic events that Wednesday afternoon. May the families of lost loved ones find peace and those left with scars find strength to go on and prosper. Our hearts also to out to those who simply wanted to shop, but were forced to witness the evil that occurred that terrible day.
Yes, evil happened even when “no firearms” signs adorned the mall entrances. Evil can and sometimes does exercise its horribleness in “gun free” zones. If a person believes that schools for example, like Columbine High or Virginia Tech, are safe places simply because of a “no guns” policy then that person must believe that these and many other shootings did not happen. “Gun control” works to keep us safe from gun (or any other kind of) violence, right? Those who choose to arm themselves and get training may have shopped elsewhere that Wednesday afternoon, thereby giving the societal trash six full minutes of uninterrupted killing at Von Maur. It is very likely that nobody else, other than Hawkins, was armed there that day. Shame on the “no guns” policy that openly existed.
While it will be a subject of endless debate as to whether or not anybody carrying a concealed weapon would have or could have stopped the killer after his first few shots at Von Maur, the fact remains that many of just such attacks have been thwarted by an armed citizen. It comes to the chagrin of some of the (elitist) local police departments when an armed citizen stops an attack. Whether the attack has been halted by a gun owner in their bedroom, in a parking lot or restaurant, it has happened much more than reported. The media is slow to report such, if it cares to report it accurately at all. Why? Because such good news doesn’t hold our interest? Perhaps it is under or misreported by various media because it simply doesn’t fit the anti-gun, ‘left’ leaning play book.
“Only the police should have guns” a well meaning yet decidedly under informed blond female coworker recently said. That comment would be funny if it wasn’t ironic that Hitler passed such laws in the 1930’s. All those in favor of “gun control” extend your right hand and shout “Zieg Heil”! American “gun control” has its roots in keeping our freed slaves unarmed! She knows not what she says, obviously, as the likes of CNN have fooled her into an innocent “anti-gun” mindset. …But I digress. “They’ll protect us” she said. Really? Where were they during the Columbine shooting spree? Virginia Tech? Any number of home invasions or parking lot attacks? Where were the police during the six-plus minute rampage at the Westroads? (Another side note- Some will recommend armed guards at the malls. Great, as long as the guard does not carry the weapon in plain view so as to simply be the first target. My advice would be to not shop near such openly armed security personnel, be they police or a private service) Anyway, our police and other law enforcement personnel showed up to divert traffic, carry weapons about, escort medical personnel, put up yellow tape, write reports and give press conferences AFTER the violence!
“Dial 911” you say? Sure, many at the mall did that day as we’ve heard the recordings! The recordings of the shooting and killing went well into the third minute, fourth minute and so on and are proof of the futility of calling for help during a dire situation such as that. We do recommend calling 911 ultimately, but only after the threat of immediate bodily harm or death, obviously. How many minutes did the two thugs get to kill at Columbine? Cell phones will never be a good substitute for a handgun in the hands of a trained individual when it comes to stopping a violent attack. No, not everyone should be armed! This discussion is in regard to those willing to assume the responsibility of carrying a weapon and receive training for stopping attacks during the immense confusion, horror and unimaginable adrenaline surge therein. One can only imagine the horror of trying to dial 911 while a thug or two are advancing quickly with a knife, gun or baseball bat! …You might, if still alive, remember how the fine motor skills left your adrenaline filled, shaking body as you thought: “Can this really be happening”? The 911 operator will likely listen as you are raped or killed even if you were able to dial and get connected using a land line. The violence will likely have been over by the time a cell connection would have been established. Then again, perhaps the thug attacking you or your family will be polite and allow you or your loved one to complete the call.
“That will never happen, you are paranoid” I’ve heard people say. Well, there was a mall full of people right here in Omaha that after December 5th who will think twice before uttering such ignorance again. You must understand that I do wish the shooting at Westroads never happened. It did, and therefore unfortunately gives us yet another argument for self defense. It is a chance to look at our Second Amendment freedom (as little left of it as there is) and be able to say “told you so”. We cannot ignore what the anti-gunning, turn the other cheek, it will never happen to me liberal types hate: Reality. One of the primary problems of touring (anti-gun) Europe is violent crime!
The idea of armed (effective) self defense has been avoided, skirted around by our media in general. If the subject was taken up at all it was mocked and trivialized. What was discussed as an (ineffective) alternative was the possibility of anti-gun legislation or “gun control”. This helps some misguided folks, who falsely believe that such laws reduce violence or accidents, feel better. Hawkins broke at least a dozen laws as it was and hasn’t murder been against the law for some time already? Our own Department of Justice reviewed the findings of several studies analyzing the effect of “gun control” laws over a 10 year period, including the 10 year long Clinton “gun ban” and found these laws have no effect on gun crime or accident rates. Bet you didn’t hear that on NBC. Such information is not useful for (and is hidden from most of us by) the leftist elites, including our “news” services, but is readily available via places such as the DOJ website, saf.org or gunowners.org, if you’d care to research it. It must be realized that the real agenda on the ‘left’ is to erase the Second Amendment and other freedoms (in other words to increase governmental power and to further socialistic ideals over the citizenry) and jumping on an emotional bandwagon after a shooting such as at Westroads makes it easier to push those laws due to the misguided support of our people. This “misguidedness” results from the ever so subtle efforts of our liberally biased media over time. These gun control laws, as demonstrated at any of these shootings, are useless in preventing tragedies or accidents but do further erode our Constitutional rights and freedoms, and ultimately increases governmental ‘rule’ over us. This then will move us ever toward a socialistic way (doomed to fail) and THAT is the real purpose of these laws despite the pretense of “safety”, even if the CNN watching blondie’s don’t understand that or even care… Yet.
If you listened to the physician’s press conference at the Creighton Medical Center the afternoon of December 6th the day after the Westroads shooting regarding the status of the victims being cared for there, you will have heard a surgeon discussing “assault weapons” and the corresponding “assault weapon wounds” as being “particularly horrific”. Before continuing, what would be the medical term for covertly working in an anti-gun agenda into a press conference? The surgeon is of course an expert in the emergency repair of gunshot wounds and other trauma. Yet if the doctor was knowledgeable at all regarding firearms in-and-of themselves he’d know that the weapon/caliber combination Hawkins used is actually LESS powerful than most hunting rifles. The AK style “assault” rifle that Hawkins used at Von Maur is available in either .223 or .308 caliber. Either way, regardless of bullet type used in those calibers from his or any other .223 or .308 caliber rifle, these calibers create both a smaller temporary wound cavity and permanent wound cavity than your ‘typical’ hunting rifle/caliber combinations. I’m no surgeon, but the surgeon apparently is no hunter and certainly not a firearms expert. Why do you think an elk hunter, for example, would NOT use a .223 or .308 caliber rifle? Because a .270, a .30-06 (“thirty odd six”), 7mm mag, 300 win mag, etc. all deliver more power, create larger wounds and are far more effective, regardless of similar bullet type, than your standard so called and scary sounding “assault weapon”.
The surgeon may have known all that but was likely successful in his attempt to scare the mommies watching on channel 7 or listening in the car on the way to pick up the kiddy from the public indoctrination center, er, public school. The doctor likely knows you only need to change the external features (stock, sights, grips…) to mold any rifle into the “assault weapon” image. Yet, because the doctor likely knows how the media over the years has become successful in demonizing guns by using terms such as “assault weapon”, he took an opportunity to provide another barrage of scary anti-gun buzzwords designed to further the fear and ignorance of firearms. I consider thatan abuse of his respected position as a doctor. A question for you: If you or your family wereassaulted by a thug wielding a baseball bat, would that bat then be an “assault weapon” or would the grip-wrap of that bat have to be changed in some fashion to be called such? You can read up and learn, doctor, at keepandbeararms.com.
Do you have a “no guns” policy at your place of employ? Do you have a cute sign on your doors that show a pistol or revolver with a slash through it thereby “forbidding” firearms there? Does that make you feel safer? If you do, why not put those very signs on the doors and windows of your own home? We both know the answer, don’t we? It’s the idea that readily accessible firearms might be in any given home that keeps many thugs second guessing, providing a deterrent. Mr. and Ms. AntiGunLiberal, you spell it d-e-t-e-r-r-e-n-t. Gun owners on any given block should charge the idiot anti-gun supporters living on the same block a security fee for that very reason! Be aware, people, violent thugs see your “gun free” zone as nothing more than a safer work environment forthemselves. Ask a violent criminal where he’d rather “work” his evil, at a business where the lot is full of vehicles with “NRA” decals or a coffee shop with “no guns” stickers on the door. Yeah, I’ll take a small latte and a large “duh” to go…
“Gun free” zones are unquestionably stupid. It makes a person wonder why an educated, intelligent person would put such signage on their property. Would it be their way to stick it to the freedom of our society? It obviously is not because these people feel such notices are effective in reducing accidents or crime. Perhaps mandated by their insurance carrier? If so, it would mean the insurance executives, much like many physicians it would seem, along with many educators and Obama supporters have had common sense educated right out of their skulls.
Remember the 1930’s Germany history lesson? Or did our public education system become successful already in erasing such “unproductive information” from the curriculum? Ever wonder why the German people, Jewish or otherwise, didn’t mind having their weapons registered, leading to confiscation? Would you like to take a guess why Hitler and countless other “leaders” wanted a disarmed populace? The people of the time only received information heavily censored and were fooled into the “safety” issue. Thank heaven we have the internet and conservative talk radio to help expose the “left” in this era! The people of that time may not have had the value of hindsight, we do. Yet we ignore what is happening, or are blissfully misinformed courtesy of CNN and others of their ilk. We, as a society in general, are too spoiled and easily led to believe our government and left-wing elitists would legislate us right out of our Constitutionally given freedoms one “safety” oriented law at a time. The info-babes at CNN and ABC smile into the camera and tell us these laws are good & that Obama supports our Bill of Rights! Actually, public schools have turned out a generation of “Bill of Rights” and Constitutionally void drones.
Visit jpfo.org or link to it from tutswords.com and learn something that Hillary, McCain or Obama do NOT want you to understand. Get the information you need to start fighting with us, damn you, before it’s too late for you or your kids. If these people on the elite left get their way your grandkids just might tell you some things, might just ask you some questions about how it “used to be”, such as: “My friend Billy said his dad told him there was a time people could own guns, and that people could say whatever they wanted to even something bad about the Federal Rulers of the North American Union without being punished! Is that true”? He might even ask you: “And why is Johnny’s dad in prison just for stopping the mass murdering shooter downtown? Is it because he used a gun? Why did the Federal Information Network (formerly CNN) say only that he killed a poor, innocent and misunderstood child (21 years of age) there with what they call an illegal, unauthorized, banned and horrible assault hand gun but did not tell us of his stopping the mass shooting and saving innocent lives”? He might go on: “My teacher at the Ted Kennedy Liberal/Socialistic Indoctrination Center said that we should never act to save ourselves or others but to turn the other cheek and hope the uniformed protectors magically appear to save us instead”. Yea, a bit over the top for a kid but certainly you can see the framework for just such a society emerging.
Related to the above, do you know of the McCain/Feingold restriction on free speech in the press (talk radio was the actual target) for a period of time before elections? Oh, you only heard about the small yet left-wing media touted portion of it described as “election finance reform” … uh-huh. Again, that would be due to the work of CNN, ABC, NBC, New York Times, etc. all working together with the liberal aspects of our government to hide the teeth, the real purpose, of such legislation. Again, bend over you “useful idiots” and vote liberal. The sad part is that it just takes one of these people being fooled by it all to cancel my single vote for freedom. Listen to and support talk radio to learn much more about what you vote for. May Obama and his lib’s NOT permanently crush freedom!
Next time you are at Von Maur, listen to the piano and see the wonderful merchandise perfectly displayed. Smiling sales help, nicely appointed people strolling, shopping. Certainly violence of horrific magnitude could not happen here, it’s unimaginable. Prior to December 5th, 2007, most people would have argued against the need for effective self defense. Some still do! The rest of us lived in a more realistic world and understand evil happens anywhere, to anyone. It is random. We get formal training. We mentally consider “what if’s”. We often note where exits are, where fire extinguishers are, what near us would be usable cover, who is around us and what they might be doing. Not to be a swivel headed paranoid types, nor do we think we are special. We just like being aware and possibly-maybe a bit more prepared than your average unaware, untrained and thusly ignorant yet typical shopper. Due to the “no guns” policy openly displayed at the Westroads until last December, there were no armed persons there that day other than Hawkins. Those trained individuals (who train at “Front Sight” for example) who carry concealed weapons were shopping elsewhere, where they weren’t forbidden to be.
For that the Westroads ownership owes the families of the victims and those forced to witness a ‘gunman’ kill without restraint much more than most people could have imagined. It may be that those who voted to erase our Bill of Rights may soon also. *************************************************************
