You want to know why civilian disarmament is all the rage? We’ve become a nation of wimps. The howls of protest greeting the TSA’s decision to allow knives on planes are proof positive that The Home of the Brave is now The Home of the Somebody Please Protect Me! Last night, conservative radio host Michael Savage railed against the “lunacy” of letting airplane passengers carry a knife with a 2.6″ or less blade that doesn’t lock. “What are you going to do if 10 Islamofascists grab a baby and one of them holds a knife to its jugular?” Savage asked a caller. Gee Michael, what would you do? Curse the TSA? If it were me, I’d start shooting as many as I could and hope for the best for the baby. Oh wait. I can’t shoot anyone. I can’t carry a gun on an airplane. And that’s because . . .
I might use it to hijack the plane or kill people. Well, not me per se. “Me” used here in the sense of “anyone with a gun.” Well, not anyone . . .
Pilots are allowed to carry firearms. Air Marshalls, too. In fact, according to the TSA Blog, “As of July 15, 2009, TSA implemented security enhancements to the process that allows state, local, territorial, and tribal Law Enforcement Officers (LEOs) to fly armed.”
So pilots and police can carry a gun in a plane (or Amtrak train) but not me or other law-abiding Americans. We can’t be trusted. Not with a locking knife or a firearm.
If nothing else, we’re not as as “qualified” as LEOs when it comes to defending life and limb. Allegedly.
Did you know that civilians remove more criminals from the gene pool than cops and do so far more efficiently with less collateral damage? Forty-one shots, six hits? Sixteen shots, nine bystanders hit? More? All done?
Not yet.
LEOs who want to carry on an airplane have to take a special class. Do they teach them how to shoot a gun in an airplane (e.g. where not to aim or what to do during rapid depressurization)? They do not. The whole class is about clearing security.
Now hear this: a law-abiding American with a firearm could have saved thousands of lives during the 9/11 attacks. Maybe even stopped a war before it began. Speaking of which, can we discuss deterrence?
No, I suppose not. The idea that armed citizens in airplanes would prevent terrorist attacks by their mere presence strikes most Americans as sensible as putting armed guards in schools to prevent spree killings. Oops. Sorry. Less. A lot less. For some reason.
Some gun owners have proposed a “special permit” for Americans who wish to fly armed. I agree. I reckon a copy of the United States Constitution ought to do it. You know if I was going to be a man about it.