By Chris
I have often thought that Armed Citizens represent a special class of individuals within our society. We are people who have taken it upon ourselves to be responsible for our own safety, our own livelihood, and often for the safety of those around us. I believe that we should have our own encompassing statement to sum up our values. I have read some examples that others have posted and I wished to try my hand and heart at writing my own. To that end, I humbly submit my version of “The Armed Citizens Creed” . . .
I am an Armed Citizen.
I have taken up the tools of force as is my Right.
I shall not turn my Arms to any unjust purpose.
I shall not keep, bear, or employ my Arms in any negligent way.
I shall use my Arms in a just manner to defend myself and others to the best of my ability and circumstances.
I shall use my Arms in a just manner to secure my livelihood and property to the best of my ability and circumstances.
I shall promote the adoption of Arms by other willing Citizens.
I shall defend my Right to Arms from those who would make us subjects, for by this Right do I defend all other Rights and Privileges of all Free Citizens.
So I do swear.
Not bad. (Not that I could do better).
“no”
I apologize if it seems like I’m Mr Naysayer. But I’m of the thought that being an intelligent, ethical gun owner should be just par for the course. Why the heck is it suddenly special to promote the RKBA and use weapons ethically?
That’s like saying we should take up a creed to not murder, rape, and pillage.
I’m with ST on this, only I’ll take it a step further; we aren’t elite, we simply are. I don’t begrudge my neighbors for failing to exercise their natural rights any more than we should pat each other on the back or stand a little taller for exercising them.
This sort of mentality leads to a class system. We’re just citizens, end of story.
I tend to agree. The fact that I’m armed has no more to do with my identity or sense of self than the boots I wear or the fact that I own an angle grinder. I’m not worrying about writing a creed or taking an oath to use my soldering iron or cast-iron pan ethically.
Guns aren’t magic or special. They’re just objects built to do a job, same as a pointy rock or gas chromatograph.
That’s like saying we should take up a creed to not murder, rape, and pillage.
I have no interest in the first two, but I would give pillage a shot.
Ralph: We don’t always agree on things, but your comments are usually worth a read. This one gave me a chuckle.
Will there be viking helmets?
Yes, if you’re willing to kill your own goat.
I was simply going to respond “no”, but ST and others beat me to it.
Owning guns doesn’t make us better than anyone else, but for some reason a lot of gun owners believe that it does.
PS — This part
is pure crap. As I’ve stated before, the average gun-owner probably cares about rights and liberties about as much as the average ACLU member. Which is to say, not much, except when it’s convenient to promote a certain agenda.
As I’ve stated before, the average gun-owner probably cares about rights and liberties about as much as the average ACLU member. Which is to say, not much, except when it’s convenient to promote a certain agenda.
Gospel…
If anon doesn’t stop saying reasonable things I’m going to tarnish the sterling reputation I have around here.
“I shall defend my Right to Arms from those who would make us subjects, for by this Right do I defend all other Rights and Privileges of all Free Citizens.”
(is pure crap. As I’ve stated before, the average gun-owner probably cares about rights and liberties about as much as the average ACLU member. Which is to say, not much, except when it’s convenient to promote a certain agenda.)
Speak for yourself Anonymous; gun owners that I talk to are very active in the politics of freedom and concerned about not just our individual freedoms but for our community as well. If we weren’t, we would have not been able to get the laws passed that have allowed for five states to have constitutional carry; and almost all of the other states to have shall issue CC.
The responsibility of all Americans is to be prepared for defending not just our individual freedom but our community and our countries as well. If you choose to be selfish and self centered in only caring about you and your close friends and families protection; then you can welcome with open arms the tyranny as it is imposed upon us all because there are not enough people to stand united against those that that wish to enslave us all.
Me, too.
Contrarians, unite!
Do Dungeons and Dragons players have a creed too?
C’mon, this is silly, bordering on pathetic. What do you think you are, the “Armed Boy Scouts” or something?
Carry on.
anon is being a bit of a dildo in a drawer, but he/she IS on to something. Let’s not try to be an exclusive club and have secret handshakes and sh*t. Nod at the guy you catch printing at the grocery store, nod at the guy carrying openly at the farmers’ market. You share something in common with both.
Otherwise, carry about your day and don’t look down your nose at or otherwise separate yourself from those who DON’T choose to exercise their RKBA. They aren’t better or worse for it.
I agree.
Great creed. I do so answer. 🙂
I also swear to lose about thirty pounds.
You the dude in red? 😉
On to something important. Is that guy carrying a suppressed SBR?
You must have missed the rather long barrel that extends beyond the photograph’s frame.
Looks like a standard length fluted barrel.
God forbid the barrel weigh too much, the gun might actually end up weighing a whopping 7.5lbs.
I think a picture of person with a rifle that was actally loaded could helped this out a little bit….
Unloaded rifles scare the sheep, I just see a dude with an expensive club.
I don’t know, I’m just talking out my ass. I can’t even think of anything to write in Xmas cards, let alone write a creed.
Clicking the picture leads to a (horrible, don’t even try to read the comments) article which details the reasoning
> Capitol Police Sgt. Jack West, who stood near an officer also carrying what looked like a semi-automatic weapon, told CL that no guns are allowed inside the Gold Dome but that people are allowed to have loaded handguns outside the Capitol. However, “long guns” must be unloaded with the muzzle pointed toward the ground.
AGAIN with the single point sling. Every time I see one of those strapped to someone outside of a combat zone, it makes me want to kick a puppy.
You should submit an article bemoaning mall-cops and operators because neither of those dead horses has been beaten either.
His hardware of choice seems silly to me too, but conveniently enough I don’t have to purchase or use it. At least his muzzle is down, right?
It looks like red-sweatshirt’s twin brother is standing behind him thinking “If only I had also bought ‘The Largest VFG Ever Conceived’ they would have let ME stand in the front, too”
As for the creed…eh
Did you notice SW photoboming behind suit guy? She’s wiley, that demanding mom.
I suspect the motivation for “The Armed Citizen’s Creed” stems from a desire to counterbalance the demonization of armed citizens by the civilian disarmament complex. That is not necessarily a bad thing. However, I have no desire to be a special snowflake. I have been a fairly well armed citizen for over 40 years, it is a part of who I am, it does not define who I am. If we spend our time formulating creeds for all of our beliefs and values when will we ever get to the range?
I’m not a big fan of “creeds” personally, but for those who like them, I think this one is just fine.
This is the best Creed since “My Own Prison.”
I already have a creed. The Apostles Creed. I have no problem with Chris’s post. I already do most of the GO creed. We need to make NO BIG DEAL to be armed. Normal everyday behavior. If it can happen here in Illinois it can happen everywhere. As it should.
I was curious, and looked up this Apostles’ Creed, and was wondering: Does Step 1l, The resurrection of the body, prophecy the zombies?
Some kind of creed or pledge for gun owners might be a good idea for both morale and propaganda reasons, but getting more than a tiny percentage to agree on the wording is unrealistic.
We already have a creed. The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. Chris is probably a little bit insecure, maybe a newbie, and is seeking some kind of affirmation in a safety-in-numbers sort of way.
ACLU, you have to be kidding, I think I’m sick and I’m going to puke! This group you mentioned are for children to learn how to wear rubbers, etc, etc, etc. I know nothing good that they may have done, could be wrong, but I’m not too far off. I do know they are lawyers and bingo, duh, I’ll trust them just like I do with politician. All you guys and gals watch your back, never know who we can trust.
And this is another reason why the ends of the spectrum in this 2A debate will never acknowledge the middle ground. Because both sides think they are “special”….
“Armed Citizens represent a special class of individuals within our society”
Isn’t this exactly what the gun community has been touting as one of the main reasons antis are so untrustworthy and flawed in their logic in disarming the masses? Because they feel they have the right to bodyguards (and ironically gun ownership in some cases) but the rest of the people they deem unworthy do not? Because they themselves believe they are a special class of people above everyone else?
Why then, are you proposing gun owners go the same route and saying armed citizens are a special class? “We” are not and we shouldn’t try to be. That’s one proven way to alienate the middle — to separate ourselves from the “rest of society”.
Instead, we should just remind people that they, too, all have the right to self-defense and for defense against tyranny. It has always been our right and it’s one of the great principles that was the genesis of this country’s philosophy of freedom.
If some armed citizens were in that Colorado theater the day Holmes unleased his madness, I bet many would call them a special class.
Amen Brother
You know you spend a little too much time around firearms when you come up with “creeds” regarding how you will use them. Yeah, no thanks.
The adoption of a creed isn’t anything special. It’s a tool that an individual or group can use to enhance their set of beliefs. When in the infantry we had to memorize the Infantryman’s Creed. This was not optional, but it was merely a tool the army used to enhance our set of core values and beliefs. I don’t know the Infantryman’s Creed anymore, but I can still recite the Soldiers Creed by heart. I use the Soldiers Creed as a tool to remind myself of the values that I still hold dear. It does not define me unless I wish it to and furthermore it only defines me as much as I wish it to.
In summary a creed is a moral and philosophical tool. I use a gun to defend my home, I use a creed to defend my “moral compass” from changing course.
Oh, feh. Any “Moral Compass” beyond “Don’t hurt people, and don’t take their stuff” is external programming, and has nothing to do with morals..
The oath I took in 1982, and still stand by today…
“I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”
And this is my Creed…
I am the Infantry.
I am my country’s strength in war.
her deterrent in peace.
I am the heart of the fight-
wherever, whenever.
I carry America’s faith and honor
against her enemies.
I am the Queen of Battle.
I am what my country expects me to be-
the best trained solider in the world.
In the race for victory
I am swift, determined, and courageous,
armed with a fierce will to win.
Never will I betray my country’s trust.
always I fight on-
through the foe,
to the objective,
to triumph over all,
If necessary, I will fight to my death.
By my steadfast courage,
I have won 200 years of freedom.
I yield not to weakness,
to hunger,
to cowardice,
to fatigue,
to superior odds,
for I am mentally tough, physically strong,
and morally straight.
I forsake not-
my country,
my mission
my comrades,
my sacred duty.
I am relentless.
I am always there,
now and forever.
I AM THE INFANTRY!
FOLLOW ME
To whom? What authority have you placed over yourself that you need to give an oath of fealty to?