Don't Disarm the Potential Heroes Who Can Stop the Bad Guys

Here we are only six weeks later, and an absolutely horrible event happens at a Baptist church in Texas where a gunman killed dozens of people.

This is a call to all of the “good guys with a gun” in the country. Arm yourself, everywhere. There are no “safe spaces.” Supposed “gun free zones” are, in actuality, just a “target-rich environment” for evil men with horrible intentions.

It does not matter where you go, you are not protected unless you are protecting yourself.

Churches or nightclubs. Concerts or schools. Government buildings or private workspaces. Shopping malls or high-end boutiques. Unless you enter a place that has a metal detector for everyone walking in, there is a possibility that a terrorist, spree killer, or just a plain criminal will be armed and operating unchallenged in the same area as you.

There is a question that I have heard from anti-gunners and people, including family members, who just don’t understand the difference between legal carry (open or concealed) and bad guys with guns. That question is “What are you so afraid of?” in regard to me having a gun just about everywhere I go.

My answer is this: I am not afraid of those terrorists, spree killers, or thugs. What I am afraid of is being in a bad situation where I would have to look my wife and son in the eyes and tell them that I am unarmed. I do not want to ever have my last thought on Earth be, “Why didn’t I have my gun on me today?”

Hindsight is always 20/20, but no one knows for certain where the next evil person will seek their wicked satisfaction. The people at the Las Vegas concert shooting did not know that they were about to lose 58 of their crowd to a crazed gunman that night. The families who dropped their children at Newtown that horrible day in 2012 had no idea that some would be planning funerals later that night. The people attending First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs on November 5 were blind to the fact that a lone gunman would assault their church and kill more than two dozen members in cold blood.

Had any of these people known in advance, there would have been armed “good guys” waiting to dispatch the evil-doers. However, we do not know the time or place the next deadly event will occur.

What strengthens my argument is the information trickling out that an armed neighbor confronted and exchanged gunfire with the Texas shooter this afternoon, hitting him and driving him from the area, and dying a short time later. How many lives would have been saved had a church member been carrying his firearm? As I stated earlier in this article, hindsight is 20/20, however preparedness is forward-looking. The old saying is “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is extremely accurate in these situations. Perhaps we should start a new adage, “A single armed good guy onsite is worth a squad of first responders being called”? As we say in the firearm community, “When seconds count, police are minutes away.” Don’t take that as an insult to police. Take it as plain fact. Our law enforcement personnel cannot be everywhere at once.

I have stated in numerous previous articles that only law-abiding citizens will follow your firearm restrictions and prohibitions. A person intent on killing will not care about the threat of prosecution for bringing guns into an unauthorized area. In most cases, they don’t plan on surviving. These unpreventable situations usually end as soon as the bad guy sees another firearm, whether it’s in the hands of law enforcement personnel responding to a call, or a prepared civilian who’s there already.

I hope churches, restaurants, theaters, malls and the American public will understand this one simple premise. You don’t have to encourage or request people to carry firearms legally. Just don’t disarm or prohibit them. Lives may depend on their presence.

John Cylc is a conservative Christian and eight year U.S. Army veteran who primarily speaks out on the Second Amendment, gun rights issues, and contemporary topics. Born and raised in Philadelphia, he currently resides with his wife and youngest son in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains in beautiful East Tennessee. He is the founder of ThirteenFox.com and a contributor to LifeZette. To read more of his reports — Click Here Now.