This cop doesn't agree

Having been a police officer for 20 years, I give all due credit to the first responders. You must be reminded, however, that paramedics, firemen and law enforcement cannot immediately resolve your emergency or protect you from a violent criminal because it takes time to proceed from Point A to Point B, even when the 911 caller provided crystal clear directions, which seldom occurs.

There has been some talk among the wizards on TV in regards to "improved procedures." That is off-point. The real problem is A to B time and that cannot be reduced without endangering more lives.

The tragedy involving the doctor's family is a case in point. How much time is required for two men to brutalize and murder three people? Five minutes? Ten minutes? Fifteen at most. What is the average reaction time to a 911 call? Twenty minutes.

That is not a criticism; it is a fact of life. These officers are not standing in the starting blocks, waiting for something to happen; they have other duties. The nearest available officer may be miles away.

Emphasis mine. I think I may have even made this point a while back...

So, how do you think he feels you and I should protect ourselves during the 20 minutes the cops take to respond?

I could immediately recognize someone who did not belong in our neighborhood. Security doors were installed on outside doorways. In addition to my service weapon, I always kept a loaded gun in the house.

I can hear the grannies, male and female, now: "Eeek! A loaded gun! I'm afraid of guns and don't want one near me!" That is an illogical and emotional response comparable to being afraid of your spare tire. The philosophy that supports the possession and use of a defensive weapon is precisely the same as that which supports the spare tire in your vehicle: It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.

Now, he's probably one of those NRA Gun Nuts who thinks every man, woman, and child should be packing at least two Desert Eagle 50 AE's with 4 magazines each, right?

I do not propose that anyone acquire a defensive weapon, and it need not be a handgun, without some professional training.

Lookie there. Maybe gun nuts don't really believe that. Maybe that's just a strawman built by the anti's to make us look crazier than we are.

His next point, though, chills me

With the shape of the world today, we need all the help we can get because the government and the courts cannot or will not defend the citizens who pay the bills.

Coming from a government employee.

Look, I know plenty of cops make news by abusing their positions, but I'm sure there's more cops like this (and cops like my father) who are honest, hardworking, and truly have your safety in mind. It's good to see something like this from a policeman as they are so often portrayed by the antis as being totally against citizens arming themselves.