Everyone has the right to defend themselves against criminals who want to hurt them. In today’s world, the best tool for that purpose is a firearm. Disarming the people in Thousand Oaks did nothing but create a shooting gallery for anyone who wanted to casually kill as many people as possible. Sadly, that is exactly what happened there. Given our new governor’s political mindset, we should ready ourselves for more of the same. I wish it weren’t true, but it is.
This is where local elections and judges become very important. For example: local sheriffs are elected officials who often stand against state and federal overreach. Of the 58 county sheriffs in California, many are pro-gun. It is the urban sheriffs who are not. Even so, some of the urban sheriffs are shifting their view. Our sheriff in San Diego County has been very hesitant to issue CCW permits in the past. However, he has opened that policy considerably since November of last year. As a result, many more law abiding San Diegans go armed each day. He made the policy change because he faced a serious threat to his re-election if he didn’t.
Another example is a local major in one of the suburbs. His name is Bill Wells. Bill is the mayor of the city of El Cajon. He is a former gun shop owner and a strong supporter of the second amendment. Recently, a homeowner in El Cajon shot and killed a man who was burglarizing the homeowner’s car late at night. When the homeowner went outside to see what was happening, the burglar moved toward him in a threatening manner. The homeowner shot him and the burglar died. As far as I know, the homeowner was not arrested by El Cajon Police. Neither was he prosecuted by the district attorney. The district attorney stated, based upon the investigation carried out by El Cajon Police, that no criminal charges were to be brought against the homeowner since he was on his own property, in legal possession of the firearm and reasonably felt that he was under threat of death or great bodily harm. El Cajon Police Lieutenant Walt Miller was quoted as saying…
“We would always encourage them (armed citizens) to call the police department first, but nothing prohibits them from doing that (defending themselves). This is the United States; there are a lot of homeowners that own firearms. So, that’s always a possibility that a home a suspect may be breaking into or vehicle a suspect may be breaking into, they should take into account a firearm may be in that person’s house.”
I’m not sure things would have gone that way under a different mayor.
Judges are also a big deal. In fact, the importance of judicial elections and appointments should be fairly obvious to most people at this point. Thankfully, the Republicans have retained the United State Senate. As a result, the president can continue doing what he has been doing since day one: stacking the federal courts with strict constructionist judges.
The California legislature and governor will continue to pass left wing and anti-gun laws. It is the local officials (mayors, city councils members, sheriffs and district attorneys) who have the power to protect their constituents in the short term by simply choosing how and when to enforce those laws. San Diego is a big city, so I can’t have much effect on who becomes mayor of San Diego. But I can effect who becomes mayor of the little suburban town that I live in just outside of San Diego. My mayor, like Mayor Wells in El Cajon, is very conservative and pro-gun. As a consequence, so is our police chief. Remember, sheriffs are elected officials and police chiefs work for the mayor and the city council members (who are all elected officials). So, while you cannot elect the police chief, you certainly can elect the chief’s bosses. It is also important to remember that sheriffs are not the only officials who can issue concealed carry permits in California. Police chiefs also have that authority. If your sheriff will not issue, then focus on replacing your mayor and city council members with pro-gun people. It may be easier to replace the officials in a smaller city than it is to replace a big city sheriff.
On the other end of things are the federal judges. Federal judges have the power to drag California kicking and screaming into compliance with the United States Constitution. Fortunately, while the left gets to have Nancy Pelosi run the House of Representatives, we get to keep the power to stuff the federal courts with constitutional conservative judges and there is nothing that the left can do about it. Filling the federal bench with constitutional conservative judges is exactly what President Trump and Senator Mitch McConnell have been doing since day one. Thankfully, recent election results have left both of those men in the position to keep right on doing it.
The most important thing that you and I can do is to resist the temptation to wallow in anger and discouragement. This is going to be a long tough fight. It will take tough people to fight it. I’m one. Are you?
There are many cliches about what happens when good citizens have their rights taken away by despotic rulers, Even the ‘best intentions’ have unforeseen impacts, take the firearms ban in Australia, or the most classic case of the Democratic Socialist Party of Germany (AKA The Nazi Party) when gun registration led to confiscation on a previously unprecedented scale. Execution followed when the ‘Stormtroopers’ demanded people’s weapons upon penalty of immediate execution in their doorway. This was followed shortly after by incarceration and then extermination of those who resisted.
I have risked my life for my country and the values I was raised with that I am seeing devolved by uninformed and brainwashed individuals with hidden agendas related to the desire to control the population. Many politicians
(Democrats and Republicans alike) have hidden agendas related to what they believe is their responsibility and right to ‘address public safety’ by violating our constitutional rights.
I applaud your willingness to step into the limelight and try to inform people of what is happening while they keep their heads in the sand. I agree that any violent acts merely play into the hands of those who would have the ‘citizens’ be sheep. Having been paid by the DOD and DOS to be and support ‘sheepdogs’ I have an insight into the mindset that causes me to have great concerns over the future of freedom.
The State of California has passed a plethora of convoluted laws regarding ownership of firearms that when read carefully and thoroughly basically make every firearm legality questionable and potentially a felony to be in possession of since any device that expels a projectile by the rapid expansion of a gas or liquid is illegal or could be interpreted as such if so desired.
I am currently a resident of Arizona, a state with a very different approach, I have been a CWP holder in my state for many years. They don’t even feel the need to issue CWPs any longer by allowing any legal possessor to carry concealed. I spend a lot of time working in California high tech and have had to make the choice of being judged by 12 instead of carried by 6 while in California since I refuse to be a victim to the State of California’s illegal denial of my Second Amendment right.
My son had to defend his life with lethal force at the age of 18 from an attack by young men who were residents of northern California carrying firearms and brass knuckles. Fortunately the local DA and police force agreed it was self-defense and no charges were brought against him. The attackers were incarcerated for a short time, one of them will have medical issues for the rest of his life from wounds my son inflicted but the wounds to my sons psyche are finally beginning to fade ten years later. Fortunately none of the attackers were killed so my son doesn’t have that on his conscience.
Thank you for taking the initiative to be on the front line of the war on fascism that is happening behind closed doors within our government “Of The People, By The People, For The People” that is slowly whittling away at our rights.