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Amid the
unimaginable horror
of destruction,
the unimaginable
suffering, the
Japanese people
behaved themselves
in ways that
American cities could
only envy.
©iSTOCKPHOTO - PARKERDEEN
Compared to the looting and violence in America (above), the Japanese maintained
civility and order in the aftermath of a terrible natural disaster.
©iSTOCKPHOTO - ALLKINDZA
fellow citizen who dares approach what
is left of a family’s belongings. No spray
painted walls declaring, “Looters will be
shot on sight” or “You loot, I shoot.”
What does it tell us of American society?
I have seen few stories in the mainstream
media that truly focused on the
analysis rather than just touch on the
surface of the differences between our
reactions to catastrophe. Pick one. The
1992 Rodney King riots? How about
Katrina? For crying out loud, American
cities erupt in rioting, violence, looting,
and pillaging in the winning city after a
basketball game!
In America, one of the primary reasons
we give for protecting our right
to keep and bear arms is the example
of our need to defend ourselves during
crisis precisely for the reasons I mentioned
above. State legislatures across
the nation are passing and governors
are signing laws known as Emergency
Powers Acts that keep a state official,
namely a governor, from issuing orders
that limit our constitutional right to
bear arms during such emergencies.
I spent many years in Florida, and
rode out the notorious 2004-2005 hurricane
season that saw me board up
my own home on no less than three
separate occasions during a seemingly
back-to-back string of major storms.
The fourth one that came heard me
shout “the heck with boarding up,” as I
simply grabbed my family, a couple of
bugout bags, a shotgun, AR-15 and my
handguns. The only preparation I felt I
needed then was to come back to what
would be left of my home, spray paint
the wall as I mentioned above, and sit
there heavily armed awaiting an insurance
adjuster.
Over the years, I remember hearing
anti-gun groups point to Japan as an example
of the success of strict gun control,
as proof that by keeping guns out
of the hands of the entire population we
can reduce gun violence to near nothing
as the Japanese seemingly have. To
the regular Joe Schmo, that argument
might seem to make some sense … until
now when, in fact the opposite has
been proven and the lie of gun control,
yet again, has been exposed.
Based on the incredible behavior the
world has witnessed from the Japanese
population, one can surmise that a lack
of guns in their society has absolutely
nothing to do with the lack of crime
on their streets. As a free American, I
would love to feel I didn’t need a firearm
to defend my home during time of great
upheaval, while walking the streets of
New Orleans during the aftermath of
a violent storm, traveling our nation’s
freeways, walking into a rest stop late at
night or a convenience store … like the
Japanese have proven that they can.
Until Americans can act with the dignity
of the Japanese during times of incredible
trial, until the authorities can
guarantee me and my family our safety
regardless of where we find ourselves,
until Americans can be trusted not to
burn their own neighborhoods after a
sporting event, I will carry my firearm
everywhere.
Sadly, the events in Japan have spoken
volumes about our actions toward
each other as fellow Americans. Watch
what happens during the next crisis in
America.
Pathetic. H
Mark Walters is a NRA certified instructor,
co-author of the book Lessons from
Armed America, and a vocal Second
Amendment activist. He is the nationally
syndicated host of Armed American
Radio, which airs Sunday evenings at
8-11 pm EST (5-8 pm PST) from coast
to coast. Mark encourages fans to write
him at mark@armedamericanradio.
org. Visit him at www.armedamericanradio.org
MAY/JUNE 2011 n CONCEALED CARRY MAGAZINE n USCONCEALEDCARRY.COM
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