What We Believe: Gun Rights

I agree with this.

When I was working at the ME's office in Florida I walked into the autopsy suite and saw a naked man lying on the slab studded with buck shot gunshot wounds. His toxicology came back with him high on a cocktail of illegal drugs.

Apparently, this guy had a gun and was being pursued by the police when he knocked on the front door of a local home. The mother cracked the door and he asked her if he could use the phone. He was breathless and she could see the gun in his hand. She said no and shut the door. He started pounding on it from outside. The mother called up to her husband that somebody with a gun was trying to break in. He yelled back for her to take the kids and hide in the garage. In the meantime, he grabbed the shotgun he had in his closet and came downstairs. He heard glass breaking in the kitchen and when he walked around the corner he found the criminal standing in the middle of the room pointing a gun at him. Very simply, the homeowner shot him and killed him on sight.

The ME told me this story as we stood over the body and he said something I will never forget. He gestured to the dead man and said, "This is why America is great."

Amen, brother.

Still, I think that a gun owner has responsibility (and criminal liability) for keeping their firearm safe from children or from those that might steal it to commit crimes. Using the automobile analogy from the video, if you buy a car you have to go through training to be licensed to drive. The car has to be registered. If the car is stolen it is reported to the police. Most people would agree that these requirements are reasonable and ensure the safety of both the driver and other people on the road. Why wouldn't this same logic be true for those who own guns?