Rangefinder
New member
Here is what I wrote this morning and have sent to all my representatives here in Colorado. For those who would like to, please feel free to copy this, personalize it as you see fit, and send it to our Representatives (and yours as well!!!) under your own name.
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Dear _________ ,
As a Colorado resident, I am deeply troubled by the recent tragedy in Aurora, as are many others. There are no words to describe the event, my sorrow, my empathy and heart-felt condolences to the victims and their families, or my absolute hatred and anger toward James Eagen Holmes. I will refrain from describing what I would like to see done with him, as it would in fact be both barbaric and unconstitutional—neither of which I can condone. Civilly, my hope is for swift trial followed by the Death Penalty, and for that to be carried out quickly. To incarcerate this lunatic for years or decades would not only be a cost burden that should not be placed upon the people of Colorado, it would also be an incredible injustice to those who have been affected by his heinous actions to allow him long life within a prison system after taking away the lives of so many and tragically ripping apart the lives of so many more. To that end, I sincerely hope our Justice System is capable of doing its job effectively, efficiently, and in a timely manner.
My secondary concern and reasons for writing you today are from the perspective of a firearms enthusiast and sportsman. In the wake of such an event, it goes without saying that we are all shocked, bewildered, and upset. It should also go without saying that we are in fact worried that we, the law-abiding community, will be attacked and our rights further infringed upon as a result of one deranged individual. It has not escaped our noticing that such a tragedy has befallen us at a time when so much effort within our government is being put toward Treaties that carry serious threat to our Second Amendment rights. It has not escaped our noticing that nearly every media outlet covering this tragedy are very quick to point out Mr. Holmes “bought his firearms legally”, that he “was stockpiling an arsenal”, etc., etc., etc.
In regard to such knee-jerk media statements, I beg you to use rational thought as you are, and undoubtedly will continue to be, bombarded with anti-gun pleas and calls for more restrictions in the days and weeks to come. To that consequence, I would like to point out a few things that the anti-gun crowd is hesitant to talk about. It has been openly stated that Police were present at the theater to conduct crowd control. Even being present at the location of this tragedy, they were unable to intercept and prevent it from occurring. This is not meant to reflect upon the Police Department negatively. They had no way to know such a thing would be occurring, and should in no way be expected to then now, or in the future. That being said, the fact remains that their presence had no effect to deter this tragedy. To this I would like to point out and remind you that it is not the responsibility of Police to protect the citizens from events that may or may not occur. By nature and purpose, our civilian Law Enforcement community is a reactionary force meant to respond to crisis after it has begun. To believe or expect otherwise in completely unrealistic in the fact they cannot be everywhere all the time, nor can they foresee what is going to happen before it does. I must point out what I believe is a responsibility forgotten by so much of the community, both individually as well as our society as a whole. We are responsible for our own safety and wellbeing. It is not the responsibility of the Police to protect us. It is not the responsibility of the government to protect us. It is not the responsibility of our elected officials to protect us—in that, I am not only referring to you as a part of our governing body, but also to you specifically and individually. Know it and realize it for the fact that it is—you cannot protect me or anyone else individually from a tragedy such as this. Safety and protection is our responsibility as individuals. Any emotionally based action or decision made to protect us by imposing further restrictions to our Second Amendment rights is not only a blatant false-security to those who lack the responsibility of their personal safety, but it further inhibits or prevents those of us who do take responsibility for our personal safety from being able to adequately do so.
It has been said that the theater where this tragic event occurred was openly posted as a No-Gun zone, effectively meaning they do not honor or allow Concealed Carry Weapon permit holders to retain their personal firearm. Does that then mean the theater will take full responsibility for the tragedy that occurred for not providing the level of safety and protection that would have prevented or limited this tragedy from occurring or reaching the level that it did? I do fully realize the absurdity of such a question, and implore you to realize the absurdity of the broader-based pleas you have already undoubtedly received concerning this event that would impose even further restrictions to responsible gun owners. I have no way of knowing whether there was or was not a CCW permit holder in the theater at the time of this tragedy—if so, it seems apparent they were being respectful of the posted restriction to their personal defense and safety. I also have no way of knowing whether or not one or more legally-carrying CCW permit holder could have made a difference in the outcome. I, like many, can speculate. What we do know is what happened as a result of so many people being incapable of defending themselves in the face of one individual determined to cause them an immeasurable amount of harm. Current firearm restrictions did not prevent this tragedy. Further restrictions will not prevent another such tragedy in the future. Emotionally-based reactions cannot be allowed to over-rule rational logic with a false sense of security and illusionary purpose. This is a time to face reality and look directly at it. Firearms will never go away, neither will those few individuals within our society who will eventually choose to use them to destructive means. To take the ability of self-protection away from the millions who take their personal safety and protection responsibility seriously achieves only one thing effectively—it creates more potential victims for future tragedies such as this.
As a resident, voter, and firearms enthusiast, I beg you to use common sense and logic when considering any portion of the tragic events that occurred in Aurora this week. I beg you to use common sense and logic when addressing any issues that follow as a result. There is a time for emotional decisions to be made, and that time is in the care and handling of those families affected. There is a time for logic and reason that does not cloud reality of the matter. That is where decisions are made that affect the rest of us. Take special care that you do not confuse one with the other.
Sincerely,
_____________
************************************************** *
Dear _________ ,
As a Colorado resident, I am deeply troubled by the recent tragedy in Aurora, as are many others. There are no words to describe the event, my sorrow, my empathy and heart-felt condolences to the victims and their families, or my absolute hatred and anger toward James Eagen Holmes. I will refrain from describing what I would like to see done with him, as it would in fact be both barbaric and unconstitutional—neither of which I can condone. Civilly, my hope is for swift trial followed by the Death Penalty, and for that to be carried out quickly. To incarcerate this lunatic for years or decades would not only be a cost burden that should not be placed upon the people of Colorado, it would also be an incredible injustice to those who have been affected by his heinous actions to allow him long life within a prison system after taking away the lives of so many and tragically ripping apart the lives of so many more. To that end, I sincerely hope our Justice System is capable of doing its job effectively, efficiently, and in a timely manner.
My secondary concern and reasons for writing you today are from the perspective of a firearms enthusiast and sportsman. In the wake of such an event, it goes without saying that we are all shocked, bewildered, and upset. It should also go without saying that we are in fact worried that we, the law-abiding community, will be attacked and our rights further infringed upon as a result of one deranged individual. It has not escaped our noticing that such a tragedy has befallen us at a time when so much effort within our government is being put toward Treaties that carry serious threat to our Second Amendment rights. It has not escaped our noticing that nearly every media outlet covering this tragedy are very quick to point out Mr. Holmes “bought his firearms legally”, that he “was stockpiling an arsenal”, etc., etc., etc.
In regard to such knee-jerk media statements, I beg you to use rational thought as you are, and undoubtedly will continue to be, bombarded with anti-gun pleas and calls for more restrictions in the days and weeks to come. To that consequence, I would like to point out a few things that the anti-gun crowd is hesitant to talk about. It has been openly stated that Police were present at the theater to conduct crowd control. Even being present at the location of this tragedy, they were unable to intercept and prevent it from occurring. This is not meant to reflect upon the Police Department negatively. They had no way to know such a thing would be occurring, and should in no way be expected to then now, or in the future. That being said, the fact remains that their presence had no effect to deter this tragedy. To this I would like to point out and remind you that it is not the responsibility of Police to protect the citizens from events that may or may not occur. By nature and purpose, our civilian Law Enforcement community is a reactionary force meant to respond to crisis after it has begun. To believe or expect otherwise in completely unrealistic in the fact they cannot be everywhere all the time, nor can they foresee what is going to happen before it does. I must point out what I believe is a responsibility forgotten by so much of the community, both individually as well as our society as a whole. We are responsible for our own safety and wellbeing. It is not the responsibility of the Police to protect us. It is not the responsibility of the government to protect us. It is not the responsibility of our elected officials to protect us—in that, I am not only referring to you as a part of our governing body, but also to you specifically and individually. Know it and realize it for the fact that it is—you cannot protect me or anyone else individually from a tragedy such as this. Safety and protection is our responsibility as individuals. Any emotionally based action or decision made to protect us by imposing further restrictions to our Second Amendment rights is not only a blatant false-security to those who lack the responsibility of their personal safety, but it further inhibits or prevents those of us who do take responsibility for our personal safety from being able to adequately do so.
It has been said that the theater where this tragic event occurred was openly posted as a No-Gun zone, effectively meaning they do not honor or allow Concealed Carry Weapon permit holders to retain their personal firearm. Does that then mean the theater will take full responsibility for the tragedy that occurred for not providing the level of safety and protection that would have prevented or limited this tragedy from occurring or reaching the level that it did? I do fully realize the absurdity of such a question, and implore you to realize the absurdity of the broader-based pleas you have already undoubtedly received concerning this event that would impose even further restrictions to responsible gun owners. I have no way of knowing whether there was or was not a CCW permit holder in the theater at the time of this tragedy—if so, it seems apparent they were being respectful of the posted restriction to their personal defense and safety. I also have no way of knowing whether or not one or more legally-carrying CCW permit holder could have made a difference in the outcome. I, like many, can speculate. What we do know is what happened as a result of so many people being incapable of defending themselves in the face of one individual determined to cause them an immeasurable amount of harm. Current firearm restrictions did not prevent this tragedy. Further restrictions will not prevent another such tragedy in the future. Emotionally-based reactions cannot be allowed to over-rule rational logic with a false sense of security and illusionary purpose. This is a time to face reality and look directly at it. Firearms will never go away, neither will those few individuals within our society who will eventually choose to use them to destructive means. To take the ability of self-protection away from the millions who take their personal safety and protection responsibility seriously achieves only one thing effectively—it creates more potential victims for future tragedies such as this.
As a resident, voter, and firearms enthusiast, I beg you to use common sense and logic when considering any portion of the tragic events that occurred in Aurora this week. I beg you to use common sense and logic when addressing any issues that follow as a result. There is a time for emotional decisions to be made, and that time is in the care and handling of those families affected. There is a time for logic and reason that does not cloud reality of the matter. That is where decisions are made that affect the rest of us. Take special care that you do not confuse one with the other.
Sincerely,
_____________