As many have said before me, guns don’t kill people, people kill people. Violence is violence.
Without directly engaging the issue of police bias or excessive use of force (about which I do not know enough to engage intelligently), I do want to address the issue of people being “unarmed” at the time of their encounters with law enforcement officers.
People often declare “the victim was unarmed at the time” to suggest that lethal force was not justified. But one of my best friends is an expert in the martial arts and could certainly kill me with his bare hands very quickly if he wanted to (not to mention his rattan sticks).
I have already addressed this issue in terms of citizen self-defense, but was reminded of it today when I saw a story about an Iowa father who was killed with one punch to the head by a (seemingly) random stranger: “De Moines man dies after single punch.”
Photo Credit: De Moines Register
It…
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John J. Mulhall said:
Janice – thanks for this. Frequently I forget that while I am continually accessing people and situations is because of the possible threat and that while I see no weapon, I am also accessing attitudes. It has become automatic. Those noted in the story were not also accessing attitudes.
When I first came to Washington, a Seattle Fire Fighter was stabbed to death by a ‘homeless’ individual. The FF probably never even thought to access the situation because he was there ‘to help’ and the ‘homeless’ one ‘needed’ his help. Ever try to assist a druggie? Sometimes they come up fighting…. The Seattle FF just ran into one who was probably on drugs, and for sure, paranoid, and paid with his life.
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