BHPshooter
Member
This article is by a guy that my Mom really likes. His name is Bob Lonsberry, and he lives in New York. You can see more at www.lonsberry.com
Wes
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I HEAR YOU KNOCKING, BUT YOU CAN'T COME IN
In the dark of the overnight Friday, in upstate New York, a man heard glass breaking outside his home, and saw the awkward beam of a flashlight.
> It was a burglar.
Someone was on his property, someone was trying to get in. His home was under attack.
Like untold homes across America every day.
Breaking and entering. Burglary. Robbery. It’s called different things and it takes different forms. But it all comes down to this – somebody breaks into your home to commit a crime.
> Maybe it’s to steal your VCR and maybe it’s to steal your daughter and maybe it’s to steal your life. But it’s a crime and a violation and your one safe place in the world is being invaded.
A man’s home is his castle and the castle is being overrun. Sometimes you find it trashed when you come home, and sometimes you hear noises in the night.
> And either way you call 911.
You call the cops.
Because they’re supposed to save you. They’re supposed to keep you safe.
But can they and do they?
Well, let’s go back to overnight Friday.
The homeowner heard the breaking glass, and saw the flashlight beam, and called the deputies.
And waited.
I don’t know how long. That information hasn’t been released. But in most parts of the country, police response times stretch – at their best – several minutes long. In overburdened cities, and in large rural areas, it can be even longer, with some emergency calls taking 15 or 30 minutes to get responses.
> Which is a long time when you’re getting beaten or raped.
Or when somebody is coming through your window or door.
Like overnight Friday in upstate New York.
The man hears the breaking glass, he sees the flashlight, he calls the cops, and he waits.
But the burglar doesn’t.
The burglar, by best accounts, comes to a window on the rear of the house and tries to come through it.
After 2 o’clock in the morning, in somebody else’s house, for who knows what evil intent.
What do you do in that situation?
If it’s your house, and somebody’s trying to get in, and you’ve called the cops but they’re nowhere near, what do you do?
> To keep your family safe, to protect your home, to preserve your property, what do you do?
Well, in this situation the homeowner got a gun. A .22 rifle. He went and got his gun and as the guy came into the house he opened up on him. Three shots into the window and into the burglar. One of them caught him in the face, and so did a bunch of the glass, and they found him out by the road. The helicopter took him off to the hospital and he’s probably going to live.
> Which is too bad.
Because we’d all be a lot better off if the bad guys started having a body count.
And we’d all be a lot safer if we realized that it is our responsibility to protect ourselves – not the responsibility of the police. At the end of the day, the cops can’t keep us safe, and if we think they can, we’re exactly the kind of victim the bad guys want to find.
> You’ve got to ask yourself: If it was your window this guy had been coming through Friday night, what would have happened?
What would have happened to you and your family?
Could you have protected yourself?
For many people, the answer is no.
Unfortunately, the criminals know that. We live in a day that encourages and expects weakness. We push dependence instead of self-reliance, and that permeates every aspect of our lives. We are conditioned to call for help, not to help ourselves. We expect the criminal to be strong and ourselves to be weak. We are taught to be victims, not victors.
> That’s what the guy coming through the window this weekend was counting on. That’s what the guy who may come through your window is counting on. That’s what all criminal predation is predicated on.
The assumption that we won’t fight back.
That we will comply like sheep.
And you can if you wish. But I wouldn’t recommend it. I would recommend you fight like your life depended on it. Because, of course, it probably does.
> And I would recommend that you be prepared.
Like the homeowner was this weekend.
When somebody’s coming through your window in the dark of the night, and the deputies are miles away, there’s no time to go buy a gun or sit down and make a plan.
> There’s only time to live.
There’s only time to fight.
Pray God no one ever comes through our window, but if they do, pray God we’re ready for them.
- by Bob Lonsberry © 2004 www.lonsberry.com
Wes
----------------
I HEAR YOU KNOCKING, BUT YOU CAN'T COME IN
In the dark of the overnight Friday, in upstate New York, a man heard glass breaking outside his home, and saw the awkward beam of a flashlight.
> It was a burglar.
Someone was on his property, someone was trying to get in. His home was under attack.
Like untold homes across America every day.
Breaking and entering. Burglary. Robbery. It’s called different things and it takes different forms. But it all comes down to this – somebody breaks into your home to commit a crime.
> Maybe it’s to steal your VCR and maybe it’s to steal your daughter and maybe it’s to steal your life. But it’s a crime and a violation and your one safe place in the world is being invaded.
A man’s home is his castle and the castle is being overrun. Sometimes you find it trashed when you come home, and sometimes you hear noises in the night.
> And either way you call 911.
You call the cops.
Because they’re supposed to save you. They’re supposed to keep you safe.
But can they and do they?
Well, let’s go back to overnight Friday.
The homeowner heard the breaking glass, and saw the flashlight beam, and called the deputies.
And waited.
I don’t know how long. That information hasn’t been released. But in most parts of the country, police response times stretch – at their best – several minutes long. In overburdened cities, and in large rural areas, it can be even longer, with some emergency calls taking 15 or 30 minutes to get responses.
> Which is a long time when you’re getting beaten or raped.
Or when somebody is coming through your window or door.
Like overnight Friday in upstate New York.
The man hears the breaking glass, he sees the flashlight, he calls the cops, and he waits.
But the burglar doesn’t.
The burglar, by best accounts, comes to a window on the rear of the house and tries to come through it.
After 2 o’clock in the morning, in somebody else’s house, for who knows what evil intent.
What do you do in that situation?
If it’s your house, and somebody’s trying to get in, and you’ve called the cops but they’re nowhere near, what do you do?
> To keep your family safe, to protect your home, to preserve your property, what do you do?
Well, in this situation the homeowner got a gun. A .22 rifle. He went and got his gun and as the guy came into the house he opened up on him. Three shots into the window and into the burglar. One of them caught him in the face, and so did a bunch of the glass, and they found him out by the road. The helicopter took him off to the hospital and he’s probably going to live.
> Which is too bad.
Because we’d all be a lot better off if the bad guys started having a body count.
And we’d all be a lot safer if we realized that it is our responsibility to protect ourselves – not the responsibility of the police. At the end of the day, the cops can’t keep us safe, and if we think they can, we’re exactly the kind of victim the bad guys want to find.
> You’ve got to ask yourself: If it was your window this guy had been coming through Friday night, what would have happened?
What would have happened to you and your family?
Could you have protected yourself?
For many people, the answer is no.
Unfortunately, the criminals know that. We live in a day that encourages and expects weakness. We push dependence instead of self-reliance, and that permeates every aspect of our lives. We are conditioned to call for help, not to help ourselves. We expect the criminal to be strong and ourselves to be weak. We are taught to be victims, not victors.
> That’s what the guy coming through the window this weekend was counting on. That’s what the guy who may come through your window is counting on. That’s what all criminal predation is predicated on.
The assumption that we won’t fight back.
That we will comply like sheep.
And you can if you wish. But I wouldn’t recommend it. I would recommend you fight like your life depended on it. Because, of course, it probably does.
> And I would recommend that you be prepared.
Like the homeowner was this weekend.
When somebody’s coming through your window in the dark of the night, and the deputies are miles away, there’s no time to go buy a gun or sit down and make a plan.
> There’s only time to live.
There’s only time to fight.
Pray God no one ever comes through our window, but if they do, pray God we’re ready for them.
- by Bob Lonsberry © 2004 www.lonsberry.com
