Monday Musings With The Crew

• Breaking News:  The Vatican announced that Pope Benedict XVI would resign the papacy effective Feb. 28, becoming the first Pope to do so since Gregory XII in 1415.  Benedict's successor will be elected by a conclave of cardinals, which interestingly enough is exactly how I got this job.  

• Here's a question.....if the proper term is "African-American", why is February "Black" History month?

Give Mommy a little smoochie!

• Kimberly Margeson raised a few eyebrows at a New York prison by laying an open-mouth kiss on her incarcerated son's mouth during a recent visit.  Was she just a little more lusty than current societal norms permit?  Not exactly.  She was actually passing sonny boy a few oxycodone pills via the lip-lock.  It's weird....she doesn't look anything like Alicia Silverstone!

• It's official....I'm an old geezer.  I listened to the radio news guy list the big winners at last night's Grammy Awards, and I didn't recognize a single act.  

• Nancy Pelosi made another remarkably incoherent appearance on Fox News Sunday this weekend.  A couple of the highlights...

• She blamed the current sluggish economy on the previous administration.  I'm pretty sure she meant the one before that.
• When host Chris Wallace asked Pelosi about gun control, the sage of San Francisco said this...  "We avow the First Amendment, we stand with that and say that people have the right to have a gun and defend themselves".  I feel much better knowing that great Constitutional scholars like Pelosi are entrusted with protecting my rights.  

• In direct contrast with the idiot Pelosi is SecDef Leon Panetta.  Although he is on the opposite side of the political aisle from me, I've always found Panetta to be an earnest and thoughtful man.  His recent testimony in front of the Senate about the attack in Benghazi was remarkable.  Here is a clip of him answering Sen. Ayotte's (R-NH) questions about Dear Leader's involvement that night.  Take a look....

You can hear in his voice and see in his face the pain and disgust that Obama's dereliction of duty gives him.  Obama showed absolutely no interest in the fact that our consulate was under attack, and our Ambassador and 3 other brave Americans had been murdered.  Five years ago, I would have said that it wasn't possible for the President of the United States to be so callous and disconnected.  Today, in SecondTermica, it barely makes a ripple.  We take a lot of jabs at Dear Leader here at SACSTW, but that 2 minutes of video is all you need to know what a loathsome, traitorous human being currently inhabits our White House.

Hollywood HOs Showdown- Rock vs Bennett!

This week's Hollywood Hall of Shame competition was held on Tuesday in Washington DC.  All the competitors gathered at an anti-gun press conference where they took turns competing for our hallowed award.  Amanda Peet, despite rocking the naughty librarian look, was eliminated in the early rounds.  When the dust had settled, Chris Rock and Tony Bennett were left standing as this week's Hollywood HOs finalists.

First up was Chris Rock:

"I am just here to support the President of the United States.  The President of the United States is...you know....our boss.  He's also, you know, the President and the First Lady are kinda like the mom and the dad of the country.  And when your dad says something, you listen.  Then when you don't, it usually bites you in the ass later on.  You know, I'm here to support the President.  Thank you." 

Why thank you Mr. Rock, for your thoughtful input on Constitutional rights and the problem of violent crime in America.  Forgive me if I don't play along with you "Dear Leader Daddy" fantasies, but I do appreciate your great respect for the office of the President, and for all the men who have occupied it.  You know, like George Bush........(adult language ahead)

Not to be outdone, Tony Bennett tottered up to the microphone to talk about gun violence......

"It's the kind of turn that happened to the great country of Germany, when the Nazis came over and created tragic things.  And they had to be told off....and if we continue this kind of violence accepted in our country, the rest of the world is going to really take care of us, in a very bad way."

Gee Tony, I don't even really know where to start.  I'm not quite sure where exactly the Nazis "came over" to Germany from.  I suppose Hitler was actually Austrian, but most of his demented acolytes were home-grown.  You are right that the Nazis "created tragic things".  One of the first was a disarmed citizenry.  Yep, ole Adolf and the boys were firm believers in gun control.  Der Fuhrer might have been the ultimate whack-job, but he knew that tyranny can only be complete when guns are taken away from the citizens.  

I love the part in Saving Private Ryan when the Allied forces stormed Omaha Beach....you know, they all ran right up to the Germans and told them off but good!  This might come as a shock to you Tony, but the Nazis were actually defeated by....wait for it......good guys with guns!!    

When the votes were counted, Tony Bennett had won this week's Hollywood HOs award.  His achievements in revisionist history and nation-threatening were just too good to overlook.  Better luck next time Chris!  

Freeze, Or I'll Trim Your Bangs!

The Department of Homeland Security is obviously very concerned about public safety. This week, the DHS released a video entitled "Options For Consideration", meant to instruct the public on how to survive and even fight back during an active shooter situation.  It's quite remarkable.....

Let's take a closer look at this video's message....

"In most cases, there is no pattern or method to their selection of victims"

This of course is patently false.  There is an easily discernible pattern to active shooter situations....they almost always occur in areas where responsible citizens are prohibited from carrying defensive firearms, ie "Gun-Free Zones".  I prefer the more accurate "Target-Rich Environments".

"you might consider trying to overpower the shooter with whatever means are available"

As the narrator intones these words in his best "I'm from the government and I'm here to help" voice, the video shows someone reaching into their waistband to draw their defensive handgun....no wait, that's not right.  It actually shows the individual reaching into a desk drawer and pulling out........scissors.   Freeze scumbag, or I'll trim your bangs!  

"officers may arrive in teams, with tactical equipment such as vests, helmets, and rifles.

You know, all the stuff they don't want YOU to have to defend yourself.

Here's the kicker, on June 7 of last year, the DHS released a Request for Proposal (RFP) to purchase 7,000 "personal defense weapons suitable for close quarters".  After watching their video, I assumed the RFP was for a buttload of pinking shears.  Not exactly.  

What the DHS really wants is 7,000 select-fire rifles chambered in 5.56 NATO caliber, and capable of utilizing 30 round magazines.  Why, that sounds like the very weapons that the federal government doesn't want you and I to own.  There is one big difference..... the phrase "select-fire".  Select-fire rifles allow the operator to choose between semi-automatic function (like civilian AR-15s) and fully automatic fire.  Confused?  Read this.  OK, let's review...

Bushmaster AR-15....a weapon of war

• Black rifles chambered in 5.56 NATO, capable of utilizing 30 round magazines, but NOT capable of automatic fire are "weapons of war" and must be kept out of the people's hands according to Dear Leader, Dianne Feinstein, and the rest of their merry band of gun control moonbats.

Personal Defense Weapons, suitable
for close quarters

• Black rifles chambered in 5.56 NATO, capable of utilizing 30 round magazines, and that ARE capable of automatic fire are "personal defense weapons suitable for close quarters" according to Janet Napolitano and the DHS.  

We live in strange and dangerous times.

Make Gun Ownership and Carry Mandatory!

Perhaps it is my Libertarian streak, but I'm not in favor of mandatory helmet laws for motorcyclists, or mandatory seat belt laws for motorists.  Under 18, no problem, let's make sure those children are protected. Adults should be able to make their own decisions about such things.  Don't get me wrong, I think if you ride/drive without such safety precautions you are making a mistake, but hey, the world needs organ donors.

What have we always been told about seat belt and helmet laws?  Over and over, nanny statists have justified such laws because of the cost to the public of people who don't wear seat belts and helmets.  You know, the medical costs, insurance premiums, blah blah blah.  Why should the taxpayer be on the hook because someone doesn't want to take basic precautions to protect themselves, right?

Well, what's good for the goose......Why not extend the libs own argument to gun ownership and carry?  I propose legislation be enacted requiring all adults who can currently legally purchase and own a handgun to do so immediately. Better yet, why doesn't the government issue a gun to all those citizens?  In addition, those adults will be required to carry said firearm with them at all times.

What happens now when some liberal anti-gun zealot gets raped in their home, or violently assaulted on the street?  Because they refuse to carry a defensive firearm, all they can really do is react when the crime is over.  They call 911, police officers are dispatched.  An ambulance and paramedics rush to the scene.  All of this requires tremendous expenditures of public monies.  Now you add in the man-hours logged by police investigating the crime, attorney fees/court costs if the perpetrator is apprehended, and ultimately the enormous costs of incarceration, and you end up with a financial boondoggle that even Dear Leader might cringe at.

Think of the tens of millions, maybe hundreds of millions of dollars that could be saved if we would just start whacking a few more criminals!  Even at today's inflated ammo prices, delivering a "brass verdict" on the street only costs a buck or two.  I haven't even mentioned the deterrent effect on future criminals that would undoubtedly result from this new policy.  Remember Jefferson's words..."An armed society is a polite society".

We will call this new legislation the SACSTW Firearms and Individual Responsibility Enactment, better known as FIRE!  Maybe instituting this new legislation nation-wide might be too much at first.  Let's test it out in the areas it is needed most, you know, like cities over 250,000 in population governed by a Democrat.  

As a responsible carrier of a defensive firearm, I am tired of my tax money going to clean up after those people who refuse to make a commitment to their personal safety.  If I have to be buckling my seat belt, then you better be packing your gun.  Alas, I am skeptical of the chances of FIRE passing Congress, after all that would require liberals to disregard one of their basic tenets.....hypocrisy.

Barack Obama- Gun Enthusiast!

It's sad actually.  The President of the United States has so little strength of character, so little integrity, that he will pander to anyone, even evil gun owners!  Has this man ever met a constituency he wouldn't debase himself for?

By now you have probably seen the excerpts from the New Republic interview with Dear Leader swirling around on Facebook.

New Republic:  Have you ever fired a gun?

Dear Leader:  "Yes, in fact, up at Camp David we do skeet shooting all the time."

New Republic:  The whole family?

Dear Leader:  "Not the girls.  But oftentimes guests of mine go up there.  And I have a profound 
                         respect for the traditions of hunting that trace back in this country for generations...."

That flashing light and wailing siren you are now experiencing is the official SACSTW BS-O-Meter sounding the alarm!  Look people, anytime a liberal statist says the words "respect" and "hunting" in the same sentence, you know you are being fed an enormous pile of kaka.  Repeat after me.....The Second Amendment has nothing, and I mean nothing, to do with hunting or any other type of sportshooting.  To imply otherwise is simply ignorance or prevarication.

Fortunately, a covert mission by members of SHEAL Team 2 has uncovered the rest of the interview, the part that New Republic didn't want you to see, the part that proves Dear Leader is lying about going shooting "all the time".

New Republic:  Have you ever fired a gun?

Dear Leader:  Yes, in fact, up at Camp David we do skeet shooting all the time.  The skeets are pretty numerous up there, and we always have a good time.  Of course, I believe in eating what you harvest....skeets are a little tough and gamey sometimes, but the Camp David chef fries them up real nice, and serves them with a red wine reduction that is to die for!

Need more proof?  You can find images of just about anything you want at Google Images.  You've seen lots of them here at SACSTW.  Pictures of hung-over polar bears, hot chicks with guns, half-naked Russian strongmen fly fishing, you name it.  Guess what you can't find?  A picture of Barack Obama skeet shooting.
Do a Google Images search for that phrase, and this is the closest you get.....

Maybe the pool was full of skeets.....

Wisdom And Idiocy In Wisconsin

An interesting component to the whole gun control/self defense/Second Amendment story these last few weeks has been the disparate voices coming from the law enforcement community.  Elected county sheriffs seem to be leading the charge when it comes to recognizing the right and even duty of private citizens to protect themselves.

Sheriff David Clarke of Milwaukee County, WI made news recently when he aired a radio ad asking his constituents to consider arming themselves for self-defense.  Here's the audio of the ad....

Predictably, this hefty dose of common sense was too much to swallow for the lefty moonbats that infest Wisconsin.  Roy Felber, president of the Milwaukee Deputy Sheriff's Association, said this about Clarke's ad....

"That doesn't sound too smart.  People have the right to defend themselves, but they don't have the right to take the law into their own hands."

Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett piled on....

"Apparently, Sheriff David Clarke is auditioning for the next Dirty Harry movie..."

Not to be out-done by her fellow moonbats, Jeri Bonavia of the anti-gun lobbying group Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort demanded an apology from Sheriff Clarke....

"I feel like this is such an irresponsible thing for our chief public safety officer of a county to do.  I think he owes this community an apology,  and if he really believes that he's not capable of providing for our public safety he should get a different job."

Quiz time.....
If you do as Sheriff Clarke suggests....that is obtain a firearm, train with it to become safe and proficient in its use, and then use it to defend yourself and your loved ones against a violent criminal invading your home, you are which of the following?

1. a vigilante
2. a Dirty Harry wannabe
3. irresponsible
4. all of the above

What we need most now is more wisdom from men like Sheriff Clarke, and less idiocy from dolts like Tom Barrett and Jeri Bonavia.  Want to learn a little more about Sheriff Clarke?  Read his bio here, and check out his blog here.

Hey Joe, Don't Let These Facts Get In The Way....

I'm guessing that Mighty Joe and his merry band of gun control wonks don't really care much about facts.  Anyway, here's some more.

Evil, Not Elvis, Lives

With the horrible and tragic deaths that occurred last Friday in Connecticut, the hue and cry for more gun control laws has begun.  President Obama launched the first volley with his thinly veiled statement,

"These tragedies must end, and to end them we must change." 

I agree with President Obama, but I suspect our strategies to affect that change will be radically different.  Take a few moments to peruse the images below:

With one possible exception, does anyone believe gun control laws would have prevented the murders these men committed or for which they were directly responsible? And even in the case of James Holmes, as disturbed as he is, who is to say he wouldn't have gone the Timothy McVeigh route resulting in a greater loss of life.

As others have pointed out, including this post by the wonderful Dana Loesch, the majority of these mass shootings occur in "gun-free" locations.  She also emphasizes a point that many gun-control enthusiasts often neglect:  How many tragedies are stopped by law-abiding, gun-carrying citizens?  According to her post, American citizens use firearms in self-defense more than 2.1 million times annually.

Here is my suggestion for "change".  Put prayer back in schools.  Have school children say the pledge of allegiance every day through high school.  Create a national campaign touting the benefits of two-parent homes.  Teach children the constitution starting in elementary school.  Offer gun-safety classes in schools.  Re-introduce corporal punishment in schools.  Create a campaign that de-stigmatizes spanking the children at home.................   Unfortunately, unless you plan on home-schooling, these things will probably never happen, but here are some concrete solutions that we COULD institute:

• In states that allow concealed-carry, severely curtail "gun-free' zones.
• In all states, make schools concealed-carry zones for teachers and administration.  Allow teachers and administrators, if approved, to voluntarily carry concealed weapons and train them in the use of said weapons.  Keep a confidential listing of staff who is authorized to carry.  
• Start a nationwide program for employers in hugely public-facing businesses that assists the employers in training their staff in firearm safety and self-defense.  Allow approved staff to carry concealed weapons.

You may think I'm kidding, but when was the last time you heard about some nutjob shooting up a NRA or Ducks Unlimited banquet?  Even with the Fort Hood shootings, the terrorist whack-job picked a spot on the post where he knew the soldiers would be unarmed.  

Will any of these measures completely stop EVIL people from doing EVIL things?  No, but they will be 100% more effective than adding more gun laws.  Just ask the people of Chicago how well gun bans are working out for them...

The Gun Debate- Must Watch Video Of The Year!

In the wake of the Newtown, CT shootings last Friday, I have struggled with what to say in this space.  If you are reading this, you probably already know that the right to keep and bear arms has no bigger supporter than me.  Rather than have me rehash the gun control debate with you, I want instead to share this video from a SACSTW favorite.  Ladies and gentlemen, the brilliant Kira Davis..........

NFL Player's Crime Fuels Anti-Gun Nitwits

My hometown NFL team, the Kansas City Chiefs, was rocked over the weekend by a heinous crime involving one of their players.  Early Saturday morning, linebacker Jovan Belcher shot and killed his 22 year old girlfriend Kassandra Perkins in their home.  Belcher then drove to Arrowhead Stadium, and killed himself in front of GM Scott Pioli and head coach Romeo Crennel with a gun shot to his head.  The couple has a 3 month old daughter.  

My focus today is not the crime itself, I will leave that to others more qualified.  I would like to discuss the entirely too predictable response by the anti-gun crowd.  Just as we saw in the wake of Aurora, this violent crime has given new vigor to those who would ban the private ownership of firearms.  In particular, let's focus on the comments by noted Constitutional scholars Jason Whitlock and Bob Costas.

Whitlock is a former Kansas City sports columnist and sports talk radio host who has been hired and fired by seemingly every sports media company in the country.  He currently writes for Foxsports.com, and penned this column in response to the Belcher shootings.  I mined these little nuggets from the column....

...We'd prefer to avoid seriously reflecting upon the absurdity of the prevailing notion that the second amendment somehow enhances our liberty rather than threatens it.  

...What I believe is, if he didn't posess/own a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.

And the piece de resistance of anti-gun lunacy...

...Handguns do not enhance our safety.  

Whitlock's specious and intellectually bereft comments were echoed on NBC last night by Bob Costas during Sunday Night Football.  

Let's face some "ugly reality" as Mr. Costas puts it.  Human beings have the potential for great violence and depravity.  For some of us, that potential lurks closer to the surface than it does for others.  It can be enhanced by mental (and physical) illness, financial stress, interpersonal conflict, and any of thousands of other stressors.  When a human being succumbs to these demons, the availability or lack thereof of a firearm is not what determines the ultimate outcome.  Five minutes of Google research unearthed these recent events..

• A Wyoming college professor was killed by his son in a murder-suicide committed with a bow and arrow
• 64 year old Henry Hamilton killed himself by ingesting an overdose of prescription medicatons.
• Janee Parsons, an American woman living in Oxfordshire, England was stabbed to death by her husband in front of their 2 children.
• A Staten Island woman, Jodi Surinaga, was bludgeoned to death with a metal baseball bat.  The alleged assailant, her husband, attempted to hang himself with a belt after the crime.
• Tim Schuster was bound to a chair by his wife, and died when she poured a barrel of hydrochloric acid over his body.
• A Washington man, Mark Williams, was murdered by his wife with a large hammer.
• 32 year old Lorna Valle drowned her two children, ages 1 and 5, in the bathtub.
• Pravartika Gupta, a 25 year old Indian woman, was burned to death by her husband because she gave birth to a baby girl instead of a boy.  (Note to Mr. Gupta,  perhaps a quick biology review is in order.  The gender of a baby is determined by which chromosome (X or Y) it receives....from its father)
• A Bronx man killed his 5 year old son with poisoned pizza.
• An Azusa, CA man attempted to kill his wife by poisoning her Rice Krispies.  
• Thomas Mortimer beat his wife, 2 children, and mother in law to death with several objects, including a frying pan
• 28 year old Holly Solomon ran over her husband in a parking lot because he did not vote against Barack Obama in November's election.  Her defense of justifiable attempted homicide seems to have some merit.  

Bow and arrow, prescription medication, fire, cooking utensils, acid, pizza, Rice Krispies, hammers, cars, water.... you name it.  Deranged people will use any tool at their disposal to commit acts of violence that most of us simply can't understand.  There is one big difference between all these items and handguns......handguns are used in self-defense an estimated 2-3 million times a year in the United States.  Try that with a large pepperoni pie or a bottle of Oxycontin.  

Chuck Woolery Chimes In On Assault Weapons- Must Watch!

Long-time SACSTW favorite and all-around good guy Chuck Woolery has a brand new video treatise out on assault rifles.  Loyal SACSTW readers know that the left's fanatical hoplophobia and obfuscation of the truth about guns is a sore spot with us.  We've talked about it in this space before.  Here's what Chuck has to say...

The real nugget in here is Ice-T's intellectually honest evaluation of the Second Amendment.  He's right, it has nothing to do with sport hunting, target shooting, or even personal self defense.  It has everything to do with the citizenry's ability to defend itself against a tyrannical government.  Methinks that is becoming more important every day.  Good on ya Chuck!

Morgan and Bloomberg- Dumb and Dumber Redux?

In the wake of the Aurora movie theater shooting, the anti-gun zealots are ramping up the attacks on the Second Amendment, and anyone who would dare want to protect themselves and their loved ones.

New York City Mayor Michael "Big Gulp" Bloomberg took the idiocy to stratospheric heights today on CNN with Piers Morgan.  Watch the video below, but for the love of Pete, sit down and stop eating before you watch..




There is so much inanity packed into those 90 seconds that I almost don't know where to start.  First we have Piers Morgan, with his vast knowledge of the American collective psyche, bemoaning the speed with which the American public "goes back to their normal lives" after a heinous crime like Aurora.  His knickers are in a knot because he just can't understand why we don't demand stricter gun-control laws.

Uh, Piers.  Here's why....we don't want stricter gun-control laws.  Stricter gun-control laws won't stop maniacs, and will only serve to make the job of self-defense harder for the typical American family.  Then there's this little thing called the United States Constitution.  Even a Tory like you should be able to get your cerebrum around "the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed".

The ever cogent Mayor Bloomberg then looks Piers in the eye and says "I'll go one step further...".  

Translation:  I'll see your gun confiscation outrage, and raise you utter anarchy"

Bloomberg thinks the solution to violent crime is for police officers across the country to "stand up collectively  and say we're going to go on strike, we're not going to protect you unless you, the public, through your legislature, do what's required to keep us safe".   For the mayor of our largest city to suggest that police officers walk off the job is unbelievably irresponsible.  Sadly, it probably doesn't even raise an eyebrow for long-time Bloomberg observers.

The real problem is very few people in our country really understand the job of a police department.  Police agencies ARE NOT tasked with protecting individual citizens.  Their responsibility is to enforce the laws of the community, investigate crimes, and locate/arrest violators.  Providing protection to each individual citizen is simply not in the job description.  You, and only you, can protect yourself and your loved ones.

Second Amendment In Action

In stark contrast to the mass shooting of corporately disarmed moviegoers stands the case of Samuel Williams.

A week ago, two young men walked into an Ocala, FL internet cafe with felonious intent.  They were armed, one with a gun and the other with a bat.  They figured a bunch of internet cafe types would be easy pickings, what they didn't count on was 71 year old Samuel Williams.

Mr. Williams was lawfully carrying a concealed firearm, and acted quickly to save himself, his wife, and the other citizens from potential violence.  He drew his firearm, and immediately engaged the criminals.  Their response?  They ran like gutless cowards, literally falling over each other in a frantic attempt to flee their intended victim.  Watch for yourself.....

This is obviously a very different scenario than what happened in Aurora.  James Holmes was much more heavily armed, and a well-lit internet cafe is much easier to defend than a darkened theater.  Still, I can't help but wonder what James Holmes's response to armed resistance would have been.  Even with all his planning, his body armor, his weaponry, at his core I expect he is no different than the spineless thugs in this video.

Would lives have been saved if Samuel Williams had been sitting in the front row of that movie theater?  Maybe, maybe not.  Thanks to misguided corporate anti-gun policies, we will never know.

Cinemark's No Gun Policy And The Aurora Shooting

In the wake of the Colorado theater shooting yesterday, there has been much analysis of motive, opportunity, pyschological make-up of the shooter, etc.  I will leave such topics to those more knowledgeable about them than I.  I'd like to talk about the Second Amendment, the value of concealed carry, and our inalienable right to self-defense.

The legal carry of concealed firearms is prohibited in Theater 9, as it is in all theaters operated by Cinemark.  It is known as a "gun-free zone".  I prefer the term "target-rich environment".   Cinemark has the absolute right to have this policy as a private business, but I believe that it may have cost some patrons their lives early Friday morning.  

There has been much discussion on a concealed carry forum that I frequent about this issue.  Some very knowledgeable and experienced folks there believe that even if 1 or more people in that theater had been legally carrying a firearm, stopping the shooter would have been a monumental task.  I agree.  His body armor, the darkness, smoke, and resulting chaos all combined to make for a very difficult defense scenario.  There was however, a short period of time when the shooter first entered the theater that most of the patrons believed it to be some sort of prank.  An armed and alert citizen with good situational awareness had the chance to confront the shooter and possibly avert disaster.  

Criminals are cowards, and James Holmes**  is no exception.  As meticulous as he apparently was in planning his crime, there's a reason he didn't go to an Aurora gun shop to commit multiple murder. As with all cowards, he took the path of least resistance, choosing a venue packed with people unable to defend themselves.  I believe that had an armed citizen returned fire on Mr. Holmes, his resolve would have evaporated like a drop of water in the Kansas City sun.  Lives would have been saved.  

** yeah, yeah, I know....allegedly**

Is it a sure thing that an armed citizen could have stopped the violence?  Of course not.  Maybe the chances would have been small, 10%, 20%, I don't know.  What I do know is that a theater full of unarmed people had 0% chance of protecting themselves and their loved ones.  12 dead and 58 wounded was the result.  

Remember, reports indicate that law enforcement arrived on the scene within 60-90 seconds.  They performed brilliantly, with courage and alacrity.  And still 12 people died.  If you are confronted with a violent criminal in your neighborhood today, do you think the police will arrive in 60 seconds?  If you do, I hope you have your affairs in order.