An Op Ed: Let Me Rephrase That

Let Me Rephrase That

by Philip Smith

The picture above was posted on the facebook profile of a Liberty resident's facebook page for his concealed weapons permit business with the following addition ...

"Let me rephrase that a bit, The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun who has trained himself/herself to be proficient with the gun."

To which I replied,

"I disagree with that … a good guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun … period.

It IS good to have training however."

Business owner reply:

"A good guy with a gun who is not proficient with it will probably get himself and others killed."

My reply:

"Again, I disagree … My first trip to a firing range, I hit the center of the target my first three shots.

A man could pick up a basketball for the first time and potentially make 10 free throws in a row.

A man's morals or ethics have no bearing on his proficiency just as his training may or may not have bearing on his accuracy.

And just to clarify, I think most people's accuracy improves with adrenaline.

BUT, training is always good."

Business Owner:

"You clarified nothing except your lack of knowledge about gunfighting and self defense."

My last reply, before deleting the owner and the page:

"Chris Dorner had a lot of training.

Police officers accidentally shoot themselves (and others) all the time … they have far more training than the average person."

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In 2006, I went to a firing range in Greenville and literally shot the center of the target on my first three shots. I had not fired a gun since I was 7 years old in 1981.

I'm not claiming to be anything of an expert.

I have however shot guns of various types in my adult life. In February 2013, I completed a comprehensive concealed weapons class taught by a very well respected local police officer. I took 4 pages of notes in this class. I made a 100 on the test, and with purposeful shots of my choosing, I scored a 46/50 on the firing/target portion of the test.

That said, it doesn't take a genius or really even an adult to know what is safe and what is not. It's like the difference between right and wrong. Even my dog cowers when I notice he's eating something he shouldn't or has been somewhere he wasn't suppose to be.

Training does help with any task. Practice makes perfect. But, one can also be a natural talent, have beginner's luck, or be pumped by adrenaline which DOES improve accuracy and sometimes even produce superhuman ability.

There's another issue here though.

This business owner chose a stance to belittle me rather than embrace me in a meaningful conversation.

We, for the most part are on the same side. I've promoted his business occasionally for free on The Liberty Monitor and on my social media pages. I, for the most part, agree with his stance on most issues.

I had a similar situation happen with a restaurant in town in early February.

Some Liberty business owners, managers, and employees and the attitudes they reflect are part of the reason this town is dying and cannot grow. It's why a good many residents choose to go elsewhere for business - even if the actual service, selection, or prices are better right here!

I understand if one chooses not to engage in a debate, but one shouldn't say or advertise anything publicly if they don't want to have a civil conversation publicly.

Facebook is a social media website. It is meant for people to engage other people socially. It's really the same thing as any other social situation. If you choose to go to a bar, you are choosing to face the potential consequences of a drunken bar fight.

Lately, I've viewed facebook in a different light … I've started deleting those people that have no regard for what they're posting or the attitudes they reflect.

So, let me rephrase that … Quit being a jerk! You're hurting this town far more than you can realize!