Democracy took a hard blow this day in Peking as the People’s Army of China opened fire on crowds of demonstrators.

What began as a student demonstration on behalf of democracy a month and a half earlier, had become a demonstration of hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life defying the government ban on the students’ action. Armored tanks of the People’s Army literally rolled over demonstrators as the world watched in horror as the tragedy unfolded on live TV. The government issued statements claiming that only a few had died. Other estimates of the deaths in Tiananmen Square ranged from hundreds to several thousand. There is no contradiction of the fact that thousands of demonstrators were later jailed.

When the enemy comes in a’roarin’ like a flood,
Coveting the kingdom and hungering for blood,
The Lord will raise a standard up and lead His people on,
The Lord of Hosts will go before defeating every foe;
Defeating every foe.

For the Lord is our defense, Jesus defend us,
For the Lord is our defense, Jesu defend.

Some men trust in chariots, some trust in the horse,
But we will depend upon the Name of Christ our Lord,
The Lord has made my hands to war and my fingers to fight.
The Lord lays low our enemies, but He raises us upright;
He raises us upright.

For the Lord is our defense, Jesus defend us,
For the Lord is our defense, Jesu defend.

A thousand fall on my left hand, ten thousand to the right,
But He will defend us from the arrow in the night.
Protect us from the terrors of the teeth of the devourer,
Embue us with Your Spirit, Lord, emcompass us with power;
Encompass us with power.

For the Lord is our defense, Jesus defend us,
For the Lord is our defense, Jesu defend.

Where it’s legal to carry firearms, rampaging terrorists would be shot even before police officers show up.

Naturally, terrorists prefer targets where all prospective victims are disarmed by law!

One of the main reasons for conceal carry is that at my age I am in no shape to fight off a young man much less several young men. If you think several unarmed men are unable to seriously injure or kill a single victim you are sadly mistaken. Add even the most primitive weapon, like a rock or a baseball  bat, and you have a serious threat. I don’t carry a gun to impress or frighten folks … nor do I carry to intimidate others – I just like the thought that I am safe and that I have the ability and training to assist loved-ones who may be threatened. This photo probably make the point – thanks to http://olegvolk.livejournal.com for the photo … (caution – this site may offend!).

My karate is weak, yet I am safe!

The gun has been called the great equalizer, meaning that a small person with a gun is equal to a large person, but it is a great equalizer in another way, too. It insures that the people are the equal of their government whenever that government forgets that it is servant and not master of the governed. When the British forgot that they got a revolution. And, as a result, we Americans got a Constitution; a Constitution that, as those who wrote it were determined, would keep men free. If we give up part of that Constitution we give up part of our freedom and increase the chance that we will lose it all. I am not ready to take that risk. I believe that the right of the citizen to keep and bear arms must not be infringed if liberty in America is to survive.

– Ronald Reagan, September, 1975, Guns and Ammo magazine

Guns are a part of our cultural heritage. Please respect our diversity.

I got this from “Home on the Range”