I used to live in Garland, Texas when I was a cop in Dallas.  Garland is a suburb of Dallas.  Who would have ever guessed that one of the most horrific terrorist attacks would have occurred in little ol’ Garland.  Well, it could have been one of the most gruesome and bloody terrorist attacks in the US post-9/11 had it not been stopped by an alert veteran of the Garland Police Department with over 30 years of experience.
The two self proclaimed Islamic jihadists were about as inept in their tactical ability as they were in their decision making ability.  While they were equipped with so-called “assault rifles” and even wearing body armor, according to news reports, they failed drastically to kill and maim non Islamic Americans at an art exhibition revolving around the Muslim prophet Muhammad.
I don’t believe in making fun of Islam or Muhammad.  I never understood why that happened in Paris, and I don’t understand why American’s would want to draw or paint Muhammad.
I don’t condone making fun of another person’s religion.  Heck, I’m a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  In other words, I’m a Mormon.  There’s a history of persecution in my faith.  Joseph Smith and his brother were even gunned down by a mob in 1844.
Like Joseph Smith, the founder of my faith, I believe in and I support the US Constitution as an inspired document written by men who were raised up by the hand of God to do so (see, e.g. D&C 101:76-80).Â
I’ve taken several oaths in my military and law enforcement capacities to preserve and defend the Constitution.  I take my oath seriously.  I believe in guarding, protecting and preserving these precious rights, including the rights of any religion or non-religion a person wishes to embrace or believe in.
That said, if someone wants to make fun of another person’s beliefs, he or she can do that in America.  You have the right to voice your opinion about another person or even the American government!  These are things you can’t do in Communist countries.
But, you lose that right when you decide to be so easily offended that you attempt to murder others because of it.  What does that really say about a person’s character, belief system and self-esteem anyway?  Obviously, they have some serious issues.
Those two jihadist clowns hoped to murder because they were easily offended.  Get over it already.  Don’t you know, the more you get easily offended, the more people are going to deliberately try to offend you and your beliefs?
Alas, I’m glad an alert and mentally prepared cop killed those dudes—those wanna-be martyrs.  A lot of people would have gotten hurt, and a lot of people would have died if they had not been stopped.  I guarantee that.
You need to use bullets to stop criminals and terrorists with bullets.  You can’t wave a flower or a peace treaty.  You have to do the dirty deed.  Look at them.  Line up your guns sights and then shoot them.  That’s how you stop criminals and terrorists bent on murdering innocent people.
You can’t do that with an unarmed security guard.  One was there at the art exhibition, by the way.  He was shot and injured, but I understand he’ll be okay.  Hopefully he chooses to carry a gun from now on.
Look, cops are often demonized.  Like my other brothers and sisters in blue, I took this job to save lives.  I didn’t take the job to get the praise and respect of others.  If I wanted that, I would have been a firefighter.  Everyone loves firefighters.  But even when the cops save lives, they often do it by using violence.  Violence—more violence—wins fights.  Some people just can’t appreciate the dichotomy.  I do, however.  I know what it takes to win gunfights.
After all is said and done, there’s no doubt in my mind that God played a hand in that cop being there that day.  Yes, despite what some people believe, I believe those who are engaged in saving lives—those who carry guns so that others may live—are guided and helped.  I believe in divine coincidences.  I believe that that cop, a former SWAT cop with over 30 years on the force, wasn’t put there at that exact time and place by accident.  No way.
Thankfully, because I’m a red-blooded American, I can talk about my religion and I can give my opinion freely, too.   If people bash and criticize me for it, that’s their prerogative.  They can do that if they wish, but unlike those would-be murderers, I certainly won’t hunt anyone down and try to murder them for making fun of me or my religion.  That’s because I know what it means to be an American, and I know what it means to fight for freedom.
The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the position of Guns.com.
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