I wore a Dallas police uniform many years ago, badge number 7975. This summer I took a quick vacation with my family to Dallas to visit some old friends. We would have loved to have stayed longer, but that didn’t happen. I needed to get back to my home—I’m still in law enforcement, and I was tasked to train a rookie police officer. We weren’t gone from Dallas twenty hours before the mayhem occurred, leaving five police officers killed and seven wounded.
The irony of 7-7-16, a day many in law enforcement will forever remember, is that while great men and women wearing police badges and uniforms stood protecting the rights of citizens to peaceably assemble and protest police, these same citizens sprinted to the nearest officer for protection during the attack.
As I see it, the media (and social media) clearly do not have the patience to wait for an investigation surrounding these officer-involved-shootings. They have also been record quick to jump on the controversy bandwagon. Shoot, the president of the United States is even on that bandwagon: one day Obama is stoking the flames of separate incidents in Louisiana and Minnesota, invoking race wars and a police-hating social movement, and the next day he’s framing the Dallas Police Department ambush in furtherance of his anti-gun agenda.
It makes me seriously wonder, does he not realize the damage he is doing to the country as a whole by eroding the freedoms of those who love liberty or is this some calculated move to destroy freedoms and remove power from the people? Sometimes it’s hard not to feel like it may be so—perhaps not in the form of some kind of giant, secretive government conspiracy, but perhaps through the simple exploitation of ignorance. Talents in speech and high degrees, do not mean a person is not dumb to many things about the world.
As much as Obama’s latest impassioned speech to further his anti-gun agenda feels like a punch in the gut to me, particularly following a devastating blow to fellow law enforcement officers in Dallas, I feel more troubled by the cries of citizens, sounding like panicky sheep, who would call for an end of to the “militarization” of police.
Should police really not wear protective equipment? Do people really think cops should go unarmed or take pistols to long gun fights? I cannot fathom such nonsense. Yet, sadly, overt and murderous acts like this recent tragedy in Dallas will only encourage more police agencies to outfit their officers with more armor and bigger guns to keep up with the lethal threats they face in the field.
Considering the tactics used during this urban assault and counterassault in Dallas, it must have been terribly difficult for officers to tell where shots were coming from since the echoes on the high rise buildings bounced rather spectacularly. From what I have heard, the wounded and bleeding needed evacuation and both spontaneous and coordinated officer rescues were conducted. Immediate medical assistance could only be performed by those protected, shielded and armed with guns.
While one last murderer was holed up and negotiators began speaking with him, according to Dallas Police Chief Brown, the thug stated he had planted bombs around the area and he would kill officers. He had already shot police and was continuing to shoot at police. This imminent jeopardy situation gave the officers justified legal means to “end the fight” through lethal means.
An unconventional means to end the threat was used. Since the bomb squad was already on scene to check suspicious packages, a robot was used to deliver a detonation to the suspect. There was no reason to get any more officers hurt or killed and the tactic was a success that ended the murderer’s life.
Now, in the aftermath, there are hundreds of saddened officers in the department, which is about 3,500 strong, not including the amazing dispatchers and civilians that work for the department.
Now, more than anything, healing is needed. Prayers are needed. And more guns, ammo and armor are encouraged to all who love freedom and liberty. Those who desire safety must arm up. While we should pray for peace, we must be prepared to take the lives of evil people, when warranted. Until then, keep your powder dry and your head on a swivel. I speak for all civilized people around the world, but especially for my brothers and sisters in blue.
The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the position of Guns.com.
Safety warning: Jeffrey Denning is a long time self-defense professional and any training methods or information he describes in his articles are intended to be put into practice only by serious shooters with proper training. Please read, but do not attempt anything posted here without first seeking out proper training.
