Tragedy struck in San Bernardino, CA yesterday and the world is following the story. For me, I was born and raised in San Bernardino, and have played golf on the course across the street from where the shooting took place. I have eaten just down the street countless times, and I have even been in the IRC for a couple of meetings. One of the things that struck me, and I know it is not politically correct to say so, is that in entering the Inland Regional Center there is a sign forbidding the possession of any firearms or knives. It proudly proclaims that it is a gun free zone, just like Paris. Yet just like with every other mass shooting, the stupid sign telling everyone that the people there are unarmed did not stop the shooters at the door. There are never mass shootings at gun ranges like the indoor one right down the street. I am pretty sure there would have been a different outcome if the shooters had walked in the front doors of Turners Outdoors-man just a couple miles away. It took more than five minutes for the first responders of law enforcement to arrive at the IRC, and that was an excellent response time, yet the shooters had already fled the scene. I remember the words of my friend who is a retired Marine Gunny, and who my wife says is a gun nut. She asked him why he needed to have so many guns, with pistols in reach in every room of the house, since the neighborhood we live in has fantastic police response times. He answered, "It take an average of 48 seconds to call the police, and it takes the police 7 to 15 minutes average to arrive in response to the call. On the other hand, it takes me less than 10 seconds to pull and aim my gun." It was not long after that conversation that my family attended his gun safety class and all learned to shoot for our protection. I pray for those who lost people in the shooting yesterday, but I wish that the politicians would at least let the bodies cool and the facts to come out before they start in on gun control. Chicago, France, Europe in general, Washington D.C., and other places with strict gun laws have shown us that when you take away guns from the law abiding citizens, the only ones left with the guns are the criminals.
And now I will step of my soap box so the next idiot can get up and shout their opinion. God speed and thanks for reading. I am heading down to south San Bernardino to see if there is anything I can do to help. Please remember to donate blood if you can, it is needed in these and other tragedies and there is never enough when it is needed