Sen. Chambers has done a lot for blacks and white farmers in the 3cd but most folks tend to focus on his stlye of politics rather than his substance.

How sad. I for one am going to miss Senator Chambers in the State Legislature he was often times the unicamerals conscience. I am urging everyone in district 11 to write Senator Chambers in on their ballot.

You can watch the unicameral live via the web at

www.unicameral.state.ne.us/videos/live.htm

I just watched the afternoon session and the debate about the concealed gun bill.

Kudos to Senators Chambers, Howard, Kruse, Thompson For showing some testicular fortitude (regardless of Gender

The only saving grace is that it came back to bite some of those folks in the A$$. I am not trying to get anyone to like Sen Chambers. I would be willing to guess that he gives a Rats A$$ if people do or don’t but, I get sick and tired of hearing about how Sen Chambers hates Whites and Catholics.

Look at the mans voting record. Look at how hard he fights for people who are being screwed outside of his districts. Those people are overwhelmingly white.

If he was SOoo racist he wouldn’t care what happened to anyone outside of district 11.

Kudos to Senator Dianna Schimek as well

If Sen Chambers was such a racsit why waste time on people or issues that have nothing to do with his constituency? He has demonstrated in the past that he need not form alliances to get things passed if he really wants them to. He is a master debator and does really well with parlimentary procedure.

It seems that the only people that have a problem with Sen Chambers are those who are not in his district. Although I am sure there are those in District 2 that don’t care for him either but overwhelmingly the majority of us who live in the district send him back year after year. Are we in way racist also?

I find it humorous that most of the rural senators magically have a southern accent when they start talking about guns on the floor of the unicameral.

The trend is for more, not less, states allowing CCW. If the anile predictions of the opponents of legal CCW were actually true, wouldn’t the trend be the opposite?

Are Nebraskans somehow more inclined to violence than the rest of the country?

Or is it that some people have a dim view of their fellow man?

Humans have the tendancy to find patterns in everything, whether they are true or not. Is there proof that crime has gone down in those states BECAUSE of CCW laws, or are there outside factors that arent taken into account. People read lots of statistics, but statistics never tell the whole story, especially if you are reading them from a biased entity.

Get real. Your attitude towards your fellow Nebraskans is pathetic and your predictions of “blowing other cars off the street” is not supported by the actual experience of the 46 states that allow legal CCW.

Legal concealed carry has been expanding rapidly over the last decade and continues to do so. If your predictions and pessimism were supported by FACT, I think the opposite would be true.

Wouldn’t it?

Rabble you words are grand but empty. It isn’t fear that drives me. I simply like to be prepared. There will always be predators and bullies both domestically and internationally. Disarming honest citizens will only makes them easier targets for the bullies. Flowery speech sounds good but that’s it.

But I’m sure the 5 people killed in 40 seconds in the September 2002 Norfolk bank massacre didn’t think they’d need a weapon that morning either.

It’s a free country boys. I pose no threat to those who don’t threaten me.

Oh, and I still hate Ernie Chambers

The possibility of gunplay exists now, regardless of what the law dictates.

When are you guys going to realize that the REAL weapon is not what’s in the hands but rather, what lies in the head?

NO sane, rational individual is going to shoot another if they get in a disagreement. And AGAIN, I will submit that the overwhelming majority of Nebraskans are sane, rational individuals. I feel sorry for anyone who can’t or won’t see that.

I don’t believe I’ve ever claimed to “have a perfect grasp of the human psyche.” All I’m saying is that by and by, the overwhelming majority people are reliable, stable and rational.

I’m well aware of the fact that people are perfectly capable of doing some pretty crazy stuff, but they can do that right now even without legal concealed carry. Why would anyone jump through all the legal hoops to get a concealed carry license just so they could risk everything they’ve worked for and break the law?

And why oh why should any of us have our freedoms and our liberties curtailed because of the illegal and/or inappropriate actions of a tiny percentage of our population? Why should the majority, the law abiding citizens, be disallowed a fairly effective means to defend their lives because a few people choose to disobey the law?

Using that logic, shouldn’t we outlaw the sales of alcohol because a tiny percentage of our populace chooses to misuse it?

I tired of pandering to the lowest common denominator in our society. It’s demeaning and illogical.

And btw, you’re not the only one who’s been around.

I know I will patronize businesses that allow CCW. Not only would I want to reward those who I feel are on the right side of the issue, I believe these places of business would be inherently safer. Bad guys prefer unarmed victims and will avoid those who they feel will fight back.

Am I paranoid because I keep a fire extinguisher in my vehicles and my house? Am I paranoid because I carry a spare tire in my vehicles? Am I paranoid because I carry insurance on my house and my vehicles? I’ve never had to use a fire extinguisher at home and it’s been years since I’ve needed a spare tire. But I still have ‘em. “It won’t happen to me” is both foolish and delusional in my estimation.

You call it “fear.” Fine, it’s fear then. My “fear” is the knowledge that there are monsters in our midst who would harm anyone of us without batting an eye. Pretending they don’t exist won’t make them any less real. My “fear” is the realization that I am not immune from violence despite my easy going nature. My “fear” is the understanding that bad things do indeed happen to good people. My “fear” is that despite my best efforts to avoid and de-escalate a bad situation, I may have no choice but to defend myself someday and I want the means to do it at hand. My “fear” is the realization that all the laws in the world will not disarm those prey upon the innocent.

I am realistic enough to know that the police can’t be everywhere and mere minutes can make all the difference whether you live or die if you should be attacked. And let’s not forget that the Supreme Court ruled long, long ago that the police are not Constitutionally bound to protect private citizens. Their job is investigation of the crime scene and apprehension of the criminal. Their actually being on the scene and actually preventing a crime would be pure serendipidity. Not that they wouldn’t do their utmost to prevent a crime but relying on random chance for your personal safety is not a wise decision in my estimation. And it’s not something I am willing to do.

However you regard those of us who have decided that our lives are worth defending, you must realize that in the experience of the states that allow concealed carry, those citizens who legally carry do NOT present a danger to society, no matter what the Brady Campaign has predicted. Nationwide there are over 6 million private citizens who legally carry.

46 states currently allow legal concealed carry with 38 of them being “shall issue” states. Something tells me that that there’s more driving this issue than the armchair psychogists’ accusations of “paranoia.”

Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.

But, there are flaws to that argument. First the second amendment was never really addressed everyday citizens. The amendment addressed the Need for the militia which at the time was well need but scattered. ever heard of the minute men? They are now the National Guard.

even the way our military is outfitted and supplied is very different from when the consitution was written.

Now, I don’t have a problem with people owning weapons. However, I don’t think people should be allowed to own assault weapons and I also don’t like the idea of Joe gunowner being able to walk around me, children, or the people I love and I have no idea that he is packing.

Is that not somehow an enfringement on my rights to protect the people I love from potentially being harmed?

We have people to protect us!! They are called Law enforcement!!
All we have to do is look at the lastest vigalente proceeding in Omaha to see that we should leave the policing to the police.

Now, what’s your point so I can respond?

The phrase “the people” is used many, many times throughout the Bill of Rights. Why, when the phrase “the people” is used in the 2A, do some tell us it only applies to the National Guard and/or the States but not private citizens? No one would argue that the right to free speech or the freedom to worship applies to people and not governmental entities. Why is it different with firearms?

Yes, the military and its armament has changed mightily since the BOR became the law of the land. So has printing, communication and just about everything else in our society. Why is the 2A outdated or inadequate but not the 1st Amendment?

I know you can find Constitutional scholars who will explain that the 2A does not pertain to private citizens, but I guarantee you that I can trot out just as many, if not more, Constitutional scholars who will explain that it is indeed a right guaranteed to private citizens.

It has been suggested that those of us who wish to carry concealed weapons are “paranoid”. I find this accusation leveled by the opponents of concealed carry somewhat humorous. Which side of this debate truly is the “paranoid” view?

Currently I am in Ohio on business. It is a concealed carry state. People here seem to be getting along just fine. I’m not looking over my shoulder in fear that someone in the store might be armed nor do I see anyone else behaving in a similar manner. I do not expect those individuals who have submitted themselves to the licensing process to come unglued and wreak havoc simply because now they can legally carry a concealed weapon. Why would they bother to get a license if they ultimately had criminal intent?

Odds are very good that at some point in your life you’ve been in close proximity to someone carrying a concealed weapon. And the odds are very, very good that you didn’t notice because it was CONCEALED. There’s nothing high tech about carrying a concealed weapon and it’s been that way for ages.

Yes, people can “whack out” and pull a concealed weapon and commit murder and mayhem. Tell me, what’s to prevent that from happening now?

Open carry is legal in Nebraska. I am willing to bet that if anyone tried that, particularly in the “enlightened” eastern metro areas (you know, the crime capitals of Nebraska), the police would be on the scene almost instantly and there would be widespread bug eyed panic. People just seem to have this totally irrational fear of inanimate objects in our modern society. How that fights crime I’m not sure, but it apparently makes some people feel like they’re actually accomplishing something.

You have to understand that those who present a threat to you and your family ignore the law, whatever the law. They scoff at attempts to disarm them. They know in reality it’s only futile “feel good” legislation whose only real accomplishment is to make it appear that our “leaders” are doing something about crime.

And as I have pointed out in a previous post, the police are not there to protect us. In fact, the Supreme Court ruled long ago that the Police are not Constitutionally mandated to do so. If by luck they are in close proximity, they can and will arrive to rescue you. If they aren’t, they will probably arrive too late and the damage will be done. Their job is to investigate and hopefully arrest the criminal. All of which doesn’t matter a whit to you if you’re dead. The police can’t be everywhere and even a good “911″ response time of 2 minutes is an utter eternity if you’re the one being attacked.

The latest vigilante shooting in Omaha is a good example of a private citizen breaking the law. He should be charged with reckless endangerment, illegal use of a firearm and prosecuted. No one is allowed to use deadly force unless their life or that of their family is in immediate and imminent jeopardy. Chasing robbers out into the street and opening fire is wrong, stupid and illegal. Legal concealed carry will not change these standards.

Concealed carry is legal now in 46 states. Obviously the paranoia and “blood in the streets” predictions of those opposed to legal concealed carry has been overcome and proven wrong. If these predictions of disaster were true, wouldn’t we see concealed carry being scaled back instead of being expanded as we currently see happening?

The overwhelming majority of the people in Nebraska (like everywhere else) are honorable, decent people. Possessing a firearm will not make them crazed bloodthirsty killers.

I would suggest that the average Joe or Joette is far more dangerous armed with a six pack than they are with a six gun. Why aren’t we discussing alcohol control?

Tim

“An armed society is a polite society.” -Robert Heinlein

Obvioulsy I’m here in an attempt to provide another take on this discussion. Provide some “balance” if you will. And believe it or not, I am more than willing to listen to the other side. Thus far though, the only arguments I’ve encountered are based purely on feelings and emotion. Facts are in short supply.

Open carry is legal. Though I’ve never tried, I’m sure that if I were to stroll through the Westroads with a 1911 on my hip, Omaha’s finest would shortly be on the scene. This may not be a good example as Omaha probably prohibits open carry anyway. I’m not clear on what Omaha’s gun laws are other than the registration of handguns (which appears to be doing a slam bang good job of keeping guns out of the hands of criminals. HA!)

Since everyone knows (or at least they should know) that gun control doesn’t really affect determined criminal types, it’s pretty obvious that the wrong people are carrying and will continue to carry concealed weapons regardless of the outcome of LB 454. These people are the real threat and always will be (unless we wake up and get ‘em off the streets.)

Now for some boring stats:

Nationwide, people legally carrying concealed weapons are:

5.7 times LESS likely to be arrested for violent offenses than the general public.

13.5 times LESS likely to be arrested for non-violent offenses than the general public.

(From an unpublished study by William Strdevant reported in American’s 1st Freedom August 2000 edition.)

The fact is, that to be issued a CCW permit, the applicant must undergo a federal and state background check. They MUST have a clean record. If they have a criminal history, they will not be allowed to legally carry. What threat do law abiding citizens pose? I simply don’t care if the law abiding citizens carry a concealed weapon. The fact they’re carrying legally means they’ve kept their nose clean and odds are very good that they will continue to do so.

I’ve been in Ohio for a week now. Good ol’ Cleveland. It’s a “shall issue” CCW state. I’ve witnessed no “shoot outs” over parking spaces nor have I witnessed “rivers of blood.”

Tim

“People who object to weapons aren’t abolishing violence, they’re begging for rule by brute force, where the biggest, strongest animals among men were always automatically ‘right.’ Guns ended that, and social democracy is a hollow farce without an armed populace to make it work.” - L. Neil Smith

“To ban guns because criminals use them is to tell the innocent and law-abiding that their rights and liberties depend not on their own conduct, but on the conduct of the guilty and the lawless, and that the law will permit them to have only such rights and liberties as the lawless will allow… For society does not control crime, ever, by forcing the law-abiding to accommodate themselves to the expected behavior of criminals. Society controls crime by forcing the criminals to accommodate themselves to the expected behavior of the law-abiding.” — Jeff Snyder

Carrying openly also creates the potential that a criminal type person to ease in behind the carrier and grab the gun. Not a good situation. A concealed gun is exactly that. No one knows it’s there and no one needs to go into a panic.

“Blaming guns for crime is like blaming spoons for obesity.”

Now oatmeal and other bland foods, that’s a whole ‘nother story.

Senator Earnie Chambers is a “HERO”. If you can’t see that by watching him, if you can’t get past your own race and think of the people he represents (and quite well i add in all sincerity) then your an idiot.

Go Earnie Go………….

He’s a brilliant and very articulate man. He’s also terribly biased.

I watched him via the Internet today during the debate on LB454A. There’s nothing “heroic” about calling people names.

Tim

Extracted from On Combat, By Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, with Loren Christensen…Honor never grows old, and honor rejoices the heart of age. It does so because honor is, finally, about defending those noble and worthy things that deserve defending, even if it comes at a high cost. In our time, that may mean social disapproval, public scorn, hardship, persecution, or as always, even death itself. The question remains: What is worth defending? What is worth dying for? What is worth living for?

William J. Bennett In a lecture to the United States Naval Academy November 24, 1997

One Vietnam veteran, an old retired colonel, once said this to me: “Most of the people in our society are sheep. They are kind, gentle, productive creatures who can only hurt one another by accident.”

This is true. Remember, the murder rate is six per 100,000 per year, and the aggravated assault rate is four per 1,000 per year. What this means is that the vast majority of Americans are not inclined to hurt one another.

Some estimates say that two million Americans are victims of violent crimes every year, a tragic, staggering number, perhaps an all-time record rate of violent crime. But there are almost 300 million total Americans, which means that the odds of being a victim of violent crime is considerably less than one in a hundred on any given year. Furthermore, since many violent crimes are committed by repeat offenders, the actual number of violent citizens is considerably less than two million.

Thus there is a paradox, and we must grasp both ends of the situation: We may well be in the most violent times in history, but violence is still remarkably rare. This is because most citizens are kind, decent people who are not capable of hurting each other, except by accident or under extreme provocation. They are sheep.

I mean nothing negative by calling them sheep. To me it is like the pretty, blue robin’s egg. Inside it is soft and gooey but someday it will grow into something wonderful. But the egg cannot survive without its hard blue shell. Police officers, soldiers and other warriors are like that shell, and someday the civilization they protect will grow into something wonderful. For now, though, they need warriors to protect them from the predators.

“Then there are the wolves,” the old war veteran said, “and the wolves feed on the sheep without mercy.” Do you believe there are wolves out there who will feed on the flock without mercy? You better believe it. There are evil men in this world and they are capable of evil deeds. The moment you forget that or pretend it is not so, you become a sheep. There is no safety in denial.

“Then there are sheepdogs,” he went on, “and I’m a sheepdog. I live to protect the flock and confront the wolf.” Or, as a sign in one California law enforcement agency put it, “We intimidate those who intimidate others.”

If you have no capacity for violence then you are a healthy productive citizen: a sheep. If you have a capacity for violence and no empathy for your fellow citizens, then you have defined an aggressive sociopath–a wolf. But what if you have a capacity for violence, and a deep love for your fellow citizens? Then you are a sheepdog, a warrior, someone who is walking the hero’s path. Someone who can walk into the heart of darkness, into the universal human phobia, and walk out unscathed.

THE GIFT OF AGGRESSION

What goes on around you… compares little with what goes on inside you…Ralph Waldo Emerson

Everyone has been given a gift in life. Some people have a gift for science and some have a flair for art. And warriors have been given the gift of aggression. They would no more misuse this gift than a doctor would misuse his healing arts, but they yearn for the opportunity to use their gift to help others.

These people, the ones who have been blessed with the gift of aggression and a love for others, are our sheepdogs. These are our warriors.

One career police officer wrote to me about this after attending one of my Bulletproof Mind training sessions:

“I want to say thank you for finally shedding some light on why it is that I can do what I do. I always knew why I did it. I love my [citizens], even the bad ones, and had a talent that I could return to my community. I just couldn’t put my finger on why I could wade through the chaos, the gore, the sadness, if given a chance try to make it all better, and walk right out the other side.”

Let me expand on this old soldier’s excellent model of the sheep, wolves, and sheepdogs. We know that the sheep live in denial; that is what makes them sheep. They do not want to believe that there is evil in the world. They can accept the fact that fires can happen, which is why they want fire extinguishers, fire sprinklers, fire alarms and fire exits throughout their kids’ schools. But many of them are outraged at the idea of putting an armed police officer in their kid’s school. Our children are dozens of times more likely to be killed, and thousands of times more likely to be seriously injured, by school violence than by school fires, but the sheep’s only response to the possibility of violence is denial. The idea of someone coming to kill or harm their children is just too hard, so they choose the path of denial.

The sheep generally do not like the sheepdog. He looks a lot like the wolf. He has fangs and the capacity for violence. The difference, though, is that the sheepdog must not, cannot and will not ever harm the sheep. Any sheepdog that intentionally harms the lowliest little lamb will be punished and removed. The world cannot work any other way, at least not in a representative democracy or a republic such as ours.

Still, the sheepdog disturbs the sheep. He is a constant reminder that there are wolves in the land. They would prefer that he didn’t tell them where to go, or give them traffic tickets, or stand at the ready in our airports in camouflage fatigues holding an M-16. The sheep would much rather have the sheepdog cash in his fangs, spray paint himself white, and go, “Baa.” Until the wolf shows up. Then the entire flock tries desperately to hide behind one lonely sheepdog. As Kipling said in his poem about “Tommy” the British soldier:

While it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Tommy, fall be’ind,” But it’s “Please to walk in front, sir,” when there’s trouble in the wind, There’s trouble in the wind, my boys, there’s trouble in the wind, O it’s “Please to walk in front, sir,” when there’s trouble in the wind.

The students, the victims, at Columbine High School were big, tough high school students, and under ordinary circumstances they would not have had the time of day for a police officer. They were not bad kids; they just had nothing to say to a cop. When the school was under attack, however, and SWAT teams were clearing the rooms and hallways, the officers had to physically peel those clinging, sobbing kids off of them. This is how the little lambs feel about their sheepdog when the wolf is at the door. Look at what happened after September 11, 2001, when the wolf pounded hard on the door.

Remember how America, more than ever before, felt differently about their law enforcement officers and military personnel? Remember how many times you heard the word “hero”?

Understand that there is nothing morally superior about being a sheepdog; it is just what you choose to be. Also understand that a sheepdog is a funny critter: He is always sniffing around out on the perimeter, checking the breeze, barking at things that go bump in the night, and yearning for a righteous battle. That is, the young sheepdogs yearn for a righteous battle. The old sheepdogs are a little older and wiser, but they move to the sound of the guns when needed right along with the young ones.

Here is how the sheep and the sheepdog think differently. The sheep pretend the wolf will never come, but the sheepdog lives for that day. After the attacks on September 11, 2001, most of the sheep, that is, most citizens in America said, “Thank God I wasn’t on one of those planes.” The sheepdogs, the warriors, said, “Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of those planes. Maybe I could have made a difference.” When you are truly transformed into a warrior and have truly invested yourself into warriorhood, you want to be there. You want to be able to make a difference.

While there is nothing morally superior about the sheepdog, the warrior, he does have one real advantage — only one. He is able to survive and thrive in an environment that destroys 98 percent of the population.

There was research conducted a few years ago with individuals convicted of violent crimes. These cons were in prison for serious, predatory acts of violence: assaults, murders and killing law enforcement officers. The vast majority said that they specifically targeted victims by body language: slumped walk, passive behavior and lack of awareness. They chose their victims like big cats do in Africa, when they select one out of the herd that is least able to protect itself. However, when there were cues given by potential victims that indicated they would not go easily, the cons said that they would walk away. If the cons sensed that the target was a “counter-predator,” that is, a sheepdog, they would leave him alone unless there was no other choice but to engage.

One police officer told me that he rode a commuter train to work each day. One day, as was his usual, he was standing in the crowded car, dressed in blue jeans, T-shirt and jacket, holding onto a pole and reading a paperback. At one of the stops, two street toughs boarded, shouting and cursing and doing every obnoxious thing possible to intimidate the other riders. The officer continued to read his book, though he kept a watchful eye on the two punks as they strolled along the aisle making comments to female passengers, and banging shoulders with men as they passed.

As they approached the officer, he lowered his novel and made eye contact with them.

“You got a problem, man?” one of the IQ-challenged punks asked. “You think you’re tough, or somethin’?” the other asked, obviously offended that this one was not shirking away from them.

“As a matter of fact, I am tough,” the officer said, calmly and with a steady gaze.

The two looked at him for a long moment, and then without saying a word, turned and moved back down the aisle to continue their taunting of the other passengers, the sheep.

Some people may be destined to be sheep and others might be genetically primed to be wolves or sheepdogs. But I believe that most people can choose which one they want to be, and I’m proud to say that more and more Americans are choosing to become sheepdogs.

Seven months after the attack on September 11, 2001, Todd Beamer was honored in his hometown of Cranbury, New Jersey. Todd, as you recall, was the man on Flight 93 over Pennsylvania who called on his cell phone to alert an operator from United Airlines about the hijacking. When he learned of the other three passenger planes that had been used as weapons, Todd dropped his phone and uttered the words, “Let’s roll,” which authorities believe was a signal to the other passengers to confront the terrorist hijackers. In one hour, a transformation occurred among the passengers–athletes, business people and parents–from sheep to sheepdogs and together they fought the wolves, ultimately saving an unknown number of lives on the ground.

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW HARD IT WOULD BE TO LIVE WITH YOURSELF AFTER THAT?

There is no safety for honest men except by believing all possible evil of evil men…Edmund Burke Reflections on the Revolution in France

Here is the point I’d like to emphasize, especially to the thousands of police officers and soldiers I speak to each year. In nature the sheep, real sheep, are born as sheep. Sheepdogs are born that way, and so are wolves. They didn’t have a choice. But you are not a critter. As a human being, you can be whatever you want to be. It is a conscious, moral decision.

If you want to be a sheep, then you can be a sheep and that is okay, but you must understand the price you pay. When the wolf comes, you and your loved ones are going to die if there is not a sheepdog there to protect you. If you want to be a wolf, you can be one, but the sheepdogs are going to hunt you down and you will never have rest, safety, trust or love. But if you want to be a sheepdog and walk the warrior’s path, then you must make a conscious and moral decision every day to dedicate, equip and prepare yourself to thrive in that toxic, corrosive moment when the wolf comes knocking at the door.

For example, many officers carry their weapons in church. They are well concealed in ankle holsters, shoulder holsters or inside-the-belt holsters tucked into the small of their backs. Anytime you go to some form of religious service, there is a very good chance that a police officer in your congregation is carrying. You will never know if there is such an individual in your place of worship, until the wolf appears to slaughter you and your loved ones.

I was training a group of police officers in Texas, and during the break, one officer asked his friend if he carried his weapon in church. The other cop replied, “I will never be caught without my gun in church.” I asked why he felt so strongly about this, and he told me about a police officer he knew who was at a church massacre in Ft. Worth, Texas, in 1999. In that incident, a mentally deranged individual came into the church and opened fire, gunning down 14 people. He said that officer believed he could have saved every life that day if he had been carrying his gun. His own son was shot, and all he could do was throw himself on the boy’s body and wait to die. That cop looked me in the eye and said, “Do you have any idea how hard it would be to live with yourself after that?”

Some individuals would be horrified if they knew this police officer was carrying a weapon in church. They might call him paranoid and would probably scorn him. Yet these same individuals would be enraged and would call for “heads to roll” if they found out that the airbags in their cars were defective, or that the fire extinguisher and fire sprinklers in their kids’ school did not work.

They can accept the fact that fires and traffic accidents can happen and that there must be safeguards against them. Their only response to the wolf, though, is denial, and all too often their response to the sheepdog is scorn and disdain. But the sheepdog quietly asks himself, “Do you have any idea how hard it would be to live with yourself if your loved ones were attacked and killed, and you had to stand there helplessly because you were unprepared for that day?”

The warrior must cleanse denial from his thinking. Coach Bob Lindsey, a renowned law enforcement trainer, says that warriors must practice “when/then” thinking, not “if/when.” Instead of saying,”If it happens then I will take action,” the warrior says, “When it happens then I will be ready.”

It is denial that turns people into sheep. Sheep are psychologically destroyed by combat because their only defense is denial, which is counterproductive and destructive, resulting in fear, helplessness and horror when the wolf shows up.

Denial kills you twice. It kills you once, at your moment of truth when you are not physically prepared: You didn’t bring your gun; you didn’t train. Your only defense was wishful thinking. Hope is not a strategy. Denial kills you a second time because even if you do physically survive, you are psychologically shattered by fear, helplessness, horror and shame at your moment of truth.

Chuck Yeager, the famous test pilot and first man to fly faster than the speed of sound, says that he knew he could die. There was no denial for him. He did not allow himself the luxury of denial. This acceptance of reality can cause fear, but it is a healthy, controlled fear that will keep you alive:

“I was always afraid of dying. Always. It was my fear that made me learn everything I could about my airplane and my emergency equipment, and kept me flying respectful of my machine and always alert in the cockpit.” … Brigadier General Chuck Yeager Yeager, An Autobiography

Gavin de Becker puts it like this in Fear Less, his superb post-9/11 book, which should be required reading for anyone trying to come to terms with our current world situation: “…denial can be seductive, but it has an insidious side effect. For all the peace of mind deniers think they get by saying it isn’t so, the fall they take when faced with new violence is all the more unsettling. Denial is a save-now-pay-later scheme, a contract written entirely in small print, for in the long run, the denying person knows the truth on some level. So the warrior must strive to confront denial in all aspects of his life, and prepare him self for the day when evil comes.”

If you are a warrior who is legally authorized to carry a weapon and you step outside without that weapon, then you become a sheep, pretending that the bad man will not come today. No one can be “on” 24/7 for a lifetime. Everyone needs down time. But if you are authorized to carry a weapon, and you walk outside without it, just take a deep breath, and say this to yourself… “Baa.”

This business of being a sheep or a sheepdog is not a yes-no dichotomy. It is not an all-or-nothing, either-or choice. It is a matter of degrees, a continuum. On one end is an abject, head-in-the-grass sheep and on the other end is the ultimate warrior. Few people exist completely on one end or the other. Most of us live somewhere in between. Since 9-11 almost everyone in America took a step up that continuum, away from denial. The sheep took a few steps toward accepting and appreciating their warriors, and the warriors started taking their job more seriously. The degree to which you move up that continuum, away from sheephood and denial, is the degree to which you and your loved ones will survive, physically and psychologically at your moment of truth.