Guns: Is THAT Premeditation?

Simultaneously Posted At BoomerPreps.com


Anyone who owns a gun for self-defense has thought about the repercussions of having to use the gun to protect their life, or the life of another. I can think of few things that would be more of a emotional jolt than taking the life of another human being.

One of the things that would be worse would be my life being taken because I hadn't prepared for the situation.

We preppers plan. We look at the universe of events that could unfold, and we plan for them.

We put more time and effort into our preps for things we believe are more likely to happen, or which may have a significant, debilitating negative impact on our lives - regardless of the likelihood of the event coming to fruition.

Being killed by some random thug is high on the latter list. The places where I live and work aren't over-run with gun-toting, blood thirsty savages roaming the streets.

But dozens of people get mugged and murdered every day of every week here in America. It's a low probability event for you as an individual, but it's a real possibility.

So we plan. We prepare. We get ready.

We practice with our guns at the shooting range.

We buy memberships and insurance that will protect us if we shoot someone in self-defense.

We select ammunition that will most effectively stop the threat, and stop it quickly.

We learn advanced shooting techniques so we are more able to ensure we come out of the encounter alive.

Many people - the anti-gun crowd, much of government and most of the media in particular - will affix a special term to this kind of preparedness: Premeditation.

Why? Because they know it will scare many non-gun owners into thinking that anyone who uses a gun in self-defense is a cold-blooded killer. "Premeditated" is always coupled with "murder".

Let's first look at the definition of "premeditated" from Merriam-Webster online dictionary -

characterized by fully conscious willful intent and a measure of forethought and planning [premeditated murder]

The word-nerds even have it out for us! So, by definition, all prepping is premeditated. Especially when it comes to guns.

And that's a very good thing. We "gun nuts" genuinely want people to act responsibly with their guns. People are harmed when you do otherwise.

What follows is one video and links to two articles about guns - written by lawyers. In Texas.

"We Don't Dial 911"

The point about the signs influencing a jury is well-taken - especially in a "blue state" such as California, New York, etc.

My biggest problem is that you are advertising that you own guns. To me, it would be the same as posting a sign out front saying, "Don't bother robbing my house. My gold and silver are in a burglar-proof safe."

Not a single one of my neighbors knows I own a single gun - or own an ounce of silver. Publicizing your "stuff" is an invitation for trouble.

Carrying a "Statement Card"

A Statement Card is a card you carry around that gives you a "script" to follow if you're ever involved in a self-defense shooting. An excerpt from this article -

Q: I called my attorney here in Denver to ask him, and he said if the prosecutor ever found out I had contacted him before an incident, which I was doing at that moment, it could be interpreted as premeditation.

A: Great question. Having pre-printed cards to that effect do seem a little premeditated, in that each factual situation is different. These are certainly good and accurate things to say, but having them pre-printed on a card seems a little over the top. Additionally, the invocation of your rights should be made verbally in the case of an incident.

Let me be painfully clear: I do not care how "premeditated" it appears to anyone asking me questions about a self-defense shooting. SecondCall Defense has a "script" they suggest you use if you're involved in a shooting, regardless of how innocent you think you may be.

Unless you're a gun law attorney, call 911, follow the script, then call SecondCall Defense. Then prepare yourself to be arrested. You'll have bail money and an attorney in hours.

You may say the most innocent thing, and it can get you convicted. DO NOT risk your freedom (see "7 Shooting Incident Mistakes").

By the way, as the article notes, most police officers are instructed NOT to say anything for 72 hours after they are involved in a shooting. There's a reason for that. Follow their lead.

Does Your Ammo Choice Matter In Court?

Lots of concern out there about being in possession of ammo with, "greater stopping power". This gets back to the whole "premeditated" angle and the blood-thirsty image portrayed by the media and some prosecutors -

Based on comments in the blog, many Cheaper Than Dirt! readers who might be forced to defend themselves with a firearm worry about how the effectiveness of their ammunition may prejudice how they’re viewed by the courts.

Q: From a legal perspective, does it matter what ammunition I use in my handgun?

A: The short answer is, probably not. But for the purposes of this discussion, let me be very clear — we’re talking only about Texas law here. Unfortunately, not every state can be as reasonable as ours. Some ammo may or may not be legal for possession or use in other states, so be sure to check the local laws to make sure what you are carrying is legal.

The bottom line is, get the most effective ammo that is allowed in your state. If they don't allow effective ammo, move. Isn't your life worth that?

In all of my beginner and advanced pistol classes, I teach that you keep shooting until the threat has stopped. Then YOU MUST stop. Crappy ammo ends up with crappy results. And you may be harmed or dead if you're forced (or choose) to use ammo that will not stop your assailant.

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Copyright 2015 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Cultural Silos: Death of the American Melting Pot

This picture I found on Twitter is what set me off -

Lack of Diversity and too much White Privilege - the twin scourges of America.


Gawd, I hate that word.  Diversity.  It's right down there with Empowered on my list of most-hated words.

Diversity has morphed from a word meaning assortment or distinctiveness, to meaning Affirmative Action and preferential treatment.

All are included in this diversity-fest - unless you're white.  Doubly so if you're also male.

Some committee - usually chaired by the august Director of Diversity (yes, this position now exists in almost all large corporations and in all public and private colleges and universities) determines the proper ratio of whites to non-whites, and sets forth the hiring (or enrollment) standard for the foreseeable future.

Hiring, not based upon the education, experience or qualifications of the individual, but upon the color of their skin.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. 

The very people who worship the words and perspective of Martin Luther King, Jr., soil his legacy with their actions.

They don't want equality of opportunity, they want equality of outcome.  That can never happen.  Never.  Outcome is based upon the effort of the individual, not by being given a seat at the "big kids" table.

If you don't earn something - be it your job or your college placement or your housing - you will usually fritter it away.  You didn't have to put forth the effort to get that job, so you don't put forth the effort to keep that job.

This whole diversity sham is closely associated with White Privilege.  You know, the mythical belief that whites get everything handed to them.  Click the heels of our sensible shoes and wish upon a star, and a job magically appears.

At its core is the constant propaganda that you're not successful because you're not white, and whites are only successful because they are white.  They dress it up, but that's the slop they're selling.

It's Victimhood 101.

How sad.  How sad for blacks, browns, tans and all of the other hues, that the liberal-promoted "system" doesn't think they have the ability to succeed on their own.  And most of them play right along.

No, not "play along".  They actively participate and promote this "self-segregation" pity-party ideology.

They don't want to join America - and assimilate as every race and nationality has done before them - they actively work to separate themselves from being American, as though race or country of origin somehow grants them special powers and reverence.

 The added benefit of the diversity and privilege crutch is, they've built themselves a nice strawman "oppressor".  When you fail, you've got someone to blame other than yourself and the effort (or lack thereof) you put forth.
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I swear, I'll never get it.

I've been down before.  At one time, I was jobless and literally days from losing our house (into which all of our money had been dumped).  Me, my wife and our two babies - on the street.

What did I do?  I must have misplaced my White Privilege card, because as I remember it, I worked for a temp agency during the days and in a warehouse making $5 an hour at nights.   Oh, and I dug trenches and built forms for a buddy on weekends for a concrete business.  I spent my free time scouring the want ads and hounding friends until I found another job.

Ahh, the benefits of White Privilege!
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Why this sense of entitlement?  Why this rejection of American values?  Why would you leave your country of origin, and then try to recreate it here?  It sucked, remember?  That's why you came here.

Since their numbers now outweigh that of blacks, I fear Hispanics will follow them down the rabbit hole of state dependency.  They are a big enough voting block to get the attention of the politicians that will promise them the moon in exchange for their votes.

I pray they will see what has happened to American blacks since Affirmative Action was put in place 50 years ago, and step back from the cliff.  I'm not hopeful, as saying 'No' to free stuff is difficult.

Black Americans are my biggest area of confusion.  Clearly, the opportunity is here.  Our president is black!  There is no bigger or more important job in the world.  He obviously figured out the path to success.

Why can't massive numbers of blacks figure it out as well?  Why can't they replicate the success an even smaller minority group - Asians -  have had in America?

Asians from around the world have come here, seen the brass ring that is The American Dream, and grabbed it.  Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Indian, Pacific Islanders.

For God's Sake, the Vietnamese - the people that killed 50,000 Americans and who were generally despised when they came over as "Boat People" - are now one of the most successful demographics in America.  Not "non-white" demographics, ALL demographics.

There was just some young black high school kid on TV who was accepted by all 13 colleges where he applied, including all 8 Ivy League schools - 

"We are so proud of him," said his mother, Roseline Ekeh. "Hard work, dedication, prayer brought him to where he is today."

Born in Nigeria, Harold was eight years old when his parents brought the family to the United States.

"It was kind of difficult adjusting to the new environment and the new culture," he said. But he saw his parents working hard, "and I took their example and decided to apply myself."

He referenced that effort in his college essay, writing, "Like a tree, uprooted and replanted, I could have withered in a new country surrounded by people and languages I did not understand. Yet, I witnessed my parents persevere despite the potential to succumb. I faced my challenges with newfound zeal; I risked humiliation, spending my recesses talking to unfamiliar faces, ignoring their sarcastic remarks."

 His reasons for being successful jump out a bite you in the butt.

He has two parents who instilled in him a sense of dedication to task - perseverance.
He didn't use the excuse of being "different" (uncool, perhaps?) to hold him back.
He worked his ass off.
He was born in another country.

Very similar to the background of many Asian households.  And all of these attributes, aside from the country of origin, can be replicated by anyone in America.

People used to strive - hell, they used to die - to become an American.  You left "the homeland" and embraced the promise of America.  That melting pot where the cultures of the world became one great nation.

Sure, each big city had an Italian district, a "Little Puerto Rico" or a Japantown, but everyone was most proud about being an American.  You always remembered your heritage, but you embraced the new culture.

Now, we're Cuban-Americans, African-Americans, Asian-Americans and Mexican-Americans.  A country of special interest groups pandered to by politicians and race-baiters.  We base our pride not upon our own accomplishments, but upon the color of our skin or country of origin.

Two things, by the way - skin color and country of origin - over which we have no control. Yet they're encouraged to be proud of these things.  Why?

We've become a country of cultural silos - each with separate agendas and interests that just happen to share the same plot of dirt. 

They all preach collective ideology, yet actively cling to genetic segregation.  They protest for "economic justice" for all, but are unwilling to work to improve their economic status.  It's easier to fling "racist!" towards any who question their motives, and most of their targets cower under the onslaught.

The race-baiters and America-haters are winning.  When a country self-segregates, it eventually disintegrates.

History tells us this is not going to end well.


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Copyright 2015 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com