Over the weekend, according to an article in yesterday's El Paso Times, there was an incident in a local bar that got a man arrested after he allegedly discharged his .45-caliber handgun inside the Iron Horse Saloon. It happened around 1:48 a.m. (Damn, why do the most exciting things always seem to happen while I'm sleeping?)
Apparently the 28 year old man had been thrown out of the bar but returned shortly thereafter armed with his handgun. Fortunately, no one was hurt when he fired it into the air.
Well, my first reaction was of huge disappointment. The incident happened in my end of town. But then I relaxed after realizing the man was from Phoenix. He was merely a victim of Arizona-Texas cultural differences! Apparently, as large as it is, New Mexico isn't always enough of a buffer zone to protect us from Arizona's Tombstonesque mentality.
While Arizona is one of only two states where boozers packing heat in bars is legal (Tennessee being the other), here in Texas that's a no-no. Perhaps the poor man from Arizona didn't realize that.
Texas is far more civilized. In Texas, we don't believe alcohol and guns to be a good mix. Instead, we'll take our guns to university just as soon as our Texas pols stop arguing over it and pass the bill before them allowing students, professors and college staff and administrators to arm themselves against professors giving out poor grades, disgruntled students receiving poor grades, administrators resolving poor grade disputes, etc.
Coming next: Guns for Jesus! (or your "Sunday best" may soon include a bible and your 9mm Glock?)
Apparently the 28 year old man had been thrown out of the bar but returned shortly thereafter armed with his handgun. Fortunately, no one was hurt when he fired it into the air.
Well, my first reaction was of huge disappointment. The incident happened in my end of town. But then I relaxed after realizing the man was from Phoenix. He was merely a victim of Arizona-Texas cultural differences! Apparently, as large as it is, New Mexico isn't always enough of a buffer zone to protect us from Arizona's Tombstonesque mentality.
While Arizona is one of only two states where boozers packing heat in bars is legal (Tennessee being the other), here in Texas that's a no-no. Perhaps the poor man from Arizona didn't realize that.
Texas is far more civilized. In Texas, we don't believe alcohol and guns to be a good mix. Instead, we'll take our guns to university just as soon as our Texas pols stop arguing over it and pass the bill before them allowing students, professors and college staff and administrators to arm themselves against professors giving out poor grades, disgruntled students receiving poor grades, administrators resolving poor grade disputes, etc.
Coming next: Guns for Jesus! (or your "Sunday best" may soon include a bible and your 9mm Glock?)
5 comments:
I understand in more civilized Illinois, in the well to do suburbs, parents arm themselves with *Lawyers*, should a teacher give junior a bad grade.
Thus they live in a kind of "Pleasantville/Stepford Wife" kind of reality.
Living in a perfect world where everyone passes, and teachers are required to fix the problems, children have no consequences for their actions, or lack thereof.
We had an incident locally-- a young man was constantly driving too fast on a quiet residential street. When a neighbor yelled out at him to slow down, the lead-footed young man came back & shot & killed his neighbor.
Turns out the shooter is an Iraq war Vet w PTSD.
Ironically, the man he killed had also battled PTSD, but responded by working hard to get other veterans counseling, medication or any help they needed to cope with the illness. He was a veteran who spent his career counseling troubled former soldiers at the Eugene Veterans’ Clinic.
Well, thanks a lot, Fran, for reaffirming my very cautious approach to this subject. (I've been intending to write a blog about it, seeing as how Ft. Bliss is seeing an influx of 20-25,000 MORE troops in the next couple years.)
But I've dodged it every time I feel the pang to write about it. Why? I'm a *fraidy cat* (not the term I would normally use, but I'm trying to keep this response beneath an *R* rating.) However, I loved your story, if not it's outcome.
We just completed the sentencing of a GI who rear-ended a 19-20 year old girl sitting at a redlight. He was doing around 50-60 mph. Hit her so hard her head disconnected from her spinal cord. He claimed PTSD was the cause. *Fortunately* that was not the case, i.e., he was just a drunk GI, plain and simple, with 8 DWI's charges (only 5 convictions). I was sooo relieved!
But the future bodes ominous with more and more loose canons running around town. But you'll never hear me say that publicly. (I'm glad YOU did, TY.)
Well here in UT guns are allowed everywhere EXCEPT church ... unless there is a posted notice outside stating otherwise. All you need is a license to carry. Churchgoers have to leave their piece out in the car, which is pretty damn inconvenient.
If we had any bars, guns would probably be allowed there, too ... encouraged even, I bet. How better to make the preacher's point about the evils of alcohol than to scare the would-be imbibers that that extra shot might carry a big bang penalty?
Dada~ The frigging military has always played games
with PTSD or what did they used to call it? Military fatigue??
They called it anything BUT a serious disorder that is real & ruins peoples lives.
How long they fought it after Vietnam.
Even now they try to sweep it under the rung. Or they have a token program.... a few weeks of counseling then back to combat- or what is the sanitized name-- war theater? Arena?
A show of sorts. Entertainment?
Any feeling human being is effected by the bloody scenes of prolonged exposure to such gruesome violence.
As if the battlefield was not bad enough....
these wars take place in towns.
Children, Women, Schools.
Nothing is off limits.... even medical clinics are considered fair game.
So we are going to see more of it.
It was just so sad he killed a person who had PTSD & worked to help others with it.
Even though one person died, in reality both of them died.
DK! Well here in UT guns are allowed everywhere EXCEPT church ... unless there is a posted notice outside stating otherwise.
So you see signs @ the Tabernacle....
Gun day @ Church!
Praise the Lord & pass the bullets or something like that???
Imagine the pressure on the Pastor to write a *really good sermon*...... or BLAMMO???
LOL, Fran! BLAMMO is the shortest route to heaven!
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