Saturday, July 18, 2015

Pentagon Gun Ban Is Getting Brave Men Killed

Five military service members lay dead in Chattanooga after a gunman, Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez, opened fire on a recruiting center and a naval reserve center. They're dead from a lack of shooting back. They're dead because of longstanding policies that leave stateside military members (except MPs and the like) unarmed and leave our military facilities exposed to terrorist attack.


In 1992 the first Bush administration signed into effect Department of Defense (DoD) Directive 5210.56. This directive sought to “limit and control the carrying of firearms by DoD military and civilian personnel," and states that only “DoD personnel regularly engaged in law enforcement or security duties shall be armed.”  Army Regulation 190-14 was implemented in 1993 and further tightened the carrying of firearms on Army posts. According to the Washington Times this reg forbids "military personnel from carrying their personal firearms and [made] it almost impossible for commanders to issue firearms to soldiers in the U.S. for personal protection."


If these regs made sense when they were implemented, they sure don't now. Thirteen years into the "War on Terror" and after seeing the 2009 Fort Hood shootings, the 2009 Little Rock recruiting office shootings, the 2013 Washington Navy Yard shootings, and 2014 Fort Hood shootings it makes no sense that soldiers are better able to defend themselves off duty and off base than on (thanks to right-to-carry laws now in nearly every state) and that many military facilities remain soft targets for terrorists.


Two years ago Marine Corps commandant Gen. Jim Amos proposed arming certain duty and staff NCOs for this very reason. Unfortunately, the DoD didn't act on the proposal and now there's four dead Marines in Chattanooga. Perhaps the Chattanooga shootings will be the final straw that will change DoD policy.


Gun Owners of America (GOA) has announced that it is working with several congressmen to introduce legislation to repeal the military gun ban. Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN) plans to introduce a bill early next week. Former Marine Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) plans on introducing a bill to allow military recruiters to carry firearms. Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) is working on similar legislation in the Senate.


GOA has set up an action center where you can send a pre-written message to your Representative urging them to cosponsor the DesJarlais and Hunter bills.


Let's get this ban lifted before more brave service members die in the name of bureaucratic apathy.


Update 7-25-15: Fox News reports that one Navy officer and a Marine at the Chattanooga naval facility may have armed themselves against regulations and in violation of federal law and may have actually  killed the Islamic shooter. While these brave men may have cut the shooting spree short, probably saving additional lives, our service members shouldn't have to jeopardize their careers and law-abiding backgrounds in order to defend themselves and their comrades.

1 comment:

  1. During ACP’s annual meeting in Orlando a few weeks ago, the College released a new position paper on reducing injuries and deaths from firearms—the first comprehensive update of College policy since the late 1990s. (I am a co-author of the paper.)

    ReplyDelete

Post Topics

10 Questions with... abortion ACLU alcohol Alzheimer's Ames Straw Poll armed self defense assault weapons ban Audit the Fed Austin Petersen Barack Obama Ben Lange Beth Cody Between Two Rivers Bill Weld Bob Barr Bob Cashner books Bruce Braley Bruce Hunter Candidates Carl Olsen Cedar Rapids Gazette charity Chet Culver Christopher Peters Clel Baudler communism Confederate Flag Constitution Constitutional Convention Corey D. Roberts Crime Cristina Kinsella Dan Muhlbauer debt Declaration of Independence Democrat Party disasters Donald Trump drones drugs economy education elections Eric Cooper events Facebook Fast and Furious First Amendment food freedom foreign policy free markets freedom Gary Johnson gay marriage Glenn Beck gold gun control Gun Owners of America guns health care Hillary Clinton history Honey Creek Resort Iowa Iowa Caucus Iowa City Iowa Firearms Coalition Iowa First District Iowa Freedom Report Iowa Gun Owners Iowa Right To Life Jake Porter Joe Bolkom John Boehner John McAfee John McCain Judge Napolitano Keith Laube Lake Delhi law Lee Heib Lee Hein liberals Libertarian Party libertarianism marijuana Me media medical marijuana memes Memory Walk Michele Bachmann military Mom Nate Newsome Nick Taiber NRA NSA Obamacare police policy politics President Obama primaries privacy property rights Rand Paul religion Republican Party resistance Rick Santorum right to carry Rob Petsche Rod Blum Roger Fritz Ron Paul Rush Limbaugh Ryan Flood Sandy Hook Massacre Sarah Palin Second Amendment smoking Social Security spending Star Wars State Defense Forces Steve King Steven Lukan taxes Tea Party Movement Tenth Amendment terrorism Terry Branstad Tom Harkin traffic cams TSA TV/Movies war Wayne Jerman weapons Will Johnson Yuri N. Maltsev Zach Wahls

Followers