Through the years, we've defended the Second Amendment from all kinds of things. One main reason is, of course, defense against tyranny. Another is against what I call "the tyranny of the thug."
And I came across a prime example of that earlier.
Like in pretty much every other nation on the planet, Trinidad doesn't respect the right to keep and bear arms. They seem to think that it will keep criminals from doing terrible things.
However, a farmer in the island nation wants a gun now after a terrifying incident.
AFTER a farmer at the Cunjal Food Crop Project had his property ransacked by a group armed men on Tuesday, he plans to reapply for his firearm user’s licence (FUL).
The farmer, Ramesh Harnarine, said that on the day of the incident he left his property and went to Fyzabad, where he spent about six hours. When he returned, he noticed his weed-whacker was missing and his house was ransacked. There was also a rope in the yard that did not belong to him.
“I feel they come to tie me up because I have (camera) footage where the people come up, one had a gun, one had the knife and the rope and a next one had a cutlass. My assumption is they were coming to put a good licking on me, otherwise kill me,” he said.
Ramnarine told the Express yesterday he was left traumatised by the incident.
“It was the worst. I feel like if my chest was getting kind of tight,” he explained.
...
Harnarine, who applied for a firearm in the past, said he will be seeking to reapply. “I looking forward to get a firearm ... I have intentions of applying for one now how this thing becoming a norm,” he said.
Some people will look at this and think, "Well, he can apply for a license and get a gun. It's fine."
However, this guy already applied for one in the past. For some reason, it was either not granted or it lapsed. He couldn't just go and buy a gun, even after this horrifying incident.
If you've never had your home broken into, it's scary. You feel violated, and you no longer feel safe. When my house was broken into, I was a gun owner. I had firearms I could use to defend myself. None were taken--it was some punk kid kicking in doors for thrills, apparently--but it was still pretty scary. If you don't have a firearm, well, I can only imagine how much worse it could be.
And let's understand that despite the strict gun control laws in Trinidad--laws that had this farmer unarmed--at least one of the criminals had a firearm himself.
Plus, we also have a knife and a "cutlass," which is typically a kind of sword, but in some parts of the Caribbean, the term applies to machetes, too, which is far more likely.
Still, three armed men are more than a match for most people, especially when they're unarmed or won't have anything more than a blunt object or farming tool.
I will defend the Second Amendment to my dying day for the simple reason that tyranny can come in many forms. If you're oppressed by criminality, the functional difference in most people's lives is little different if it's some gang on the street or in Washington. The fear is real. The inability to live your life as you wish is real.
The right to keep and bear arms, though, is equally as real and is the antidote to tyranny, criminality, and a host of other societal ills. From putting food on the table to putting tyrants out of business, our gun rights make it so we aren't forced to fear for our lives indefinitely, then ask the government if we might be so bold as to request the means to defend ourselves from a group of criminals who clearly intended us harm.
That's not how it should work, and what this poor guy went through is something no one should have to deal with, but they definitely should have to ask for permission to feel safer.
