Category: Self Defense

Concealed carry holder shoots car thief who tried to run him: report

Chicago police are investigating after a concealed carry holder reported shooting a man who tried to run him over with his own stolen car Sunday morning in South Shore.

The licensed gun owner called 911 around 7:14 a.m. and reported that two men had just stolen his blue 2023 Acura and attempted to hit him with it in an alley behind the 6800 block of South Cornell Avenue.

Less than five minutes later, a 23-year-old man arrived at the University of Chicago Medical Center with a gunshot wound to his lower back. He was taken directly into surgery and was listed in critical condition.

Officers recovered three shell casings in the alley where the shooting occurred and questioned the concealed carry license holder on Sunday morning.

No charges had been announced against anyone as of Sunday evening.

Florida Bill Will Make Churches Safer

My late father, a retired police officer and Freewill Baptist preacher’s son, wasn’t a fan of carrying in church. As a retired officer, he could, even though churches are off-limits here in Georgia. He just didn’t like it. He told me once that he didn’t believe carrying in church should be necessary, and it just felt wrong for him to do so.

At least, that’s how he felt until I reminded him that the world is full of goblins who don’t feel that way and see churches as targets.

The Annunciation Catholic School shooting is odd because it’s both a school shooting and a church shooting. While most of those attending mass that day were children, the truth was that they were left undefended during worship.

Church security has stopped mass shootings before. Most famously in White Settlement, Texas.

Now, Florida wants to make it easier to provide that kind of security.

A FloridaRepublican wants to make it easier for armed volunteers to provide security for churches and other houses of worship.

A bill, titled “Security Services at Places of Worship,” has been sponsored by Senator Don Gaetz and aims to waive some of the licensing and training requirements for individuals who want to volunteer to protect religious facilities.

Gaetz said that pastors in his district have asked for the measure, adding that smaller congregations typically don’t have the money to afford private security, FOX 13 reported.

Anyone hoping to volunteer will have to obtain a concealed carry permit, pass a level 2 background check, and secure approval from their local sheriff’s office before formally acting in a security capacity.

The bill specified that those acting as security via this method cannot be paid for their work, but it allows them to receive a “reasonable” reimbursement for their training costs.

It’s not a bad start.

I think a better move would be to just make it so anyone can lawfully carry in a church, then you don’t have to worry about the rest of the stuff. Those who mean harm will make it clear soon enough, and with an armed congregation, that will be a bad move.

However, I think there are a lot of ostensibly pro-gun people who somehow think people shouldn’t carry guns in churches–people like Dad–because it’s supposed to be a place of peace and worship. I sincerely understand that. I just repeat that not everyone feels that way, and far too many of those want to rack up a massive death toll.

Because of that, this might be the way to step forward without completely pushing those parties too far. When this turns out not to do any of the things the anti-gunners claim it will–and there will be claims of the church aisles running red with blood–then it becomes a bit easier to move that line a little farther down the road to where it should have been all along.

And, in the meantime, churches get a lot safer than they might otherwise be if they don’t have the resources to hire private security.

A Handgun is No Longer Enough: The Evolving Standard for Armed Self-Defense

The Sovereign Citizen and the Imminent Threat

The right enshrined in the Second Amendment was not a mere allowance for hunting or personal security; it was a profound constitutional imperative designed to ensure the survival of the republic.

Our Founding Fathers deliberately vested the ultimate responsibility for public safety and the nation’s defense in an armed, prepared citizenry they called the American Militia. They understood that the collective strength of the people, armed with common, readily available firearms, was the most resilient check against tyranny, invasion, and civil catastrophe.

As Supreme Court Justice Joseph Story stated, the right to keep and bear arms “has justly been considered as the palladium of the liberties of a republic; since it offers a strong moral check against the usurpation and arbitrary power of rulers.” Furthermore, James Madison argued that an armed citizenry, trained and ready, is “the best and most natural defense of a free country.” Their intent was clear: a free state is secured by a citizenry that is equipped to defend itself against the three distinct threats of tyranny, foreign invasion, and domestic unrest.

Today, this core mandate remains profoundly true, especially in the face of alarming official warnings. The National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) recently issued a sobering advisory that the U.S.-designated terrorist group Al-Qaida and its Yemen-based affiliate (AQAP) remain intent on striking America. This is not a theoretical threat; it is a live intelligence concern.

READ MORE: US National Counterterrorism Center warns of threat from al Qaeda

This reality has been sharply articulated by law enforcement leaders. My local Butler County, Ohio, Sheriff Richard K. Jones, reflecting on warnings from the FBI regarding imminent terrorist threats, stated, “The terrorists are here… it is just a matter of time before they attack. The national government can’t take care of it all. There are more local police than the FBI. It all comes down to preparing for it.” To meet this level of threat, preparation must surpass outdated standards.

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Deadly stabbing at Southgate Kroger ruled self-defense, prosecutors say

A deadly stabbing at a Southgate Kroger on Oct. 7 resulted in the death of 23-year-old Ramon Vazquez after an altercation with 33-year-old Charles Hinton. Vazquez attacked Hinton, who then stabbed Vazquez twice in self-defense, according to prosecutors. Hinton will not be charged for the stabbing but faces charges for carrying a concealed weapon, as he illegally possessed the knife used in the incident. Hinton is set to be arraigned on Oct. 11.

No charges filed after shooting leaves one dead in Buncombe County

No charges will be filed after a shooting left one person dead in Buncombe County, North Carolina, on Wednesday.

Around 6 p.m., deputies with the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office responded to a domestic disturbance call at a home on Kreston Drive in the Bear Creek community.

When deputies arrived, they found 55-year-old William Jennings Bryan Clay III dead.

According to authorities, it was determined that deadly force was used in self-defense and in self-defense of others within the home.

“This case highlights how the dedication of BCSO personnel to impartial fact finding empowers those who act lawfully in self-defense,” Captain Chris Stockton said. “This incident has forever changed the lives of several community members. Again, our hearts go out to them as they navigate this complex time.”

No other information has been released.

Louisiana Man Shot While Trying to Set House on Fire With Someone Inside

LIVINGSTON PARISH, LA (KPEL) —The Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office responded to a residence in the Albany area after receiving reports of a shooting.

Deputies arrived on scene around 3 pm Tuesday, where they discovered a man who had been shot suffering from a leg wound. He was brought to a local hospital where he recieved treatment and has been confirmed to be in stable condition.

The other individual was detained for questioning, and investigators learned that the wounded individual was attempting to set a home on fire by pouring gasoline on the floor, with someone inside.

At that point, the individual who was initially detained by police fired a shot, striking the other individual to prevent him from starting the house fire.

Our investigation points to the shooter acting in self-defense.

Wednesday afternoon, the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s office confirmed that he was active and that the shot fired was an attempt to prevent a house fire.

During our investigation, it was learned prior to being shot, the person with the gunshot wound had poured gasoline on the house floor & was attempting to set it ablaze with someone inside. The shot was fired in an attempt to stop that from happening.

The wounded individual now faces an Attempted Aggravated Arson charge. The Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office says the investigation is ongoing.

The identity of both individuals involved has not been released at this time.

Man dead after shooting near Sayre, police say
Not much in this news item. More below

Man Shoots Wife’s Ex-Husband in Self-Defense While Being Violently Beaten With Picture Frame

SAYRE, PA — A deadly altercation unfolded Friday afternoon in a Sayre home when a man was forced to defend himself against a violent and prolonged assault by his wife’s ex-husband, resulting in a fatal shooting.

According to the Athens Township Police Department, officers responded to a report of gunfire at 210 Vista Drive at approximately 3:40 p.m. on October 3, 2025. Upon arrival, officers found 59-year-old John J. Kraus suffering from gunshot wounds. He was transported by Greater Valley EMS to Robert Packer Hospital, where he later died from his injuries.

Police say the incident began when 57-year-old David Hancock and his wife—Kraus’s ex-wife—were visiting Kraus’s mother at the residence. Both were inside the home by invitation.

Without warning or provocation, Kraus reportedly attacked Hancock in the living room, slamming him to the floor and knocking over furniture. Witnesses stated that Kraus pinned Hancock and repeatedly punched him in the head and face. Kraus then grabbed a nearby picture frame and continued striking Hancock, breaking the frame and glass in the process.

Despite being severely injured and bleeding from the head, Hancock remained pinned under Kraus. Hancock told police he believed Kraus intended to kill him, prompting him to draw his legally concealed firearm and shoot Kraus twice in self-defense.

Responding officers observed Hancock bleeding heavily from the head and holding a blood-soaked shirt to his injuries. He was also treated at Robert Packer Hospital.

Police confirmed that Hancock and all witnesses remained on scene and fully cooperated with the investigation. The case remains under review, but initial findings suggest the use of deadly force was consistent with Pennsylvania law, which permits such action when a person reasonably believes it is necessary to protect themselves from death or serious bodily injury.

Thankfully, Hancock was armed and able to draw his concealed handgun while under a brutal and sustained attack. Although Kraus was unarmed in the conventional sense, he used an improvised weapon—a picture frame with glass—to repeatedly strike Hancock in the head while pinning him to the floor. The force and nature of the assault, combined with Hancock’s visible injuries, highlight why Pennsylvania law permits the use of deadly force in self-defense when faced with an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm. This case serves as a stark reminder that a deadly threat does not require a firearm—violent intent and the means to cause serious injury can justify a defensive response.

I wonder why their Supreme Court didn’t simp0ly throw the whole case out of court and dismiss the charge. Of course, we have to remember that lawyers live on ‘billable hours’ and judges are mostly lawyers too.

Self-defense law applies to bedrooms, Arizona Supreme Court says

Arizona law allows anyone to protect themselves from an uninvited person entering their home, and according to the Arizona Supreme Court, that also includes bedrooms.

A Pima County jury found John Brown guilty of attacking a neighbor with a microphone stand after the neighbor and his girlfriend entered his room. Though Brown lived with his girlfriend, the two had separate rooms. His girlfriend had invited the neighbor, someone Brown had previously gotten into a fight with. Brown left the two of them alone and locked himself in his bedroom. His girlfriend broke open the lock, and the neighbor tried to enter the room when Brown attacked him.

At trial, Brown asked that the jury be educated on state law that allows a person to claim self-defense if they attack someone entering their residential structure uninvited. The judge denied the request, ruling that his bedroom was not a “residential structure” and that the neighbor had been invited over to the home by another person living in the home.

After being found guilty, the judge sentenced Brown to five years in prison. Brown appealed the ruling, and after losing the appeal, he asked the Arizona Supreme Court to review the case.

Five out of six justices disagreed with the Pima County court’s decision not to let the jury consider the residential self-defense argument.

In an opinion written by Justice James Beene, the court decided that the way the state law is written, Brown’s bedroom should have been considered a residential structure.

Three things make any space a legally recognized residential structure, according to the justices:

The space must be a structure, movable or immovable, permanent or temporary, and adapted for human residence. It should be enclosed and have sides and a floor.
The structure also must be a place for lodging, meaning that it is a place where someone can rest or sleep.
The structure also needs to be separately securable, meaning that the entry point can be locked or secured.

Beene explained that Brown’s room fit all these points, and because he locked the room, it could be said that any person breaking into the room was uninvited.

The Arizona Supreme Court vacated Brown’s verdict and sent the case back to Pima County Superior Court for a new trial.

Women don’t need gun control activists telling them how to defend themselves
Proper training addresses mindset, marksmanship, and decision-making under stress. It’s not about checking boxes or reciting slogans — it’s about preparing women for the real-world challenges they face.

It may surprise some, but women and minorities are now the fastest-growing segment of new gun owners. Since 2019, nearly half of first-time gun buyers, about 3.5 million, have been women. Their reasons are simple and deeply personal: they want to feel safe, protect their families, and take responsibility for their own security in an uncertain world.

That growth is something gun control groups like Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action can’t ignore. After years of demonizing gun owners and lobbying to restrict our rights, they now see they’re losing ground. Instead of rethinking their position on Second Amendment Rights, they’re trying a new tactic: launching firearms “training” programs and repackaging their political agenda as education to sway public perception.

Think about the irony. These are the same groups that claim the Second Amendment is obsolete, insist no one “needs” a gun, and argue that firearms make families less safe. Now they want to be seen as trusted sources for firearms instruction? It’s as backwards as letting burglars write your home security manual or foxes guard the henhouse.

This isn’t a genuine change of heart — it’s a calculated strategy. They know that if new gun owners connect with trusted, pro-Second Amendment communities, they’ll lose their influence for good. So, they’re attempting to insert themselves into the training space to control the message from within. These gun control groups don’t support your constitutional rights, but they are masquerading as a trusted resource because they want to shape how you exercise them and dilute your empowerment.

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Robbery Gone Wrong … CCL Defends Themself Against four Attackers that Came into the house he was Working On … Mekhi Moore (19) aka Glizzy The Tweaker (DottieRoad) has been identified as the young male shot & killed

On Friday, Sept. 26th, 2025, around 5:03pm, Chicago Police responded to calls of 2 ppl shot on 89th & Michigan. Upon arrival, they found Mekhi laying in the street with 4 Gsws to the chest. CPR was given as he was rushed to UofC Hospital where he was pronounced 0-1-1-0 (Deceased)

CPD says Mekhi was with a group of ppl who pulled up at the location. Believes he is an offender of a robbery gone wrong. A Construction contractor who had a CCL fired shots at them. The other males got away in a vehicle. The Contractor was taken into custody for questioning.

CPD recovered 2 weapons on scene. Area Detectives are investigating.

Anyone with information on this homicide can go to http://CPDTIP.COM to remain anonymous, or contact Chicago Police 6th District (312)745-3610

CCL holder shoots, kills man trying to break into West Side apartment

CHICAGO (WGN) – A man was shot and killed by a concealed carry license holder while trying to break into a West Side apartment Saturday morning, according to Chicago police.

Sources close to the investigation said a 33-year-old man was kicking the back door of an apartment, threatening a woman and her children inside. The resident called police and a relative, a 28-year-old woman, who was able to get there quickly.

Police said the incident happened in the 3400 block of West Monroe Street just before 7 a.m. Saturday in East Garfield Park.

The man allegedly continued trying to get into the apartment, breaking a bedroom window and threatening to kill the family inside, sources told WGN-TV. The 28-year-old relative, who has a valid CCL, fired toward the man, hitting him multiple times.

According to police, the suspect in the attempted break-in was transported to Mt. Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The CCL holder was taken to Area Four for questioning, and no charges have been announced.

Police said the incident appears to be domestic-related.

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First 30 Seconds: The Active Shooter Problem

America has been failing for over 40 years at understanding, planning for, and responding to Active Shooter attacks. So, we continue to see attacks end in high victim-counts. America fails because we:
– do not base plans on TIME & MATH
– like plans that are easy to type, easy to drill, and do not “trigger” anyone
– recommend and adopt “best practices” that are not best
– adopt plans that work flawlessly every day there is no attack, but fail during attacks
– desperately want a non-violent solution to an extremely violent problem
– allow emotions and political agendas to distract us

The author served as an active-duty US Army officer for over 20 years. Throughout this career, planning to give and receive deadly violence was a common, required task. Ten days after his Army retirement, he began teaching public high school, where violence was never allowed, discussed, or planned for. He was STUNNED when school leaders told him the school’s planned response during an Active Shooter attack was to gather in groups and wait to see if the killer or cops got to you first.
This experience started his study of the Active Shooter problem. This book is about what he found.

Read Ed’s no-nonsense, blunt analysis of the Active Shooter problem. Using TIME & MATH analysis, he clearly shows the ONLY response that has a high expectation of minimizing victims in future attacks.
This is UNLIKE any discussion of the Active Shooter problem you have heard from any source. It disproves MANY long-held myths and assumptions, including that we should rely on RUN HIDE FIGHT, Lockdown Drills, and 911 response. It is a wake-up call for America, the “leaders” of our schools, churches, and businesses, and our elected officials.
America has failed at this for 40+ years. It’s time to end the failure.

“Ed Monk is today’s leading expert on thwarting mass murderers. His recommended strategy is by far the most effective, as proven in cases where the defenders did what Monk suggested.” — Massad Ayoob

 

Machete-wielding robber shot dead at Jasper County barbershop

A man was killed in an apparent self-defense shooting as he tried to rob an employee at a Ridgeland barbershop Thursday morning, according to police.

The person who shot him and three others inside the Main Street business were uninjured.

The suspected robber, identified as 55-year-old Ridgeland resident Curtis Edward Scott, was fatally shot by an employee of Jay’s Barber Shop after entering the business through the back door around 10:30 a.m., wearing a ski mask and carrying a machete.

As Scott appeared to raise the machete, one barber grabbed his pistol and fired one round that struck Scott in the chest, according to the Ridgeland Police Department.

Scott fled out the back exit but collapsed beside his vehicle that was parked behind the building, said Lt. Daniel Litchfield of the RPD. He was pronounced dead shortly after.

The shooting seemed to be an act of self-defense based on officers’ initial findings, Litchfield said, although the circumstances of the incident remained under investigation. Police obtained the barbershop’s surveillance footage and interviewed the four witnesses, including one customer, who all provided similar accounts of the incident.

Florida bill would allow armed volunteers to protect churches, synagogues, mosques
Sen. Don Gaetz said he ‘hoped (the bill) would never have been necessary.’

It’s rare when Sen. Don Gaetz says he filed a bill that he “hoped would never have been necessary.”

“But pastors in my area came to me with the request that I help them,” said Gaetz, R-Niceville, of Senate Bill 52.

The bill he spoke of, entitled “Security Services at Places of Worship,” would provide an exemption from licensure requirements for certain volunteers who provide armed security for places of worship.

“I hope the bill will help in assisting churches who feel like they have to protect themselves and their parishioners,” Gaetz said.

Here’s why: A string of recent shootings across the country and a major Florida court ruling on gun rights have reignited the national debate over firearms.

Recently in late August, two children were killed and and 17 people, including 14 children, were wounded after a shooter opened fire at a Catholic church in Minneapolis.

And last week, on the same day conservative activist Charlie Kirk was killed at an event at a Utah university, two teenagers were wounded after a 16-year-old student fired shots inside his Colorado high school. He later killed himself as authorities confronted him outside.

In Florida, the state’s 1st District Court of Appeal declared unconstitutional  a state law that bans the open carrying of firearms. A three-judge panel said the ban was incompatible with the Second Amendment right to bear arms.

According to the Gun Violence Archive, as of Sept. 18, there have been 305 mass shootings in 2025.

Gaetz’s bill will allow volunteers who meet certain requirements to provide security for places of worship if the security plan is approved by the local sheriff’s office; the volunteer has a valid Florida concealed carry permit and does not receive compensation for the security work; and if they pass a level 2 background check.

A level 2 background check is a state and federal-level fingerprint-based check, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

The bill language says “place of worship” but also includes the words “church, mosque, or synagogue.”

“I was approached by Protestant ministers,” Gaetz said, adding that he has not spoken to Roman Catholic clergy, imams or rabbis.

But “I took the liberty of defining a house of worship in a way that would include all denominations,” he explained.

Antisemitic incidents in the United States have increased in the past couple of years, according to the Anti-Defamation League. In 2024, these incidents rose for the fourth consecutive year, reaching 9,354 total incidents, the highest level ever recorded in 45 years of record keeping.

There will be a companion bill in the Florida House, Gaetz said, and he expects it to be filed in the coming days. The 2026 legislative session convenes Jan. 13, and committee weeks begin Oct. 6.

If passed, the measure will take effect on July 1, 2026.

Americans Prefer Communities With Guns
Gun bans aren’t gaining traction.

With so many laws on the books regulating gun ownership and enforcing myriad gun control measures, it’s more than a bit surprising that Americans prefer law-abiding citizens be allowed to have firearms in their neighborhoods. This includes those who identify as Democrats. A new survey conducted by Napolitan News Service reveals 53% of voters “prefer to live in a community where people are allowed to own guns, while 38% say they would prefer to live where guns are outlawed.” This includes 76% of those who self-identify as Republican and 63% of Democrats.

By an almost 2-1 margin, men say they want to live in an area where their friends and neighbors are allowed to own guns. Women, however, appear to have mixed feelings, with 44% saying they prefer to have firearms outlawed. Forty-three percent of women want to live in a location where guns are allowed.

When asked about gun violence and so-called “mass shootings,” 56% of those polled would rather have the laws already on the books enforced over passing new legislation. Concerning matters of race, it’s clear that blacks and Hispanics are more concerned about “mass shootings.” Only 3% of whites said it was “very likely” that a close family member might be killed in a random shooting, but 11% of blacks and 9% of Hispanics felt more personally threatened.

Sending Thoughts and Prayers

After the recent killing of innocent schoolchildren in Minnesota, controversy erupted over the frequently used phrase “sending thoughts and prayers” to the families of those tragically killed. This poll reveals that only 26% of voters were bothered by this phraseology; 71% said those comments were not offensive.

Perhaps less shocking is that 77% of elites, that is, people with a postgraduate education who make more than $150,000 annually and live in highly populated urban areas, “favor banning private ownership of guns.”

Twenty-two states currently have constitutional carry laws. These gun-friendly states follow the Second Amendment more closely by permitting citizens to have the legal right to both open and concealed carry without having to get a license. These locations tend to be more rural, while urban areas – where much of the gun violence occurs – are more likely to restrict gun ownership.

The most gun-friendly states in the United States include Alaska, Montana, Wyoming, and Arizona, with Idaho, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri coming in the second tier.

Guns in the Hands of Law-Abiding Citizens

Recently, it was revealed that FBI statistics “massively undercounted defensive gun use for years,” according to Liberty Nation News. Author Graham Noble zeroed in on a report from the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) that showed “massive errors” in FBI data during Joe Biden’s administration. “If your agenda is to turn public opinion against gun ownership and spread the fear of gun violence, the last thing you want is people knowing guns can be, and often are, used to deter or prevent crime,” Noble astutely noted.

Conveniently leaving out the many times guns were used to stop crime in order to advance a political agenda is diabolical. The CPRC counted 561 active shootings in which 202 armed civilian interventions were reported. But the FBI recorded only 374 “active” shootings in which 14 armed civilians intervened. A spread that wide cannot be attributed to a simple error.

The fact is that more people surveyed feel safer in communities where law-abiding citizens have their firearms at the ready. And it shows that, instinctively, Americans know that guns in the hands of a good guy are the best defense during an active crime involving handguns.

Homeowner shoots, kills intruder in apparent self-defense in Pierce County

PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — A homeowner shot and killed an intruder early Sunday morning in what appears to be a case of self-defense, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office.

The incident occurred around 1:45 a.m. when the homeowner called 911 to report the shooting.

Deputies arrived at the scene to find a 36-year-old man with a single gunshot wound on the back porch. Despite attempts to save his life, the man was pronounced dead.

Prior to the shooting, the suspect was captured on multiple homeowners’ security cameras walking around various properties in the area.

The 51-year-old homeowner has been cooperative with authorities, and no arrests have been made as the investigation continues.

Detectives and forensic teams are actively working at the scene to gather more information.

How 9/11 Made Me Understand Importance of Gun Ownership

The idea of 24 years sounds like an awfully long time. This day, 24 years ago, seems almost like yesterday to me. Especially in the wake of what happened to Charlie Kirk yesterday.

I was home from work. I’d been having a series of migraines and took a week off to deal with that. I woke up and turned on the TV, only to see one of the towers of the World Trade Center burning.

My wife was out with my then-infant son. He was two months old that day and had a checkup, so she was unaware of anything happening. I wasn’t. I saw the second plane hit. I saw the reports of what happened at the Pentagon and of a plane crash in Pennsylvania.

My nation was under attack, and no one had a clue what was next.

All of these reports kept staggering in, adding to the horror we all felt, and I honestly didn’t know if or when it was going to stop. My nation was under attack, and I, not that long out of the Navy, was powerless to do anything. Would the attacks come to our front doors?

I was powerless.

At the time, I didn’t own a single firearm. I had nothing with which to defend my home.

I wasn’t anti-gun. I just hadn’t bothered to get one. Guns were expensive, and I had a young family and wasn’t exactly making the big bucks. There were always other things to buy.

It was clear, at that moment, that needed to change.

No, it turned out that there wasn’t another wave coming on that fateful day. Four planes were all there was, though that was more than enough.

In the coming days and weeks, America changed for a time. We were a nation more or less united. We had an enemy, someone to focus our ire on other than one another. We went to war, then stayed there. An entire generation grew up in the shadow of conflict. First in Afghanistan, then Iraq. Millions put on the uniform and served. Thousands never came home. Tens of thousands came home battered and broken in some way.

But many of us became aware that the bad guys could hit us at home, and that those brave men and women couldn’t be a complete and total shield for the United States.

We’d have to step up.

I carry a gun these days, not just for pedestrian crime from violent Americans or illegal immigrants, but because the Jihadists who hated us then hate us now. I refuse to feel that kind of powerless in the face of such evil ever again.

Since that day, we’ve seen other terrorist attacks on American soil. The nature of radical Islam hasn’t changed, nor has its desire to bring down the freest nation on Earth, the one they call “The Great Satan.” They just haven’t accomplished anything on that scale since that day.

Now, they attack on a more personal level, and should that happen, I refuse to just be a victim.

I might die, but I’ll die fighting, trying to protect others and the nation I love so dearly.

Without our gun rights, I’d be left with harsh language and skills with weapons generally too archaic to take seriously, even as terrorist networks arm their future martyrs across borders without regard for local laws.

Luckily, I do have them, so rather than challenge them to a fight with longswords or spears, I can just shoot them as God and Sam Colt intended.

6 shot, 2 fatally, following robbery attempt at Oakland pawn shop, police say

OAKLAND, Calif. — Two people were shot dead and four were injured during a robbery attempt at a pawn shop in East Oakland on Wednesday evening, according to police.

UPDATE: 2 suspects killed in ‘gun battle’ with Oakland pawn shop owner after attempted robbery

Just before 7:45 p.m., several people were shot in the 7100 block of International Boulevard at the Cash 4 Gold pawn shop, according to the police officers’ union.

According to the preliminary investigation, individuals armed with weapons entered the pawn shop and an exchange of gunfire took place between these individuals and the workers inside the establishment, the department said.

When officers arrived at the scene, they located multiple people who were struck by the gunfire. Medical personnel confirmed that one person was deceased. Five other people who were struck by gunfire, including the business owner, were taken to an area hospital, where a second person was confirmed dead, the Oakland Police Department said. The remaining three suspects were in stable condition as of 10:30 p.m., and the owner is expected to survive, according to Oakland Police Officers Association spokesperson Sam Singer.

Singer said a robber allegedly pulled a gun on the store owner, who then pulled a gun on the robber and four accomplices.

A “major gun battle” ensued, said Singer.

The store owner allegedly shot and killed the two people and wounded the other three.

Detectives are conducting a follow-up investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting, the department said. The Oakland Police Department will be holding a press conference on Thursday.

Robber shot by bystander, 2nd suspect killed in Dania Beach: BSO

A robbery attempt in Dania Beach left one suspect injured and another one dead on Saturday night, deputies said.

According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, at around 6:52 p.m., deputies received reports of a shooting near the 600 block of Stirling Road.

When deputies arrived at the scene, they learned that the suspect had been shot after they robbed a bystander and a business in the area of the 800 block of Stirling Road.

Deputies said the suspect was found in the parking lot of the business, and he was taken to the hospital for treatment.

His condition and identity have not been released.

As deputies continued to investigate the incident, they learned that a second subject tried to run over the bystander during the shooting, which prompted the bystander to fire shots at the vehicle.

Video shows the window of the driver’s side door and shattered glass scattered on the ground alongside bloody clothes

The vehicle was later found near the 100 block of Phippen Waiters Road, and the driver suffered multiple gunshot wounds.

The driver was taken to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

His identity has not been released.

Deputies have not said if the bystander who fired those shots will be charged.

An investigation into the incident remains active.