Saturday, March 30, 2013

WILL OBAMA SEND ARMED FEDERAL AGENTS TO ENFORCE OBAMACARE?



The Tea Party is reporting Obama “has declared that the federal government will send federal agents into states to take over their insurance industry if they don’t surrender to ObamaCare and set up the exchanges demanded by the regime.”  The article goes on to say “Obama brazenly stands up there and says that We the People have absolutely no voice in how we attend to our own health care.  This is bold, in your face, tyranny.  This is treason!!! Obama and his cadre of Marxists have once again thrown the Constitution out the window and said ‘I demand this…..!!!!!’ or ‘I will by-pass Congress and do as I wish’.  Now he has decided to by-pass the state governments and the very voice of the people.  Is this not the definition of a dictatorship? 

Now, this does sound a tad far-fetched, doesn’t it?  Well, here are a couple of good old-time gambling stories to make you think twice.  Back in the mid-1980’s, the IRS decided that it wanted not only to tax dealer tips, but that it wanted the gambling halls to collect and withhold pre-determined amounts from tip income.  Most of the clubs, including Caesars, counted the total tips out in the “count room” at the end of each shift and then spilt them up.  In the wee small hours of the morning, IRS agents showed up armed with shotguns and pistols and stormed the count room at Caesars, seizing the tip boxes and holding the dealers at bay. 

In another instance during the same time period, the IRS was certain that the Chicken Ranch in Pahrump, Nevada, (just 50 miles or so west of Vegas), was keeping a double set of books.  So, the IRS and the FBI stormed the bordello, again in the middle of the night, seized the cash and the books and held the poor, defenseless and very naked damsels at bay with their “assault” rifles.  The IRS is also quite famous for its seizure of the Mustang Ranch near Reno Back in 1990 for “back taxes.”  The fame comes from the fact that the IRS proceeded to operate the bordello until they had run it into bankruptcy; now, who but the Federal Government can operate a sex and booze company in the this country and lose money doing it? 

This country is not without outright oppressive conduct, as you should know by now.  The possibility of armed IRS agents storming a state capitol at gunpoint in the middle of the night in order to seize its insurance records and to forcibly install ObamaCare is far more realistic than it sounds.  I would not put it past this pompous, arrogant and dictatorial President to order just that.  Maybe that’s why they’ve been buying up all of the ammo in the country. 

That’s MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.   


Friday, March 29, 2013

OBAMA WANTS TO TAX NATIVE AMERICANS

SPECIAL POST

Under apparent direction from the White House, the IRS is looking to tax per capita distributions of gaming revenues.  What this means is that the income tribes generate from their gaming operations and distributed to tribal members is becoming taxable income.  Additionally, the IRS is taking the stand that if some of the gaming revenues are used by the tribal government to provide services for its membership, the value of those services is taxable to the members who receive benefit of those services.  

Many Americans picture the tribes as getting rich off of oil and gas royalties as well as gambling profits.  While that is true in a few cases, most the of tribal governments still struggle to provide essential human services to members.  Poverty on reservations averages over 50% of the population.  The Federal Government has been notorious for decades for not meeting its statutory financial obligations to tribes, as evidenced by the abundance of lawsuits filed and won by tribes.  The tribes who are fortunate enough to have additional sources of revenue are, by-and-large, using those monies to try and pick up the slack.  

If the government is going to go after such income and tax it, then the government has a responsibility to come to the table with the funding and assistance that tribes need to meet the essential requirements for taking care of their people.  Otherwise, their tactic is but one more example of  government oppression and constitutes unjust confiscation. 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Thursday, March 28, 2013

OBAMA'S MEANSPIRITED DISRESPECT FOR AMERICANS

SPECIAL POST

"You forced my own Sequestration down my throat, so I'm closing the White House to tours, school children included.  I'm going to quit patrolling the borders and allow every illegal Mexican who wants to come into the country... in.  I'm closing down air traffic control towers and no, you can't have your frickin' Keystone Pipeline.  In the meanwhile, all four of us Obama folks are going on vacation... in separate destinations and you, the pissant taxpayers are going to pay for it, big time. 

"And you know what?  There's not a damned thing you can do about it.  Nayah, nayah, nayah.  So there!" 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

YOU CAN'T EVEN TRUST THE COPS TODAY

SPECIAL POST

Remember the former cop who terrorized Los Angeles and southern California a few weeks back, before committing suicide while holed up in a cabin in Big Bear?  About 30 small groups joined together to put up a $1 million reward for information leading to the arrest and capture of Christopher Dorner. 

Now that Dorner is dead and the dust has settled, some of the groups are apparently reneging.  The Peace Officers Research Association and the City of Riverside are backing out, citing the requirement that Dorner be arrested and convicted.  Remember that Dorner killed a Riverside officer before they put up $100,000 of the $1 million. 

I suppose those cops would be madder than hell if the couple who turned Dorner in had not done so and he had gotten away.  They could have said, "Well, we know that $100,000 you guys pledged is no good, so we decided not to call."  It sure as hell makes you want to buy a ticket to the next Policeman's Ball, doesn't it?  How about ponying up a contribution to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund?  

They really should be ashamed of themselves.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.  


Tuesday, March 26, 2013

BURNEY HAS IT RIGHT

SPECIAL POST

Nearly three years ago, on July 17, 2010 I posted a story here about Tyler Roads, a Marine who had just made his last trip home.  I was struck by the turnout of the people in Burney, California who lined the streets, waving their flags and paying their last respect to a man who had given his dying breath for his country.  

Now, another incident in Burney has caused me to give pause... and praise.  You see, Burney is a small town with a big heart and that is the understatement of the year.  The people in Burney are good, solid, down-to-earth Americans who care; they care for each other, their town and their country.  If there is anywhere in the nation that epitomizes what made our country great, it's Burney.  

On Saturday, March 23rd, two young men stepped forward in a Boy Scout Court of Honor to receive their Eagle Scout badges.  The main meeting place in town, the VFW Hall, was packed to the gills for the ceremony honoring Joseph Tereba and Colton Ferguson.  As the event wore on, I couldn't help but ask myself: "Where is the rest of America?  Where are our values?  What is our focus?"  

These are the roots of fundamental goodness we so desperately need to return to, because in seeking them and renewing them, we can truly save our country from the clutches of those who would otherwise destroy it.   Thank you, Joe and Colton, for reminding me of who and where I am and what we should all be pursuing.  And, thank you again Tyler, for your service to your country.   

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Monday, March 25, 2013

GUN CONTROL B.S.

SPECIAL POST

A Congressional Research Study reports that 547 people were killed in mass gun shootings since 1983.  I agree; there should not have been even one.  

During the same time period, 1,276,377 were killed in automobile accidents in this country. 

Madame Feinstein, Mayor Bloomberg, Barack Obama and the State of Colorado:  You really need to get all of the facts on the table. 

It seems to me that, if you are going to lock up and confiscate all of our guns on the basis of mass shootings, you really need to repossess and destroy every motor vehicle in this country first. 

Since motor vehicles are not protected by the 2nd Amendment, you should have no problem. 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Saturday, March 23, 2013

A FRANK DISCUSSION ABOUT GUN VIOLENCE

One of the questions I am frequently asked, in a rather antagonistic way, is why I want to see more kids killed, such as what happened in Newtown, Connecticut.  People who ask that question really have no understanding of the issue; they are in the attack mode and dealing strictly from emotion.  

This is just not about the kids in Newtown.  Several thousand people die in this country every year due to gun violence, but less than 600 have died in mass shootings in all of the years since 1983 put together.  To begin, then, this should not be about those kids or about mass shootings; it should be about gun crime taken as a whole. 

Secondly, the glib position that we need to get rid of guns is dangerous.  FBI statistics show, in fact, that the higher the percentage of private citizens owning guns in a community the lower the violent crime rate; the tougher the gun ownership laws are, the higher the violent crime rate.  Furthermore, if you somehow managed to gather up all of the guns in this nation without causing a civil war or revolution in the process, then you would have a citizenry powerless against its government; historically, that condition has led to tyranny, oppression and some form of dictatorial government in every single instance.  

What we should be asking ourselves are questions such as: Has the decline in ethical and moral leadership in the country at all levels had an adverse impact on society in general, and on violent crime in particular?  If so, what do we do about it?  

As it stands, you have gun control advocates using Newtown as a reason to confiscate guns.  You have gun owners ready to shoot the first sorry soul who gets sent to confiscate those guns.  Yet, both sides should agree that something needs to be about our society, drug and mental issues, and other root causes of all forms of violence in this country.  Something needs to be done to bring us back to the ethical and moral values upon which the country was built and which made us the great nation we once were. 

If we had a real leader in the White House, he would be pulling both sides together, sitting them down at the table and looking for real answers and solutions.  He should not be trying to fan the fires of hatred between the two sides.  

In the meanwhile, to re-coin a phrase, "While Obama golfs, America crumbles."  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Friday, March 22, 2013

LIBYANS ROUNDING UP ALL CHRISTIANS

SPECIAL POST

Militant Islamists are rounding up Christians in Libya, detaining them, beating them and accusing them of crimes; some have been deported, some are still in prison, some have died.  They are being forced to deny Christ or face the consequences.  Torture including electric shocks is being used.  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/9927447/Christians-in-Libya-being-rounded-up-and-beaten.html

The round-up appears to have been carried out by Ansar al-Sharia, a notorious militia accused of involvement in the death of Chris Stevens, the American ambassador, in the city last September. In the meanwhile, Obama wants to name a new U.S. Ambassador and send her/him to Libya and we still don't know what happened in Benghazi. 

Are we out of our skulls? 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Thursday, March 21, 2013

INFORMATION OVERLOAD


SPECIAL POST

I've had several posts about the gathering of citizens' personal information by the government.  But, they are not the only culprits amassing huge treasure troves of information, sometimes with and sometimes without your knowledge.  

Take Target Stores, for instance.  They started a policy of swiping your driver's license into their computer system whenever you buy a nicotine or alcohol-related product.  They insist that the information obtained and retained is only your name and date of birth, but those license stripes carry a wealth of information about you, including your full name, address, date of birth, social security number, and whether or not you are an organ donor.  Additional information is included in some states.  Once your license is swiped in association with a nicotine purchase, for example, that information could easily be sold to health insurance companies.  Target swears they don't do those things, but Target is also the big box store that banned the Salvation Army bell ringers from its store fronts. 

When you make a purchase anywhere using a credit card, a record of your purchases can be attached to your name and address and sold to marketing companies or used internally to send you special offers.  Those lists could end up being sold to the government, which now knows that you buy 100 rounds of .45 caliber ammunition twice a month.  I think that statement successfully plants the bug and starts the imagination about how much information is available to collect and how easy it is to do so in this digital age.  

I think the databases on file for all American citizens should be make available for them to review at no charge, just like credit bureaus have to allow you access to your credit records once a year. 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION respectfully submitted. 

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?

SPECIAL POST

Here we sit with high unemployment, a sagging economy and our jobs moving overseas.  The sad fact of the matter is, it's cheaper to send ore from the mines to the harbors, to ships across the ocean, to steel mills and back again than it is to make steel here.  It's less expensive, pound for pound, to buy a foreign-made car than it is to buy a U.S. made car.  The only people hollering for us to buy products made in the U.S.A. anymore are the unions, and they're the ones who chased all of the jobs out of the country.  

Just stop to think: We're the ones who have the expertise and the resources; we should be selling our American-made cars to the rest of the world.  

Now, our government is exacerbating the problem by piling on taxes and costly regulations.  That's why we have offshore marketing and manufacturing, and that's why the American economy is not cooking and people are out of work.  The only way to make the economy cook again is to reduce manufacturing and supply costs, cut through the massive red tape, reduce wages and benefits to competitive levels, and create a tax system that once again encourages investment in our country. 

In order to accomplish these things, we need to clean the rats out of Washington D.C.  Don't you think it's time we started?  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 


Tuesday, March 19, 2013

JUST WHOSE POWER IS IT?

SPECIAL POST

Speaking before CPAC on Saturday, Sarah Palin hit the nail firmly and squarely on the head: It's time for the political leaders of this country to get over it... Political power in this country starts at the grass roots and goes up from there; political power does not start at the top and float down.  Further, those at the top have got to quit tip-toeing through the tulips of political correctness and they've got to start exerting true American leadership. 

Without us at the grass roots level, there is no party and no power.  The right to lead is something that is earned and not commanded.  The ability to lead should not be squandered on the innuendos of politics, but should be used to improve our nation and to assure that our government "of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from the face of the earth." 

The Republican Party wants to "re-brand" itself.  There's nothing in that statement which talks about getting back to the party grass roots.  All that statement says to me is the the Republicans know they have screwed things up, but they want to continue screwing things up and they simply want to call the screw ups something else.  Until the hierarchy gets over the fact that they are only the instruments of power and that the real power lies with people like you and me, the Republican Party is dead meat.  

We, the people, are desperate for good, strong, fair and responsive leadership.  After 50 years, I left the Republican Party because I could no longer see that kind of leadership in the party and I was sick and tired of the attitude at the top.  The Republicans don't have a monopoly on arrogance, either.  I think they learned it from progressivism and from the Democrats.  Washington is full of half-wits who think that, because they have a government title and a fat paycheck, the power belongs to them.  

It's up to us to set them straight.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectively submitted. 

Monday, March 18, 2013

DASTARDLY DIRTY DEALING

SPECIAL POST

On February 26th on this blog, I suggested that Michelle Obama might run for the Presidency in 2016.  I now think I was wrong.  

It has been leaked that Michelle has said that she is "considering" running for office.  

So, here's the new game plan, as I see it:
Hillary for President and Michelle for Vice President in 2016 and 2020;
Michelle for President and Who Knows for Vice President in 2024 and 2028.  

Unless I miscalculated, that means 20 more years of this bullshit.  Enjoy your meal. 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Saturday, March 16, 2013

GETTING AT THE TRUTH

It's a difficult world in this country if you want to know the truth.  The President certainly won't tell it to you.  The liberal press won't tell it to you.  Congress won't tell you the truth.  The ideology of obfuscation, spin and lying has trickled out of Washington to your local and state government.

Just who can you trust?  I defer to Spock: "Trust no one."  

What a sad state of affairs it is when you live in America, land of the free, and you can't trust anyone.  The problem is, everyone has an agenda.  CNN has an agenda and so does Fox.  The closest I've seen so far to telling it like it is is THE BLAZE, but as far as I am concerned the jury is still out on that one.  

So, where do you turn to get the facts? 

I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but you're going to have to educate yourself as to what is going on in this country.  Get onto the Internet and start asking questions.  When you get an answer, then ask "Why?"  Keep traveling down that "why" road until you reach the end of it and there you are most likely to find the truth. If what you are hearing doesn't make sense, it's most likely a falsehood.  

Do you need to get at the truth?  Absolutely.  This is your country... our country.  We have every right to the facts.  We can't justifiably set foot into a voting booth unless we know the facts; that's how we end up with a Congress that doesn't do its job and a President who we despise.   

Yes, it takes effort.  Is your life, the life and future of your children and grandchildren worth the investment of time and effort?  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Friday, March 15, 2013

OBAMA SEIZES JUDICIARY BRANCH

SPECIAL POST

Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton has acknowledged the release of 2,228 criminal and illegal aliens "for budgetary reasons."  He said they included detainees held on theft charges, financial criminals and drunken drivers.  They were not granted pardons, either by their respective governors or by the President.  No Judge ruled that they must be released due to budgetary constraints or for any other reason. 

It was obviously intended that Americans would take notice of these releases and would demand restoration of funding lost to budgetary cuts associated with Sequestration.  There was no clarification as to whether or not the releases also included criminals convicted of more serious crimes. 

United States law is very clear on who does what in our government:  (1) Congress makes the laws, (2) the Executive Branch implements and enforces the laws, and (3) the courts ensure that the laws and the enforcement thereof are Constitutional. There are four ways that any criminal can avoid serving his/her entire sentence:  (1) Early release upon parole, (2) a pardon, (3) death and (4) court order.  Having the Executive Branch arbitrarily release these prisoners on the basis of budgetary constraints is not within the guidelines or parameters established in law.  

The President, in his zeal to push American noses in Sequestration cuts, has clearly violated the law and we, the people for whom he works, should be outraged. I don't care if all they did was to steal a pencil; they were charged, found guilty and sentenced under due process.  Obama has only two choices: (1) have them serve their sentences, or (2) pardon them.  Anything else is an impeachable offense and that is the mechanism that should now be in motion.   

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 


Thursday, March 14, 2013

OBAMA NOMINATES A NEW LIBYAN AMBASSADOR?

SPECIAL POST

President Barack Hussein Obama has nominated Kay Jones to be the new U.S. Ambassador to Libya.  This is another disgusting Anti-American outrage. 

We still do not have the answers regarding Benghazi; Obama and his henchmen refuse to answer.  The perpetrators of the Benghazi Massacre remain unidentified and still at large.  Obama has done nothing to retaliate for the deaths of four of our Americans. And now, he wants to send in another Ambassador to a nation that cannot provide security and whose motives remain unclear? 

If the Congress approves of this outrage before the Benghazi issue is answered and those responsible have been captured and brought to justice, then Congress be damned. 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

A LESSON FROM THE VATICAN

SPECIAL POST

I'm not a Catholic, but who can avoid catching the glimpses of ancient pageantry and religious ceremony as the process begins for selecting a new Pope?  

Watching and listening, it occurs to me that regardless of the ravages of time, the sex scandals, the Vatican Bank scandals and the pulls and outright tugs at the moral fabric of the church brought about by changing times and mores, the Catholic Church has persevered and survived, largely unchanged over these two thousand plus years.  One must ask: Can the United States survive even a relatively insignificant 250 years? What is it about the Catholic Church that has maintained it during two thousand plus years while nations have come and gone?  

Perhaps, I surmise in reflection, it is because of the history and tradition, the regalia, pomp and circumstance... all of which are becoming conspicuous by their absence in our country.  Maybe it is due to the longstanding and rigid doctrines of the church.  Maybe it is because God Himself oversees and protects the church.  Maybe all of these things play some role in the survival of the church and maybe the absence of these things plays an equal role in the decline of our country.  

One thing is certain:  We are the keepers of our own destiny; what we allow to happen to our country most certainly will happen.  Unchecked, the decay of our society and our beliefs is written in the wind.  

Only we can change that.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.   


Tuesday, March 12, 2013

OBAMACARE WOES

 SPECIAL POST

ObamaCare is proving to be just as bad as I said it would.  For one thing, health premiums will be up by $2,100 per family in the first year alone.  Young men and women just entering the work force will be faced with crippling premiums; those who also have to repay a college loan may have to make a choice as to what to pay.  The Congressional Budget Office says ObamaCare will incease Federal spending by $600 billion in that first year.  There are already of 20,000 pages of new regulations and the bureaucrats are still writing.  

The only people have with this absolutely horrible piece of legislation are lawers and Obama.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Monday, March 11, 2013

DEBT, DEBT, DEBT

SPECIAL POST

Here's an interesting chart from NEWSMAX Magazine that I have modified:

U.S. FEDERAL FINANCES:
   Tax Revenue                                  $2,449,000,000,000
   Expenditures                                 $3,538,000,000,000
   New Debt                                       $1,089,000,000,000
   National Debt                               $17,000,000,000,000
   Sequester Cuts                                   $85,000,000,000

Now, let's compare that to a family budget of $24,490 a year...

FAMILY BUDGET:
   Family Annual Income                                    $24,490
   Family Spending                                             $35,380
   New Credit Card Debt                                    $10,890
   Family Debt                                                  $170,000
   Annual Budget Cuts                                              $85

What's wrong with this picture? 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectively submitted. 

Saturday, March 09, 2013

PLAIN SPEAKING

Let me make some things plain as English: 

I will decide what to feed my children; not government;
I will decide when to discuss the subject of sex with my children, not government;
I will decide what doctor to go to, not government;
I will decide if I want to be overweight, not government;
I will decide if I want to suck up a 32 ounce drink, not government;
I will decide what kind of light bulbs to use, not government;
I will decide what kind of commode to install in my house, not government;
I will decide what I want to say and how to say it, not government;
I will decide how many guns to own and how much ammo to buy, not government;
I will decide what employees to hire and how much to pay them, not government;
I will accept responsibility for my own life and will not give my rights of life over to ANY government. 

Sneaking an enemy combatant into this country for the sole purpose of demonstrating to me that the government has the right to violate our laws is not acceptable;
Planning to enact a law to require me to vote or pay a fine or go to jail is not acceptable;
Planning to infringe upon my God-given unalienable rights as guaranteed under the Bill of Rights, is not acceptable;
Lying to me about the facts, covering up the facts and stonewalling investigation into the facts are not acceptable;
Throwing tantrums and “getting even” are not acceptable. 

If I want to cling to my Bible and guns, those are my rights to keep and not the government’s to take way;   
If I want to pray to God on the public land that I and my fellow citizens own, I will do so;
If I want to display the Holy Cross on my car windshield, I’m going to do so;
If I want to put “In God We Trust” on my return mail address, I’ll do that, too. 

And, if our government wants to come and fine me or throw me into prison for doing these things, I will fight and scream until my dying breath. 

I am an American.  Don’t mess with me.   

That’s MY AMERICAN OPINION respectfully submitted. 

Friday, March 08, 2013

DEMOCRATIC HOUSE IN 2014?

SPECIAL POST

Much of the political talk these days is about the Republicans being able to take back the White House in 2016.  Well, if the vote were taken today, according to a recent nationwide poll, Hillary would handily beat Chris Christie, Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan.  In the meanwhile, while the GOP is trying to find itself, redefine itself or reinvent itself, Obama's campaign minions are out in force working to turn out Republican House incumbents in the 2014 elections and the Republicans seem to either be oblivious to that fact or not concerned enough to do something about it.   

It never ceases to amaze me how politically naive the supposed "Old Guard" Republicans appear to be.  I'd sure as hell not want to be stuck in a foxhole with one of them.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Thursday, March 07, 2013

HOORAY FOR AMERICA

SPECIAL POST

There are several really neat things going on in the country right now.  For one, about 70% of Americans are glad to see the Sequester and the cut in spending.  That's a great sign now, that people are becoming aware of what is happening to our country.  

In Arkansas, the legislature has voted to limit abortion rights to the first 12 weeks.  Good for them; that's a step in the correct direction.  I don't know how anyone in this country who doesn't believe in the death penalty can believe in abortion.  

On the Hill, Senator Rand Paul has started a filibuster over the nomination of John Brennan to be Secretary of Defense.  The crux of the issue is the President's belief, upheld by Attorney General Holder, that the President has the authority to order a drone strike against an American citizen on American soil without providing "due process" as provided for in the Constitution.  

Then, there's the plunge in Obama's approval rating.  Finally, some signs of sanity in this horrible mess are starting to emerge.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 


Wednesday, March 06, 2013

BOYCOTT COLORADO

SPECIAL POST

Colorado is about to enact the toughest gun control laws in the United States, obviously designed to make it so expensive to own a gun that no one will be able to protect themselves.  Obama plans to model Federal legislation after the Colorado laws.  

Anyone who owns a gun or believes in the Second Amendment who does business in Colorado or with a Colorado firm should take his business to some other state where more reasonable people reside.  That's right, even avoid the Denver Airport in your travels.  Forget your winter ski vacation to Colorado slopes.  Don't buy anything on the Internet from a Colorado-based firm. 

If they can't enforce the gun laws they already have on the books, you're not safe there anyway, especially if you can't own a gun to defend yourself.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.