By State Representative Jenn Coffey, January 6, 2010
The lessons of history are still not yet learned by the NH Legislature. With
the creation of a ban on tools of self-defense by the Joint Facilities Committee
it has become painfully obvious that some of the members of the New Hampshire
Legislature have yet to learn from history.
Think of all the horrific acts that have been perpetrated on the law abiding
citizens of our great nation. Columbine, Virginia Tech, Luby's Cafe, and the
list goes on. Each of these places have one thing in common, they were all
"gun free zones."
It seems to elude many that when you announce to the world you are creating a
"gun free zone" you are in fact creating a Killing Zone - a place a
criminal knows no one will shoot back; no one will be able to stop them from
their crazed plan.
In each of the above instances the lunatic responsible had one thing and only
one thing in mind - to kill as many people as possible. It didn't matter to
them young or old, male or female, black or white, what mattered was body
count. In each of the instances the police were called to the scene and in each
of these instances they arrived to clean up the mess. This is not meant as an
attack on our police; they do the best they can. When bullets start flying they
are on average 6 minutes away from the scene and in some places here in New
Hampshire, in our smaller towns, they can be 30
minutes away. I personally know this as an EMT,
having to wait for a police officer to come and let me know a scene is safe
before I enter; they can only drive so fast.
There is a real reason that New Hampshire
has a lower crime rate than many other states; plain and simple, the criminal
element here knows many of us have the ability and the tools necessary to
defend ourselves. All you have to do is compare our state to, well, let's say
our nation's capital, Washington, D.C.
It may alarm you to know there are more rapes, robberies, and murders in D.C.
than in New Hampshire. What do
they have that we don't? Very restrictive gun laws, meaning the only ones with
the guns are the criminals.
I find it inconceivable that there are still people in our world that don't
seem to understand that the people who follow the laws we create are the hard
working honest citizens of our state. Those bent on mayhem will never follow
that law; that is what makes them criminals!
I was recently given a book by a family member and I encourage you to read it.
Perhaps if you take a moment you will understand this issue from someone who
knows it better than most, having lived though a violent rampage that took both
her mother's and father's lives. The book is called "From Luby's to the
Legislature" by Dr. Suzanna Hupp. She has the unique perspective of having
been on many sides of the issue, as an honest citizen, a victim, and a
legislator.
If you find that you still don't understand this issue go one step further and
look up a 20 minute movie on YouTube called "No Guns for Negros,"
put out by the Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership. If after
reading that book and seeing that movie you still fail to see why banning the
tools of self-defense is wrong, I can only hope you have a personal bodyguard.
Personally, I have received more phone calls and e-mails since the announcement
of the ban than ever before. What you may not realize is many of them are women
who have been victims of violent crime themselves. For some being able to have
a firearm, knife, pepper spray or some other means of self-defense and the
knowledge to use them is what enables them to venture out in to the world
alone. Until you yourself have either helped someone through that type of
physical and emotional pain, or God forbid been though it yourself, you cannot
begin to imagine what it is like to venture out alone.
Now some of these very people who would like to go to our state capitol fear
the idea. They fear being forced to be victims again and resent the legislators
that are forcing them to be just that.
(Representative Jennifer Coffey from Andover represents Merrimack District 6, which includes the towns of Andover, Boscawen, Canterbury, and Northfield. She is also a Director and the National Coordinator for Second Amendment Sisters, and an Advisor of Pro-Gun New Hampshire.)
Versions of this article were published on the Union Leader, at http://unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Jenn+Coffey%3a+Turning+the+State+House+into+a+no-self-defense+zone&articleId=c3e18a3a-145d-490e-918b-be78e42ccd7c , and on Fosters.com, at http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100106/GJOPINION_01/701069995/-1/fosnews