Having Firearms When You Need Them Most

BY Herschel Smith
6 years, 5 months ago

Miguel Faria, writing at The Telegraph:

In 2005, at the time of Hurricane Katrina, the New Orleans police used the excuse of enforcing compliance with the mandatory evacuation order to confiscate firearms. They went door-to-door seizing guns from the people who stayed behind hoping to ride out the storm. These were the same firearms the citizens expected to have available to protect their lives and property in the aftermath of the disaster.

In fact history has repeatedly shown that firearms, including assault weapons, can be very useful and life-saving tools following natural disasters, such as Hurricane Hugo in 1989 and Hurricane Andrew in 1992, and during times of civil unrest, as during the Rodney King L.A. riots of 1992.

In New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Mayor Ray Nagin’s police superintendent said that the only guns allowed would be “in the hands of law enforcement.” Moreover, Stacy Washington, a decorated Air Force veteran, writing for the NRA Americas’ 1st Freedom, pointed out: “Guns were confiscated with disastrous results: Utter lawlessness ensued, and the police were spread too thin to respond to all the mayhem. Before total gun removal was completed, the NRA stepped in — first gaining a preliminary injunction and then an order putting a stop to the ill-conceived plan. The sheriff had to return more than 1,000 firearms to their respective owners.”

Gun-grabbing superintendent should have known that confiscation of firearms from persons, who have not committed a crime, is a violation of the Second Amendment — and under the dire circumstances of a natural catastrophe, an inexcusable and unforgivable misjudgment, as well as an affront to the people of New Orleans.

Gun confiscation at the time of the Katrina disaster—when they are most needed by citizens to protect their families and property—was such an outrage that several states and the federal government passed laws to prevent that egregious constitutional infringement from ever taking place again during natural disasters.

In 2006 Congress passed the Disaster Recovery Personal Protection Act that became incorporated as an amendment to the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2007. It was signed into law on October 4, 2006. This federal legislation prevents the government from confiscating legally-owned firearms during times of major disasters or state of emergency. Following the example of the federal government, most state legislatures adopted similar versions of this law.

But be that as it may, on Sept 5, 2017, in preparation for contending with Hurricane Irma, the governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Kenneth Mapp, contrary to U.S. law, ordered the National Guard to confiscate firearms and ammunition from the people of the islands. Confiscation was supposedly necessary so the authorities “could carry out their mission.” Whatever that may be, we are left to wonder. Nevertheless, the islands are ruled by federal law approved by Congress in 1954, “Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands” and subject to U.S laws. Fortunately, the government of the Islands’ plans for gun confiscation seem to have been put on hold after the NRA threatened to file a lawsuit.

Washington further wrote: “Time after time during natural disasters, reports of looting and increased armed criminal action have been reported. The primary reason for firearms purchases is to protect self and loved ones, and this is especially important at times when the police are overtaxed and crimes of opportunity are more likely to occur. Natural disasters offer criminals an opening too sweet to resist — and once an individual or group of marauders is at your door, it’s too late to ask the National Guard for your guns back.” Exactly.

Well, this may answer my question.  According to the writer, gun confiscations never actually occurred in the US Virgin Islands, and I’ll say it again.  I suspect that it’s irrelevant anyway.  When the gun control laws are so onerous that no one owns a weapon, there is no need for confiscations.  In effect, guns have already been confiscated.  Take note.  If you allow these gun control laws, you are acquiescing to gun confiscations, albeit slowly, like a frog in boiling water.

The author does a nice job of outlining why you need firearms in times of emergency.  The problem as you know is that you don’t know when an emergency will present itself.  A home invasion is just as much of an emergency as a hurricane.  A church shooting is just as much of an emergency as an earthquake or any other natural disaster.  So you need your firearms all of the time.  All of the time.


Comments

  1. On September 25, 2017 at 10:11 pm, Mark Dietzler said:

    I read the statement by the governor, and looked up the law she based it on, and yep, it was legal. The Guard could take arms for their use during the emergency.

    I had to wonder why NG units there did not already have arms, though.

  2. On September 25, 2017 at 10:32 pm, JoeFour said:

    An illustration of needing firearms in case of “emergency” …

    https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/4447030/british-troops-st-martin-caribbean-starving-looting-hurricane-irma/

  3. On September 25, 2017 at 11:54 pm, Pat Hines said:

    This is an important resource.

    Tactical Anatomy
    http://tacticalanatomy.com

  4. On September 26, 2017 at 6:01 am, DAN III said:

    Mr. Dietzler,

    VI Army Guard DOES have their own weapons. Each Guard armory has an arms room stocked with MTOE (Modified Table of Organization & Equipment) weapons for each MTOE authorized Guardsman. What is NOT present, at least by regulation, is stored ammunition.

    The truth is that VI governor Mapp is a communist who lied thru his teeth. The reality is the law means nothing to these SoBs. Look at today’s Justus Department headed by career weasel Jeff Sessions. He won’t indict IRS stooge Lois Lerner for the crimes she committed. Why would Mapp be indicted for HIS latest crime of illegal weapons confiscation ? He won’t.

    It is time the citizens respond to these orders of tyranny with hemp and lead. Until citizens start terminating “with prejudice” government thugs, nothing will change for the better. Mapp should be strung up….a tall tree and a short rope.

  5. On September 26, 2017 at 8:00 am, McCool said:

    ‘ This federal legislation prevents the government from confiscating legally-owned firearms during times of major disasters or state of emergency. Following the example of the federal government, most state legislatures adopted similar versions of this law.’

    does the Federal law only apply to federal agencies ?
    Why would state’s need to craft their own laws ?

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You are currently reading "Having Firearms When You Need Them Most", entry #17740 on The Captain's Journal.

This article is filed under the category(s) Firearms,Gun Control,Guns and was published September 25th, 2017 by Herschel Smith.

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