By JENS DANA
One of my all-time favorite movies is the 1953 rendition of the pocket book ?Shane.? Apart from the more obvious appeals the movie offers a young adolescent male?saloon brawls and heroic quick-draw battles?the movie explores some provoking themes that are applicable to our day.
My favorite scene is when the character Shane, an incognito gunslinger, says to Marion, a homesteader?s wife, ?A gun is a tool, Marion. No better and no worse than any other tool - an axe, a shovel, or anything. A gun is as good or as bad as the man using it. Remember that.?
Growing up in the green mountains of Wyoming, I had contact with firearms on a daily basis. The usual childhood fascination with firearms was tempered through a philosophy that taught that firearms should be respected, not feared, for their power. I completed my hunter?s safety training at the age of 11?the youngest in the class by nine years?and I would shoot with my Dad and friends as often as possible.
One of the greatest lessons I learned is that there are places where guns belong and places where they do not. Sen. Mark Madsen, R-Lehi, introduced a bill to the state Legislature that would allow anyone to carry a loaded weapon in his or her vehicle.
Madsen calls the bill an extension of the ?your home is your castle? ideology. The bill allows people to defend themselves wherever they travel, but the latent ramifications of this bill outweigh the purported benefits because a gun cannot protect you as well as common sense can.
In addition to familiarizing myself with firearms, I have enrolled in multiple self-defense courses?mostly a chance to meet women?and my instructors unanimously agree that unless a person is extensively trained in a particular weapon, that very weapon can be easily used against the person holding it in an aggressive situation. Contrary to popular belief, most self-defense classes stress avoiding potentially dangerous situations altogether?with a little side emphasis on eye gouging.
Madsen?s emphasis on protecting people from carjacking is partly based on the time he spent in Washington, D.C. Over 15 years, he said he saw the nation?s capital become ?the carjacking capital of the world.? Lehi?s crime rate is hardly comparable with Washington, D.C.?s, neither is any part of Utah. I surmise that instead of protecting the public from the sparse population of carjackers, this bill will act as a catalyst in violent situations.
Madsen entirely ignores the potential risks this bill introduces. I do not see how carrying a loaded weapon will be beneficial in the likelihood of road rage, a trend that is growing throughout the country. I do not see how this bill is going to help high way patrolmen who already have to cope with belligerent motorists. Instead, this bill would make them wonder if each car they pull over is carrying a loaded, concealed weapon.
There is already a good procedure in place if motorists are so concerned about protecting themselves in public. It?s called a concealed weapons permit. It allows permit holders to carry a loaded weapon in their vehicles. To obtain the permit, the person must pass background checks and attend classes to demonstrate their proficiency in firearms, as well as their accountability.
As much as self-proclaimed frontiersman like myself abhors the thought, the days of the old west are fast fading. I am still a staunch supporter of a person?s right to own as many guns as he or she likes, but I do not support one?s right to recklessly carry them in public without proof of training and a responsible attitude.