Firearms Friday: Adding Security

It is no secret to anyone that has read this blog that I am a strong supporter of the rights to own and carry a firearm as well as an advocate for those choosing to own a firearm for self-defense. It is something that I choose to do as a means to protect my family. However, let me be clear, it is a last line of defense in maintaining the safety of my family. Contrary to some misguided opinions that I have read, your firearm should not be your only means of defending your home and your family.

While I have no qualms about doing everything in my power to defend my wife and son, it is with that aforementioned point in mind that I called ADT shortly after settling on the house, had the consultation on moving day, and had the system installed this past weekend. In addition to the security and peace of mind that it provides (and the hard evidence as we have video surveillance) whether we are home or away, it also serves as a warning system should someone continue with their devious motivations and enters our home while we are asleep. Even if it is only a few seconds, that is enough time for me to prepare and make ready to eliminate the threat to my family’s well-being.

As I have written about before, there are other steps that need to be taken as well including making sure that the firearms that you do have in the house are secure. The last thing you want to happen is for a child to gain access to your firearm(s). The second to last thing you want to happen is for someone to break in and have access to your weapon. In addition to a decent safe in a more secure area of the house, you should also have some kind of quick access vault in your bedroom should something or, more accurately, someone go bump in the night.

I also recommend having a second quick access vault in areas of the house where you spend the most time. Remember, not all break-ins will occur in the dead of the night. They should be in places that are easily accessible and would be considered obvious to those who know where they are because you are not trying to hide, you are trying to conceal and defend. It is the last thing that you want to have to reach for but you never know when you might need it. Again, this is not something anyone wants to have to do and it should be a final not a first act but at least this was you can ensure that your family is safe at all times.

Where Is The Sanity In Sanitation?

This past week I came across a quote that, unlike other times when I have read similar statements, got me thinking. West side artist Art Schmaltz, who turns trash donated by friends and strangers into sculptures, said the following:  "I’ll wake up in the morning and say, ‘Oh, look at that! There’s a bucket of junk. Let’s get to it!’" It is just one of those little tidbits that you stumble upon… I have no idea how I got to the site to read the quote but here it is.

We all know there are plenty of buckets of being pitched this week with the question of whether any of it can be salvaged and made into something useful or, at the very least, appealing. The ideas and perspectives have been a polarizing force in this nation and it makes one wonder if there is a middle ground, a meshing of the trash found on each side that can bring to fruition something that is palatable to the general public. At this point, I sincerely doubt it.

It is one thing to deal with junk like in a junkyard where bits and pieces can be culled from the heaps of rust and given new life. Sometimes you don’t need a new part to make a car run. Will it be as efficient as a new one, probably not but it is cheaper and there is a chance that it could work quite well. That is not what we are dealing with today.

Garbage even has its benefits. Allowing an idea to breakdown and serve as compost for future concepts is not necessarily a bad thing. However, you have to keep in mind that compost piles, like the federal government, contain a lot of crap.

Trash is essentially useless. It doesn’t offer anything of value in its present state nor will it break down and serve as fertilizer for future legislation. Trash is trash. It is a blight that effects us all and leads to such situations like the one we find ourselves in right now… too much trash in a landfill and you will have to cover it up as best you can and move on to someplace else.

Both the current legislation and the tactics being utilized by both parties are more harmful to the political environment than dumping barges of Styrofoam into the Chesapeake Bay. You can say it’s a good thing and that it would offer wildlife free floatation devices but at some point you have to call them on their bull burgers and then you have to deal with a massive clean up knowing that things will never return to 100%. Trash is trash and we no longer have enough sanitation workers to handle the problem.