Tuesday, October 26, 2004

Telegraph | News | Don't tackle burglars, urge police
Here's something from Great Britain to contrast with the self-helpers from the UFC in the previous post:
Police chiefs have urged householders not to confront intruders, but to call 999 and lock themselves in safely until help arrives.Their advice was issued last night after a judge defended the actions of a retired man who shot an intruder who had returned for the third time to break into his isolated country home...Rae, 22, who was jailed for seven years for a string of burglaries and other crimes, was shot in the leg by Kenneth Faulkner, 73, at his home in Ockbrook, Derbyshire. Mr Faulkner was only told shortly before the trial that he would not be prosecuted over the shooting....The [police] advice comes at a time when public confidence in the police has been severely shaken by recent incidents in which officers failed to take immediate action when called out to deal with gunmen...

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Hooray for Faulkner, hooray for the judge, and...well, what can you say about police who advise you to cower in fear in your own home while you wait for police who may not show up? Thanks for nothing, guys.

And what on earth is Rae doing running around burglarizing homes after a seven-year stint in prison? What is Great Britain coming to? First, I think we can safely conclude that disarming the police force is a bad idea. But beyond that, who wants to live in a place where people are reduced to an enforced total dependence on government, even to the point of facing prosecution for defending their lives and families against thugs who invade their homes? That is what the police, of all people, are advocating here. Good thing for Faulkner he defended himself--and good thing he had a shotgun. May things never come to such a pass in the USA.

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