As reported, a British teenager beat an 83 year old woman senseless after telling friends that he wondered what it would be like to kill someone. The 83 year old great-grandmother was at home when she heard someone rummaging through her kitchen. The 15 year old home invader then came to her bedroom, and picked up her cane. He used it to brutally beat the elderly woman, shattering her eye socket and causing other great harm. The home invader then moved her phone out of reach, and left her to die. The elderly woman’s daughter came to check on her mother after not hearing from her for a while. The woman survived, but required a 3 month hospital stay to recover from the beating. Her injuries left her confused and unable to care for herself, requiring that the be placed in a nursing home with 24 hour care. In keeping with the standards of British “justice,” the 15 year old who committed this terrible crime is eligible for release from custody in just 2 years.
This sort of heartbreaking story is why I support gun rights, especially for the elderly. As case after tragic case shows, an unarmed elderly crime victim is almost never able to fight off an unarmed criminal. This should come as no surprise, since criminals tend to be young males who are at the peak of their physical ability. When the criminal has a gun (as criminals often do, despite even the strictest gun control laws), the elderly victim is even worse off.
Armed senior citizens, on the other hand, have the best possible chance of defending themselves against attack by criminals. This armed 85 year old woman held a home invader at gunpoint, and made him call the police on himself. This armed 93 year old man shot a home invader in self defense after the home invader began to attack him. This armed 70 year old woman held an intruder at gunpoint until the police arrived to arrest him. This armed 91 year old man used his handgun to fend off two home invader who had broken in and threatened his wheelchair-bound wife with their guns. This armed 84 year old man used his handgun to stop a criminal who repeatedly tried to enter his home through the front door, back door, and a window. I could go on with more examples, but the point should be clear: gun ownership saves lives every day and allows even physically frail elderly people to stop the strongest criminals.
Finally, I would like to note that in the United Kingdom, there is great deal of blame placed on guns, knives, and iPhones, rather than to the actions of criminals. This is misguided. The sad fact is that in the UK, just as in any country, there are violent and sadistic people. Such people include this 15 year old, and this British youth gang that stabbed a dog to death then viscously slashed its disabled owner with a knife. Those bent on violence will always find a tool with which to harm their fellow humans, just as such people have done since long before the invention of gunpowder. Until the focus is shifted from inanimate objects to the criminals who are committing the crimes, the violence problem isn’t going to improve.