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The Coming European Civil War

Part 13:  Are too many Americans gun-toting Maniacs?

     
       The Old Man's study was quiet again. It was dark outside. Late evening, and a log fire now crackled away in the fireplace. Eddies of smoke swirled busily up the chimney, and occasional sparks and hisses livened up the steady burning of old timbers. The Old Man sat staring quietly into the fire, his mind obviously many miles away. Gustav could only wonder what he saw. He debated maintaining the meditative silence. But questions were bubbling in his mind. Tearing at the ragged edge of a dim realization. It was as if loose threads of thought and impressions, previously unassociated with one another, were teaming up together to field an increasingly tougher garment.  To be worn, possibly, into battle. To be tested by fire and rain. Wind, and storms to come. He was changing, in so many ways. He could see why 'they' had sent him here. This was a boot camp of sorts. A training school, but as much in the ideological realm as in the material, defensive, practical realm.
     But something was odd. There were still so many unanswered questions. Part of the puzzle was the enigma presented by the Old Man. Gustav realized that he still knew very little about Victor. Where he stood in the Sons of Wodan. Where he stood on the question of violence as a legitimate weapon in the boiling pot of Europe of 2017. What he personally believed. What he advocated.
     The firearms side of things was run briskly and followed a clear course. From handling, firing, disassembling more and more complex weaponry. They had started with a simple single action Ruger Blackhawk revolver. A simple six shooter. He had cut his teeth on that weapon. Many hundreds of rounds had been expended on a bewildering variety of targets. Then promotion onto a Ruger GP 100. Double-action. Again, hundreds of rounds. Dozens of targets. Often, against the timer. Around and over obstacles. Then a whole range of semi-automatics. Glock 17, Glock 21, Glock 23. Then a whole day spent machining his own Compact 80 Polymer lower half. Drilling, filing, sanding. All under the watchful eye of the Old Man. Then, shooting the Polymer 80. That strange thrill. Firing a weapon he had built himself. Finding that not only did it work. It worked flawlessly. He had put hundreds of rounds through it…
     The Old Man had not moved. He sat, quietly, gazing into the flames. He probably would not speak, until spoken to. And maybe that was it. Maybe that was exactly the problem. The firearms side of things was run to a tight program. Not so the ideological, political side. Victor responded to questions that Gustav asked about History and Politics. He was a mine of information. He suggested articles to read. Websites to research on the Internet. Videos to contemplate. He had a unique way of gently forcing Gustav to re-think a position, or an opinion. But he rarely led the discussion. He followed. He seemed content to let Gustav bring up the issues, and then respond to that. It was in this way that Gustav, although he knew he had learned much, felt that he was still flying blind.

       Maybe it was time to talk turkey…

     Gustav shook himself. A sense of resolution, determination, empowered him. Victor picked up on the movement, and looked across. His eyes were smiling.

       “Well, young man?”
Gustav wondered, then plunged right in.
      “I've learned a lot about guns. And I'm learning every day. I've gone from a quiet dread of them, to quietly confident. Guns no longer scare me. A child can pull a trigger. We have also talked about History and Politics at great length. But always, I feel as if you are holding a lot back. I feel you guide me in my development, you help me understand things I bring up, you point me to interesting articles or web pages. But I still know almost nothing about you. I know you are American, but you have a strong accent. Where are you from? I also know hardly anything about your relationship with Sons of Wodan. You have also several times mentioned the Visegard. But you have told me nothing about your relationship. You also talk with V4? I can tell you have been around guns for a very long time. I can see in your eyes that you have known violence. I can hear it in your voice sometimes, that you have been tested. I sense an experience. A certain knowing. Even without reading Evocatus, I knew that. But what happened to you? Where did you fight? Why?”
The room fell silent. The Old Man didn't stir.

       Minutes went by. Gustav wondered if he had caused offense. He need not have worried.
The Old Man seemed, if anything, quite pleased. His reply surprised Gustav.
     “Keep going, my young friend…”
Gustav, momentarily confused, could only stare.
      “I know there is more, Gustav. Feel free. Spout. Get it all off your chest.”
The words were spoken quietly, with a great calm. After a moment's pause, Gustav plunged right on.
       “So, I want to know. Is the organisation going to arm us? Can I expect gun manufacturing equipment to be sent to us? Will I be training in my men, the way you are training me? What next? Bomb making equipment? What are our orders going to be? Are we going to fight? When? How?”
       Silence reigned again. A long silence. At length, the Old Man addressed him, looking him quietly in the eyes.
       “Those are all good and honest questions. Some I can answer. Some not. Some I can only hint at.”
Gustav opened his mouth to speak, thought better of it, and stayed silent.
       “Firstly, Gustav, my background does not matter. The only thing that needs concern us is your future. My background is History. Some knowledge is dangerous. Some hidden knowledge, if it saw the light of day, could expose other people alive today to needless risk. Some memories are long. And dangerous. They last a lifetime. As you will discover…”
A log spat out a flaming spark. It sailed through the air, through the crack in the fire curtain, and extinguished itself on the tired green carpet. Victor continued quietly.
      “What you must understand is that events are unfolding so rapidly, so furiously, that many people are still reeling. Nobody knows exactly how this is going to play out. What is clear though is that many young men are angry. Angry with what they see as an invasion. Angry about the attacks on their women. Angry with their leaders, who appear to desperately seek to appease the Muslims at every turn. The laws are barely enforced where Muslims are concerned. But ferociously, with an unheard of intensity, where the slightest alleged infraction of a native European is concerned. Now, let's talk about guns…”
   Victor spoke in a calm manner, but Gustav sensed a deep passion.
      “What, Gustav, do most Europeans think about the American gun culture?”
      “They see Americans as gun toting maniacs. Obsessed with guns. Everybody shooting everybody else. A never ending Wild West shoot-out.”
       “Precisely. What percentage of Europeans feel that their system, where guns are either very hard to acquire, or impossible to acquire, is far superior to the American way?”
       “Oh, probably ninety per cent.”
       “Even with the terrorist attacks that have taken place?”
       “Well, that's true. Maybe less now. But I'm thinking a good seventy per cent would hold the American system in contempt.”
       Victor nodded. “Probably. Now, a question, were you surprised at the election of Donald Trump?”
       “Yes. I was staggered. I still can't figure that one out.”
       “Why were you so surprised?”
       “Well, all the polls showed Hillary Clinton with a huge lead. No contest. A looming white wash. All the commentators promised it. The Media…”
       “Precisely. The MEDIA. The MASS media. Bought and paid for. With their AGENDA. Don't you think those same silent behind-the-scenes power brokers and manipulators, that tried their absolute damndest to swing the election for Hillary Clinton, are equally hard at work in Europe?”
       Gustav thought for a while. “I suppose so.”
  Victor smiled. “No suppose-so about it. You can bet on that. Now, where do you get your impression from that all Americans are gun-toting maniacs, running around killing one another? Therefore, guns are BAD, and European laws are far superior?”
       “Well, from… Television, the News, magazine articles, hell, even movies.”
       “Precisely. In other words: from the same BIASED Mass Media sources. Right?”
       “Errrr…. I guess so.”
       “So here is a question for you: where is it safer to live? America, or Britain? America, or Sweden? America, or Western Europe?”
       “No comparison. Western Europe is much safer. MUCH safer.”
       “Are you sure?”
       “Errr…. yes.”
Victor walked over to a filing cabinet, and produced a manila folder. Patiently, he walked Gustav through a long series of articles, blogs and statistics. One prominent social media blog, dated June 21st, 2013 had received a lot of attention. It stated:

“There are over 2,000 crimes recorded per 100,000 population in the U.K.,” compared to “466 violent crimes per 100,000” in the United States.

Gustav stared at the statement, open mouthed. “Really? Is that true? The US is actually SAFER than the UK??”
Victor smiled. “Beware statistics. They can be skewered anyway the statistician desires. It's a bit more complicated than that.Here's one good article that puts that statement to the test. It's on www.politifact.com and it makes for an interesting read.
Gustav was quiet for a few minutes, while he studied the report. At length he remarked:
      “I see. That's more balanced. Nonetheless, it does imply that US crime statistics, corrected for categorisation and terminology, are still lower than the UK. Maybe even quite a bit lower. I would never have thought that.”
Victor smiled. “No, and that's because you have been quietly Mass Media brainwashed all your life. That's why you think America is like an ongoing scene from the Mad Max movie. With crazy, half naked, painted, stud and chain wearing psychopaths, racing around trying to kill you. The truth is different. Also, take several other factors into consideration. Crime in the USA is heavily skewered by the appalling mostly black-on-black crime statistics in a handful of major cities. Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, New orleans, Los Angeles, etc. Outside those crime hubs, the crime rate drops dramatically. If you take that into consideration, you will be able to research many Internet sources that suggest crime rates in the US are significantly lower than the UK. Never mind Sweden. The sole exception that stands out is gun crime. The rate of homicide by gun is significantly higher than Europe, for sure. But even there, you have to be careful what you are actually looking at. Here's an interesting statement:

Suicide is the second-most common cause of death for Americans between 15 and 34, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Across all ages, it is the 10th-most common cause of death, and caused 1.6 percent of all deaths in 2012. Not all of those suicides are by gun, but a majority are.Oct 8, 2015

Gustav nodded. “I see. So presumably, if you reasonably conclude that those suicidally inclined in Europe will find an alternative means than a gun…”
Victor completed the sentence: “… then it is not unreasonable to assume that even that apparently grim statistic has to be seen in context. So that might lead you to wonder what percentage of gun involved homicides in the USA are in fact not murders of third parties, but suicide. Right?”
Gustav nodded.
Victor produced another report: “Here's an article from the New York Times.  It addresses the issue.”
Gustav read through carefully. When he was finished, he sounded surprised:
     “More than sixty per cent of gun deaths are suicide… wow.”
     “Wow indeed”, Victor replied. “But now sit back and think the whole thing through. You came to the United States convinced that crime here was WAY higher than Europe, right?”
     “Yes.”
     “You came here believing that everybody is running around shooting everybody else, right?”
     “Errr… yes.”
     “So now you can see the relentless, non-stop assault on American values that takes place in the European Mass Media. The wilful ignoring of the many thousands of times that an armed home owner has stopped a home invasion. Or a carjacking. Or that a young woman has prevented her rape and possible murder. None of that gets into the Liberal Media, not even here in the USA, and certainly not in the European Mass Media. Only the worst excesses, putting America in the worst possible light, gets any airtime over there. Factor in also that longtime Democratic strongholds, so-called gun-free zones, with some of the strictest gun laws on the planet, ALSO have the highest rate of gun crime. And if that isn't good enough, I have a task for you. Google what happened to gun crime in Australia after the 1997 gun buy back. Here's one link you might like, Snopes.com, but there are many other sources.”

He paused, and eyed his young house guest thoughtfully. Then he continued, quietly:
      “Here's the rub, Gustav. Guns in the hands of the right people save lives. Even when the bad guys only suspect that the good guys MIGHT have a gun, they feel inhibited. Crime and assault goes down. In most parts of the USA, carjacking, robbery and burglary is a dangerous profession. Sooner or later, you're probably going to get shot. But in the United States, a gun owner is a respected member of the community. He has a gun at home, and he may have another in his car or truck. It's perfectly legal. He can apply for a concealed handgun license, a so-called CHL, and after a background check and a short course, he can now carry a concealed weapon in public…”
Gustav shook his head: “That's incredible.”
Victor continued: “And you'll find American cops encourage people to get the CHL. That's because they know that by and large, armed citizens work to help Law Enforcement. Some have even dramatically intervened and saved the lives of cops. Statistics are available that show that legally armed CHL holders have a very, very small rate of behaving criminally or recklessly. The Good they do far outweighs the occasional hothead. By contrast, in Europe, a gun owner is automatically a terrorist, who risks twenty years in prison. If he's caught, nobody has much sympathy for him. Guns are BAD. People have been indoctrinated that way all their lives. So you have two completely opposing systems and philosophies where guns are concerned. America. And Europe. Which is better? That depends on your upbringing, your pre-suppositions, and your overall ideology. It's fashionable in Europe to be anti-American. Universities and academia unite in revulsion against those stupid Yanks. And that situation I think could have gone on for a long time. And then…”
He smiled.
       “Enter the Wild Card…”
Gustav looked blank. “The wild card?”
Victor nodded.

       “The wild card. By the name of Angela Merkel”.

Last edited by Francis Meyrick on February 5, 2017, 7:26 pm