The sad news is that yet another church attack took place this week and that two parishioners were killed. The good news is that the people stood up for themselves and others. Some say guns do not belong in church, yet the bad guys do not seem to care or read the signs. What a surprise,

Good for those that stand up for themselves. Still some say disarm the people and depend on the police. Unfortunately, because as good and dedicated as the police are, they take time to get there.

Signs or laws do not seem to stop criminals. We should all know this as the word criminal denotes someone who does not obey the laws. In the past these outlaws were dealt with quickly and decisively but not today.

In the past, there did not seem to be many repeat offenders, today almost all the bad guys have a record yet somehow, they are still out on the streets. People are arrested several times and do not serve any time, there seems to be no punishment just a record, whatever happen to work programs for convicts? Or programs that trained people for jobs?

The lesson in all this is there are bad people out there and there are more of them on the streets today so people need to protect themselves until the police can get there. There are more bad people today because we do nothing to deter their repeated bad behavior. Police cannot be everywhere and it takes time to get anywhere. Additionally, police are geared to responding and apprehension not prevention. Some might say they prevent crime and that is very true when they are present but as said, they cannot be everywhere all the time.

Luckily the people in the church took steps to protect themselves and their guests attending by arming and training people who are willing to be the front line of defense. This also illustrates the importance of defending yourself and your loved ones until the police can arrive. A big deal was being made that the protector was a gun instructor, which seemed to infer that he was specially prepared for this situation, partially true but any citizen at least in Nevada who receives a concealed carry permit is trained.

The conceal and carry courses are a good starting ground for average people who do not hunt or are not familiar with firearms. Yes, regular additional training is a great idea and should be part of any program and part of any concealed permit holder renewal program.

In Mesquite at least one church has such a program staffed by volunteers and it includes regular practice sessions and training. These guardians provide security and peace of mind for those attending services who do not or cannot protect themselves.

Two of these shootings occurred in Texas so some might ask why Mesquite? Because evil is everywhere and some people do not think straight. Yet even the most depraved can sometimes be detoured or dealt with. The name of the church mentioned above is not given unless someone requests that name so they can help in establish their own Guardians.

By hardening our targets, we hope someone will think again before attacking, if not they will not be put on the streets again. We pray for peace as we protect ourselves and others.