9/19/2006

Luby's restaurant shooting's impact 15 years later

Fifteen years ago next month, an armed man drove his truck through a Luby's restaurant in Killeen and opened fire upon the crowd, killing 23 patrons and wounding 20 others before turning the weapon on himself.

As a direct result of the Oct. 16, 1991, Luby's incident, in 1995, Texas lawmakers, led by Suzanna Gratia Hupp (whose parents were both killed in the massacre), passed a law that allowed Texans to obtain a concealed-carry handgun permit.

Concerns were raised that the new concealed handgun law would create more problems than it would solve, turning residents into armed vigilantes who would turn to weapons to resolve minor disputes.

For one Texan, that concern was not only unsubstantiated, but one that, to him, has been proven false time and time again.

"If everyone in this state qualified to hold a concealed handgun license," said Texas Department of Public Safety certified instructor Lloyd Leppo Jr., "no one would ever need a weapon in the first place."

To obtain a permit to carry a concealed handgun, one must be at least 21 years of age, submit a photo and fingerprints for a background investigation and pay a fee, pass both a written test covering laws pertaining to deadly force and gun safety and a shooting accuracy test. . . . .

5 Comments:

Blogger saturdaynightspecial said...

What was done in Texas needs to be done in Canada to prevent a Dawson College tragedy.

In Texas you must pass a shooting accuracy test to obtain a permit. Can you imagine Mr. McGoo, half blind, a little senile and very slow, shooting at sounds rather than at an attacker; as if this is what an elder person would do. Well, what should be done for those with limited shooting skill?

I remember shooting an M-14 at 17 years old and still seeing a blurred 'sight picture.' Back then, my vision was excellent but the sight picture was still a little blurred - because for all of us our eyes, or vision, have limits; you can't just rotate a knob to adjust the focus for close-up or for distance. When aiming a gun your eyes must be able to focus on the close-up sights and see a target at a distance ( the eyes must see both close-up and distant at the same time.)

Our accuracy isn't as important as our ability to decide when it's safe to shoot or when it's not. Otherwise senior citizens, and those with limited vision or ability, will be denied the benefits of guns, and seniors are one of the groups of people that benefit the most from gun possession.

9/20/2006 4:51 AM  
Anonymous Ron W said...

The biggest result is not the CHL law in Texas. Because Ann Richards opposed CHL she lost her next election to George Bush who supported it. That is how he became governor of Texas and set up his run for president.

9/22/2006 3:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

So it is because of Ann Richards views on guns that our country has gone to hell in a handbasket under George Bush. Well to hell with Ann Richards, I guess I can blame her for Iraq.

2/13/2007 10:47 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

There are so many flaws in this write-up that I do not know where to begin. And you have a PhD in Economics - tcha!

11/06/2007 2:47 PM  
Anonymous DagneyT said...

As a CHL carrier in Texas, I know first hand how comforting it is to have my 38 in my purse.

What happened today in Illinois only happens in gun free zones, or in areas of border cities where our unguarded and unfenced borders allow gangs to infiltrate the most vulnerable parts of our cities.

The problem is far more complex than gun laws or unguarded borders. Political correctness minus basic logic equals liberal insanity.

Can you say "Moonbat rule will be the end of America."?

2/14/2008 10:25 PM  

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