This article is really a primer on the origins and enemies of gun ownership in the United States. I absolutely agree with Ron’s take on the false dichotomy we live under and who is eventually coming for you. It is simply unfathomable to me that so many American gun owners actually believe that fully half of American politicians want them to be able to protect themselves, when every single armed citizen is a check on political power, which is the entire game. Thinking a Republican politician actually wants you to be self-sufficient and able to protect your family is like believing that burglars want bars on store windows.
The biggest danger to the establishment is a pissed off citizenry that is armed and is willing to use them. Witness the recent events in Dallas; one well-trained, motivated individual managed to shoot 11 police officers by using those tactics he learned at the hands of other government agents, and honed in the crucible of war. Disagree with his motives if you will, but for a brief instant, the illusory nature of the state's authority was revealed.
The response by the police was telling. By sending in a drone and eliminating the shooter, the Dallas PD sent two messages; one intentional and one unintentional. The intentional message was pretty straightforward, "Mess with us and we will make an example out of you with overwhelming force."
The unintentional message was quite the opposite, "Holy shit! If these people get the idea that they can get at us, we are deader than Hillary Clinton's twat!"
The single most important element of state control is the perception that they are in control. Uniformed police, state surveillance, all of the political theater that is on C-Spam is all geared to give the impression that 'they' are in control. Yet, one half-wit armed with a 50-year-old rifle brought an entire police department to an operational screeching halt.
Even a cursory examination of history is replete with examples of the mayhem caused by a small number of armed citizens who had a grievance against the powers that be.
Extrapolate that to a half-million halfwits with cheap, mass-produced firearms.
Now imagine a half-million intelligent, skilled, motivated and pissed-off people that have decided enough is enough, and you begin to understand what keeps politicians awake at night. For, if they step across that imaginary line in the sand, it will be them that the masses hunt.
Bring it to a personal level; armed with blade or bludgeon, how many opponents would you be able to dispatch before succumbing to the weight of numbers? In a crowded bar, I suspect a half dozen. With the advantage of being on home turf with an intimate knowledge of the terrain, I suspect the number would soar well into the double digits. Throw a handgun, that you have learned to use well, into the equation and we could top the century mark.
WellRead Ed speaks the truth. Even their armored personal carriers become useless against people with a little sense. One spotter radios to another with a spigot motor made of one liter napalm bottles made of mass produced soft drink empties. Maybe you can't shoot through the APC but you can cook the damn thing and they will either get out or leave.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spigot_mortar
P.S. the spotter and mortar man cover themselves with painted aluminum film heat blankets to defeat thermal sights. Make sure the people side of the film has cloth glued onto it to prevent direct contact with the film letting heat leak through.