ANALYSIS\/OPINION:<\/p>\n
Two people were killed and another wounded in Texas after a man wearing a fake beard, wig, hat and long coat entered a church in the community of White Settlement, pulled out a shotgun and began firing.<\/p>\n
Tragic and horrible as that is it couldve been much, much worse. It couldve been much, much bloodier.<\/p>\n
The gunman was stopped in his tracks after Jack Wilson, a gun-carrying church security volunteer, and other armed parishioners pulled their own weapons and prepared to fire.<\/p>\n
By the time the [attacker, identified as Keith Thomas Kinnunen, 43] approached a communion server and pulled out a shotgun, The Associated Press reported, Wilson and another security volunteer were already reaching for their own guns.<\/p>\n
Several other armed church-goers reportedly reached for their weapons as well.<\/p>\n
Kinnunen shot and killed armed church volunteer Richard White and a server, Anton Tony Wallace, AP reported. And as the 240-plus congregants in the church rushed for cover, Wilson was able to get a line of fire.<\/p>\n
[Church members] were jumping, going chaotic, Wilson said, AP reported. They were standing up. I had to wait about half a second, or a second, to get my shot. I fired one round. The subject went down.<\/p>\n
Dead.<\/p>\n
In a matter of seconds the attacker was killed.<\/p>\n
And because the attacker was so quickly killed, untold numbers of other lives were mercifully saved.<\/p>\n
The Second Amendment saves, yes?<\/p>\n
[Authorities] cant prevent mental illness from occurring, and we cant prevent every crazy person from pulling a gun. But we can be prepared like this church was, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a press conference outside the church on Monday.<\/p>\n
Texas, notably, had just changed its laws to allow for church-goers with the legal rights to carry to bring their weapons inside of places of worship. That allowance took effect in September, and it came about because of a 2017 shooting at a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, that left 26 dead.<\/p>\n
Twenty-six versus two.<\/p>\n
Either way you slice it, the deaths are tragic and senseless and horrible.<\/p>\n
But 26 versus two.<\/p>\n
Had this law not been passed and allowed these people to be armed, Paxton said in a Fox News interview, I fear we couldve lost hundreds.<\/p>\n
Theres nothing to say to that except hes right.<\/p>\n
Cheryl Chumley can be reached at [emailprotected] or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast Bold and Blunt by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter by clicking HERE.<\/p>\n
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Read the original:<\/p>\n
Second Amendment saves lives in Texas church - Washington Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ANALYSIS\/OPINION: Two people were killed and another wounded in Texas after a man wearing a fake beard, wig, hat and long coat entered a church in the community of White Settlement, pulled out a shotgun and began firing. Continue reading