Another AR-15 Is Used, but You Probably Won’t Hear Much About It in The News
Personification is a literary term used to describe when an inanimate object is given human characteristics. The AR-15 is personified as pure evil, so much so that the gun has eclipsed the deranged killer himself.
I uncovered a news story that reported on an event that occurred yesterday. WGN9 News out of Chicago Illinois reported that a man used an AR-15. With the AR-15 being such a central topic of debate, you would think this incident would gain front page attention and viral shares across social media…right? Not so fast. The story garnered no exposure and most people will never hear about it.
How Did He Use The AR-15:
On Monday, Feb 26, 2018 in Oswego Illinois, Dave Thomas (no relation to the Wendy's guy) stopped a knife-wielding attacker from killing another man. And he did it with his…AR-15. Thomas saw two men arguing outside an apartment. One of the men pulled a knife and started stabbing the other. Thomas ran to his home and retrieved his AR-15. He returned to where the man was being stabbed and pointed his rifle at the attacker, who was still stabbing the victim. He ordered the attacker to stop, which he did. The attacker fled the scene and was later located by police. The victim was transported to the hospital and is expected to survive.
This is the scene where Thomas stopped the stabbing assault of the victim.
From The Man's Own Words:
Naturally, Thomas was interviewed and he was asked why he grabbed his AR-15 instead of a handgun that was also in his home. Thomas said:
I ran back into the home, into my house and grabbed my AR-15. Grabbed the AR-15 over my handgun. It's just a bigger gun. I think a little bit more than an intimidation factor definitely played a part in him actually stopping.
Dave Thomas saves a life by using his AR-15, and it goes mostly unreported.
He explained further:
The AR-15 is my weapon of choice for home protection. It's light, it's maneuverable. If you train and know how to use it properly, it's not dangerous. And this is just a perfect example of good guy with an AR-15 stopped a bad guy with a knife. And there were no lives taken, so all in all it was a good day.
Media Gives His Story no Love:
It is yet another story of a civilian using a firearm and in this case the dreaded AR-15 to save a life. Sadly this does not fit the narrative that is being forced upon consumers of the major media outlets. The truth is this story is not unique, and these incidents happen daily. You will never see mainstream media cover a story where lives were saved by civilian gun owners, and not a shot had to be fired.
Additionally, this fact brings up another reason statistics for defensive gun use are so underreported. Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) will document this incident as an aggravated assault or similar. Nowhere will this incident be listed as ‘good guy saves a life with a gun'. It disappears into a black hole never to be documented as proof that civilians with guns save lives all the time.
Why The AR-15?
Thomas, who happens to be a concealed carry licensee and firearms instructor makes the case for why the AR-15 is one of the most popular rifles in America. The gun is easy to operate, produces minimal recoil, reliable, customizable, adjustable, and accurate. The AR-15 is superior in many ways to the old standby home defense gun…the shotgun. Because of the many pellets cast out in a large pattern, shotguns loaded with buckshot, cannot be used unless the threat is isolated.
When shotguns are loaded with slug rounds, there is strong recoil from the shot. This makes shotguns difficult for many people to manage. The Ar-15 doesn't have this problem. The shotgun is still a viable home defense gun, but the AR-15's benefits are moving it into more American's hands as the go-to firearm for home defense.
The Ar-15 is a gun that produces minimal recoil, is accurate, lightweight, adjustable, reliable and easy to operate. For these reasons, it has become an outstanding option for home defense.
Knowledge is Powerful:
When presented with the question of ‘why does anyone need an AR-15' you can site the multiple accounts where good guys with the AR-15 saved lives? Stories like these reinforce the undeniable truth, that the AR-15 is an inanimate object incapable of inflicting harm unless used by a person with an evil desire. Want to understand a little more about the AR-15? This article spells out exactly why the AR-15 is not an ‘Assault Rifle.'
This was a real a** backwards story in support of every day Joe’s owning and using a gun that fires round after round and can even be manipulated into an fully auto weapon. The guy would have been fine grabbing his handgun to help the guy being stabbed. Also how many times was the guy stabbed if the guy had to run home and get his gun?
I believe we should have the right to buy guns in America but no one except the police and military needs guns like AR15’s. The founding fathers had no clue that guns like this would ever be possible and while I believe in gun rights we also have to be realistic and we need to use our brains.
It’s not the gun. Pay attention. There is absolutely no reason that a law-abiding citizen should be told that they cannot own an AR-15. I have 2. I watch them very closely, and neither has ever attacked, or even tried to attack anyone. We need to focus on the real problem and not start punish law-abiding citizens.
He had to run in to get a gun anyways….so he grabbed the bigger one…and if you don’t like a gun like an AR15 then that’s fine and I fully respect that..that’s your choice. but it’s not right of you or anyone else to want mine taken from me..Ive had a carry permit for years and AR15 rifles for even longer…I use them for coyotes….squirrels…etc. it really doesn’t matter which gun he grabbed but you have to admit the AR is more intimidating than a pistol and more importantly he saved a life
The founding fathers didn’t need a clue that guns like the AR15 would exist. The reason behind the 2nd amendment was to ensure that the people who would stand up to defend this nation from all enemies foreign and domestic had the firepower to carry out the task. It is not about hunting, It is not about target shooting.It is about defending this nation. They had just gone through a revolution and drove out a force they felt to be tyrannical. Remember, taxation without representation? That force was within our borders. That force was the government at the time. The founding fathers recognized that the citizens of this new nation may need to defend themselves from tyranny again and needed to be armed to do it. Their intent was that the citizens have the same firepower as the government. It is as simple as that. Otherwise they would have said the citizens could only have bow and arrows, knives or clubs to preserve the government firepower advantage. To make sure the citizens have lesser capable firepower is to guarantee that the government can, at it’s desire, completely subdue the population.
This man chose the AR15 for two simple reasons, it is his choice for home defense, and it gave him the psychological advantage. With that psychological advantage he didn’t have to take a life. He saved two. And you would vilify him for that?
I agree 100%. The Founding Fathers Called it “A Well Regulated Militia”. They didn’t mean the Organized Military, They were referring to the Minuteman Militia, an ARMED FORCE to defend the U.S. WITHOUT HAVING TO WAIT FOR PRESIDENTIAL AUTHORIZATION. (Ready to do battle on a minute’s notice, with whatever weapons they could muster.) I agree that certain weapons should not be in civilian hands, such as Rocket Launchers, Grenades, Land Mines, etc. But the 2nd Amendment didn’t refer ONLY to firearms, but to Knives, Swords, and other hand-held weapons.
Well said!
Proud of Governor Deal for standing his ground ! The NRA didn’t cause the sad situation in Florida and neither did GUNS but a Mental Case and a failure on the part of law enforcement to follow up on a known threat is where the blame lies. End of story as my heart goes out to the Children who lost their lives and the Parents who lost their loved ones and also to the Survivors who will have this horrific memory for the rest of their lives. Sorry and Sad that this happened ………..
Well said.
The founding fathers had no idea on a lot of weapons used today we are suppose to have an equal to government which we dont. You obviously dont understand guns. An ar 15 is small caliber .22 A handgun is almost surely a bigger bullet which would do more damage. Most of them are also semi auto just like an ar-15 ck your facts People like you dont help the cause, these guns are involved in very few deaths, hand guns with bigger calibers are used more often and illegally like in Chicago or new your with extremely harsh gun laws. read up dont fall into the trap that the left wants for us
Rick, although you are technically correct (.22 versus .223), a rifle bullet is larger (caliber just determines diameter, not bullet length or mass). It is also backed by considerably more powder – set the two cartridges side by side. In this instance, it is probably a good thing he DIDN’T have to shoot with his AR-15. The kill range for an AR-15 is about 500 yards. In seeing his apartment, it would seem he had a lot of neighbors nearby. At close range, the .223 round would pass completely through the assailant and go…where? Used the M16A/2 in Nam in the USMC. That design, the AR-15, M-4, M16A, are all designed to kill people in a combat situation.
Alan Why would the police need an AR 15.. He is not Military is he !? What does the Constitution state about a Standing Army..NOT! And Rick.. Did the Founding Fathers know what the Military had as well as the Civilian at the time? YES THEY DID, and why? because BOTH HAD THE SAME WEAPONS! The Founding fathers knew this and knew that with an equilibrium forged between the defense powers of the PEOPLE and that of the Military, the Government could not easily usurp the restrictions imposed upon it.
So using that logic, I should be able to own a nuclear weapon.
That is a asinine comment, a nuclear weapon is illegal.
That is absolutely correct.
Why do the Police need AR-15’S? Just Google the Hollywood Shootout. The Police were TREMENDOUSLY outgunned. The criminals had AK-47’S! (And body armor that stopped ALL rounds fired by the Police!) I think what the Police REALLY needed was a .50 Cal. BMG. That would have penetrated almost ANY body armor. And saved a LOT of lives.
Sgt L Bjjergo you are right. Except the shooting occurred in North Hollywood (I was there). All we had were weak 9mm ammo in the Beretta 92f and shotguns with OO. The suspect had the range on us. It was the M16 carried by SWAT (in their gym shorts ) that saved us and one suicide. LAPD after went to Glocks, I chose the Glock 21 (45 CA). We also got M16s ( from the Military) and slug loads for shotguns. Our upper brass finally listened to us about being outgunned. It was a wakeup call.
So would have a headshot.
Alan I believe that the founding fathers intent was that we should have firearms available to us that were equivalent to what we may be defending against . If muskets were still the weapon of choice that’s what we’d be using , but they’re not .
The AR-15 fires round after round? Like any semi-automatic, and even a revolver, it only fires ONE (1) round per trigger pull. If it had a regular wooden stock and looked like any other deer rifle, no one would say a thing. However, just because it looks (cosmetically) exactly like a fully automatic M-16, anti-gun advocates have a fit. The government can’t control an armed populace, especially with tens of millions owning AR-15s. So THAT is the gun they’d love to ban and eventually confiscate. I also find it amusing that you could possibly know what was in the minds of our founding fathers.
Google Puckle gun. 70 years before the 2a. Yes, our forefathers knew there were repeating guns that people owned. They were, however, considered too expensive to put in the field for the army.
Sorry man, but the AR 15 is a civillan style of the military m16.why does everyone blame the gun?
The founding fathers also could not have envisioned those we would need to defend the constitution against would have the weapons they do. The 2nd Amendment was not about being able to hunt. It was about defense of the constitution and this great nation. The aggressors in that type of confrontation will have weapons far better than the AR-15, but it give the citizens a better chance then they would have without semi-automatic weapons.
It’s a fact that, after Pearl Harbor, the Japanese did not attack the mainland because they thought every citizen had a gun so every citizen could help defend their country.
On the contrary, the founding fathers knew well the usefulness of military arms. They just fought an eight year war with THE military super power of their day. They were ordinary citizens, formed into militias and continental army units, carrying identical or comparable weapons carried by the British army. When the fighting was done, they knew well the indispensable value of a citizenry armed with military grade weapons to defend hearth and home as well as freedom. They thought so highly of an armed citizenry that it was listed second out of ten in the Bill of Rights.
What do you need an AR-15 for? That’s not a legitimate hunting rifle? That’s right, not all rifles are for hunting. In the spirit of the founding fathers of our country, some rifles are meant to be for tyranny insurance. Today, that is not the founding father’s musket, but the AR-15.
The AR-15 is not and has never been a Military grade weapon.
Revolting against tyranny is the first reason Americans must retain our rights to own high capacity semi- automatic firearms. Yes, this is 2018, It’s not 1776… So what? Tyranny is not a thing of the past. A society that ignores history is one which is likely to repeat the mistakes of the past. Hitler and Nazi Germany committed genocide against German and Polish Jews in the holocaust, killing over 11 million, men, women and children. In the 1970s, Cambodia was taken over by the Khmer Rouge, and over two million Cambodians were exterminated as a result. Just two short decades ago Saddam Hussein and his regime committed countless atrocities in Iraq. And currently, governments in the Middle East are killing their own citizens to stifle their quest for freedom and self-government. To claim that a modern human ruling party isn’t capable of killing its own people is naïve. I believe that the first and foremost reason that the American people need the right and ability to possess modern semi-automatic rifles and pistols is to ensure that our own government never feels it is more powerful than its citizens.
The second reason Americans need high capacity semi- automatic firearms has a more practical, immediate application in our modern society. Citizens must not be stripped of the ability to effectively counter criminal violence. Virtually all law enforcement agencies and officers have AR-15 style rifles accessible. But, they are the police you might say, why do armed citizens need AR- 15 style weapons? Because, the armed citizen faces the VERY SAME criminals that police face. You need to realize that criminals do not prey on police, they avoid the police at all costs however those same criminals have no qualms about victimizing the public. If the armed citizen wants to have a fighting chance against criminals who are armed with high capacity rifles and pistols, they also need effective weaponry. But what are the odds that a citizen might be attacked under circumstances in which a modern semi-automatic rifle would be necessary for defense? Consider societal break down, as took place during the Los Angeles riots in 1992, and after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. In each of these real life examples of societal breakdown in America, roving gangs of criminals looted stores and private homes throughout those cities. While protecting property is not generally considered a valid reason to use deadly force, protecting life is. The fact that a citizen is present and armed with a modern semi-automatic rifle might just encourage criminals to skip over that citizen’s home take on easier pickings elsewhere. After all, an easier target is just down the street.
Another Liberal patsy heard from. You sound like a spokesman for Everytown for Gun Safety, compliments of Mike Bloomberg. It’s people like you who claim to be @A supporters but then sabotage our rights by coming out against the 2A that the Liberals use. Unless, of course, you’re just a troll.
This guy was the instructor of my concealed carry course. I also took one of his defensive pistol courses. Great guy. Good to see armed citizens doing their part to stop BG’s. These are the type of stories that need to be broadcast by the media!
One word…
Amen
Yes! Read this and understand the AR15! Nice easy gun for your wife or teen to love shooting as a sport!
Alan: you are entitled to your opinion but, as a disabled Vietnam vet and long time gun owner I will tell you this. If your family is threatened by race riots, thieves, BLM thugs, Antifa animals, Muslim terrorists or other criminals and they are armed with these weapons illegally, what are you going to do to PROTECT YOUR family, home property and lives of not only potentially YOUR family, but those of your neighbors? Do NOT think that is an exaggeration. No one at the Pulse Club in Orlando or Las Vegas or the school for the disabled in San Bernardino expected what occurred but it did and had there been an AR-15 armed individual in the vicinity who was able to act, he may not have been able to prevent the crisis but surely COULD have reduced the toll. Another such case is the Boston Marathon where I was physically present in April of 2013 and unarmed but have since been trained to carry concealed and do because police and other law enforcement can only respond to such events AFTER THE FACT. It is a sad statement of today’s world and I am a 73 year old Vietnam Vet and a life member of the NRA and the 2nd Amendment Foundation because it is better to be safe than sorry and to have a chance at least to defend what is YOURS from those who for whatever sociopathic reasons, would take just about everything from you as a political statement in an insane world. My attitude and training is one reason I am still around at 73., and I plan on living to a natural end, NOT A CONTRIVED ONE. It is my right and I WILL exercise it at need. You have a choice, so do I
but there are those who would enslave you and not all of them are foreign. You should remember that , too!
I agree with you 100%.
Couldn’t have said it better if I tried. And a huge THANK YOU for you service!
spot on brother,another Viet Nam vet in total agreement
!!!!!!
TRUTH does not need moderation: period!
He had to run in to get a gun anyways….so he grabbed the bigger one…and if you don’t like a gun like an AR15 then that’s fine and I fully respect that..that’s your choice. but it’s not right of you or anyone else to want mine taken from me..Ive had a carry permit for years and AR15 rifles for even longer…I use them for coyotes….squirrels…etc. it really doesn’t matter which gun he grabbed but you have to admit the AR is more intimidating than a pistol and more importantly he saved a life
Whether people want to admit it or not a good person with a legal gun can eliminate a bad person with an illegal gun. It makes no difference if it is a semi-automatic rifle or a semi- autumatic pistol. Every law abiding person deserves the right to defend themselves from criminals or lunitics.
Our second amendment giving people the right to own and bare arms. Given the time in history a young nation was just over coming the tyranny of the British Crown. The founders knew that any government could grow and become not servants of the people, but rather lord over them in any way they so choose. The people have a God give right to protect themselves from thieves of the common type or from government criminals who want to control all that the citizens do, whether it is money, owing land, what we eat, drink or medicine’s that can or cannot be taken, even when many medicine’s have serious adverse effects right up to death, when natural homeopathic treatments can cure a diease rather than cover up the symptoms.
We must admit that government has grown way out of control. Regulations on top of regulations unfairly limit people as to what they may do to make a living. This frustrates people, parents and that frustration translates to anger, anxiety and depresion. Parents under stress cannot effectively deal with the added burden of paying close attention to there children, so children in many cases must raise themselves or maybe the children in an effort to find acceptance and a feeling of belonging and have rules to follow, whether those rules are good or bad. Then we wonder why children are so full of anger, rejection and become like their parents over burdened by anxiety, depression and a rebellious attitude.
Guns are inanimate objects, that have no feelings, guilt or of right and wrong. A gun in the hands of a trained law abiding citizen can do good things, but in the hands of a criminal or unstable natured individuals will do bad things.
We need to raise our children with good values of right and wrong, respect for others, but that has all changed since prayer was taken from public schools, the bible banned from schools and more and more secularism has taken over our country, because people are over worked underpaid and are going no where even though productivity has increased, but wages stagnate. Frustration takes over there lives and it is all people and parents can do to maintain some symbolence sanity. So the children suffer as families are more and more falling out of church membership. Yet in abandoning church and God we have no where to find relief from pressures and stresses of today. When we as a country become less secular and trusting in our own knowledge when we don’t have the wisdom to use our knowledge and turn back to God, things are not gonna get better.
Oh’ please God, let them take all my guns away from me so that only the government and the criminals will have them, and when or if they break into my home I can’t overwhelm the intruder(s) with the power of an AR-15 to defend myself my home and family …I beg you, God, please let them make me defenseless against any attack on me or my family and friends, Thank You, God Thank You……What ah’ bunch of libtard idiots…Begging God to be disarmed and be made defenseless, Un-freaking-real…
That same AR-15 round that goes through the home invader, through the wall, and kills one of your kids – beg God’s forgiveness then. There are better weapon choices for in home defense.
Maybe, but when the ar15 is the gun you have, you use that. The idea that a round might go through a wall and kill someone’s child doesn’t seem to be a concern for police. While any vet like yourself WOULD consider everything downrange, not so for most of the armed police who kill routinely.
If you believe a .223 bullet will pass through an intruder, through a wall, and then kill a kid you are crazy. Your statements on here are laughable.
James Pearce. The Second Amendment does not give you the right to keep or bare arms That is a Natural Right of protection given by the Creator or God! The Second Amendment cannot grant you something you already have. Instead the Second Amendment tells the GOVERNMENT IT HAS NO CAPACITY under the Constitution to assume any power over a right not ceded to its control! Shall Not be Infringed means just that!
The extreme velocity of this gun makes it more lethal as bullets wander thru the body and destroy vital organs beyond repair. This does not seem to be a benefit worthy of keeping the gun from being banned. Other guns are able to be as effective in all other ways. Huge magazines have no redeeming attributes IMHO are only designed for slaughter. These could be eliminated without loss of enjoyment.
The two attributes of these rifles you mention only make them more effective. If in the hands of a good guy protecting home and loved ones from sociopathic home invaders, it effectively ends a horrific situation. If in the hands of a sociopathic killer, it is effective for his purposes. So should we focus on the tool to prevent such evil people from doing harm?
Extreme bullet velocity and weight make for greater kinetic energy…more effective. Huge magazines hold more bullets to carry out what you intend to do. That may be defending yourself if that is your intent, or harming if that is your intent. More bullets just means more effective, not good or evil. As for the magazine comment, you obviously have never soiled your undies because you ran out of bullets before you ran out of bad guys.
Hello Ernest Miles- appreciate your comment but it has no basis in fact. Throughout years of testing the humble 223 (or 5.56 mil.spec) round has been shown over and over to provide less over penetration than most handgun rounds 9mm or larger. That fact alone makes it a better choice than a handgun for home defense. When compared to a 12ga using any pellets larger than #4 it also exhibits less over penetration. Again making the 223 a better choice for in home defense. The light weight projectile of the 223 tends to yaw and tumble when passing through soft matter which causes it to slow rapidly and contact future surfaces at a sideways presentation, this preventing over penetration.
Now to the age old debate”handgun or rifle?”, I’ll use the adage I heard while watching an old western “the only reason I carry a pistol(sic) is so I can get to my rifle”.
The moral fiber of this country is being ruined br liberal democrats that control by making poor people dependent on them for everything. Modern slavery to gain a vote for them.
May god help us if we loose the next elections to themho
MYgrandson just bought the big guy.So far it’s been real respectful.It just sits in his gun case UNTIL he picks it up,That’s where the problem lies.The person handleing the gun NOT the gun itself.