February 8, 2002
An Open Letter to President George W. Bush
JPFO SUPPORTERS: The following open letter is as much for the people of America as
for the politicians to whom it's addressed. Please circulate it far and wide.
If you believe it worthwhile, e-mail or fax copies to members of the Bush
administration listed in the letter. Their best available contact information
is included below.
AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT GEORGE.W. BUSH
And key members of the Bush Administration
Subject: A DANGEROUS GAP IN U.S. HOMELAND SECURITY
TO: President George.W. Bush (president@whitehouse.gov)
Vice President Dick Cheney (vice.president@whitehouse.gov)
Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge (Fax (202) 456-6337)
Attorney General John Ashcroft (AskDOJ@usdoj.gov)
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld (http://www.defenselink.mil/faq/comment.html#Form)
Secretary of State Colin Powell (secretary@state.gov)
National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice (Fax: 202-456-9290)
FBI Director Robert Mueller (http://www.fbi.gov/contactus.htm
)
FR: Aaron Zelman, Executive Director
Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership
Dear President Bush and Administration Decision-Makers:
I'm writing to alert you to an ominous, potentially tragic gap in your homeland
security preparations. This gap could enable terrorists to escape scrutiny and
operate anywhere from the largest cities to the deepest part of the American
heartland where, as you know, agricultural facilities, dams, and power plants
are vulnerable. The gap exists in the millions of square miles of the U.S. that
simply can't be safeguarded by federal agents, even with the aid of
sophisticated technology.
Fortunately, you have at hand the one force that can most surely close this
dangerous gap: The American people.
After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941, Americans living on both
coasts were rapidly brought into action as civil defense wardens. They watched
the skies and the seas for signs of invasion. They stood guard against spies
and saboteurs. Everyone from housewives to retired military men accepted the
natural duty of citizens to protect their own country and communities against
attack.
Many of these civilian defenders -- who, after all, were members of the
constitutional unorganized militia -- went armed in their duties. They were
ready not only to report dangers that they spotted to far-off "authorities,"
but to personally stand up for their country's safety and security.
Franklin Roosevelt wasn't the only twentieth-century president to value an
armed citizenry. President Theodore Roosevelt, who habitually carried a handgun
for self-defense (as did his niece Eleanor), said that only with extensive
firearm training could America "defend ourselves, protect others, or preserve
peace" in the face of "strong nations" bent on aggression.
When John F. Kennedy was a candidate for the presidency, he declared, "Although
it is extremely unlikely that the fears of governmental tyranny, which gave
rise to the second amendment, will ever be a major danger to our nation, the
amendment still remains an important declaration of our basic military-civilian
relationships, in which every citizen must be ready to participate in the
defense of his country."
What was true against "strong nations" is surely even more true when the enemy
is small, hidden groups of men who may be living, planning, and acting out
their evil in our neighborhoods. When terrorists are dispersed among us, what
better answer than to disperse armed American guardians far and wide among them?
If every American is a potential victim of terror, then shouldn't every
American be expected and encouraged
to defend self, home, family, community, and nation?
Such widespread self defense is not only common sense, it is also effective
national defense.
There are not enough FBI agents, National Guardsmen, or police to cover every
corner of America. No number of surveillance cameras or checkpoints can do that
job (although they may help turn the U.S. into a police state in the vain
attempt to achieve "security"). Spending $61.8 million on increased FBI
surveillance capabilities, or $157.6 million to enhance that agency's computer
systems, as your new budget proposes to do, can't protect Americans today, next
week, or next month, and may never protect us all.
But there are 285 million Americans who are on hand now, in every big-city
neighborhood, small town, and rural crossroads. Some 80 million of them already
own firearms, and millions are prepared to bring their own weapons and
ammunition -- at no cost to the U.S. taxpayers -- to defend their homeland.
The Talmud, the code of Jewish law, states: "If someone comes to kill you,
arise quickly and kill him." That's good sense for dealing with terrorists, as
well as common criminals.
Just as a thief avoids breaking into a home where an armed-and- ready resident
might be present, terrorists will surely think twice if they know a planeload
or an office building full of potential victims might contain even a few who refuse
to be victims -- and are armed with the means to enforce their refusal. If
every hiker near a vulnerable dam, every farmer at a grain mill, every cleaning
lady in a public building were a potential armed defender ... wouldn't
terrorists be less inclined to see us and our institutions as easy targets --
as they so clearly did on September 11?
President Franklin Roosevelt trusted his fellow citizens with the defense of the
nation after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Now, after the after the worst attack
against the U.S. in its entire history ... I must ask you, Mr. Bush and members
of the administration: Why aren't you
relying upon the American people?
Mr. Bush, if you are truly want to be a truly effective defender of your nation,
then you will:
-
Explicitly recognize and encourage Americans' unlimited right to self-defense
and defense of their own communities.
-
Encourage citizens to be aware of their rights and responsibilities,
particularly their second-amendment rights.
-
Immediately instruct the ATF, FBI, and any other federal enforcement agencies
to cease prosecuting non-violent Americans for technical violations of firearms
laws or regulations.
-
Permit and encourage Americans to bear arms on federal lands and in federal
buildings.
-
Considering that courts have repeatedly declared that government law
enforcement has no obligation to protect any individual, encourage states to
enable citizens to defend themselves or their communities
-
Encourage those with military or police experience to share their expertise
with fellow citizens in the form of firearm- training courses and other defense
skills.
I'm not talking about a draft, which would be involuntary servitude. I'm not
talking about turning random, shoot-on- suspicion vigilantes loose upon the
nation. I'm talking about a committed, educated defense, run by individuals at
the community level and peopled by individuals, acting as free, well-trained,
and informed citizens.
I trust that your intentions are good. But as I'm sure many Americans will
remind you, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Increasingly,
Americans are growing uneasy about the usefulness of government surveillance of
ordinary citizens on Main Street, USA.
Mr. Bush, Mr. Cheney, Mr. Ridge, Mr. Ashcroft, Mr. Rumsfeld, Gen. Powell, Mr.
Mueller, Ms. Rice: If you are serious about defending our homeland, I ask you
to trust
those citizens. Rely on them before you rely on uniformed force or Big Brother
technology.
It won't cost you a thing. It will help keep America free. And it might prevent
another disaster whose cost is beyond measuring.
Sincerely,
Aaron Zelman
Executive Director, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership
* * *
How would America be if we had a president that believed in strict
Bill of Rights Enforcement? Read the novel HOPE, by
by Aaron Zelman & L. Neil Smith: http://www.jpfo.org/hope.htm
"How would you feel if you no longer feared your government...?"
THE STATE vs. THE PEOPLE, by Claire Wolfe and Aaron
Zelman answers the question: IS AMERICA BECOMING A POLICE STATE?
We all know that the U.S. is becoming less free. Nobody needs to tell
us that. What people may not understand is the inexorable, historic,
highly systematic process through which our freedom is being erased.
See http://www.jpfo.org/tsvtp.htm
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