(Photo: Dominique Charriau/WireImage)
When the rich and famous need to be protected, what does a government do? It turns to men with guns.
When you need protection, what does a government do? Attempt to deny you the right to keep and bear arms because when it comes to the common man a government believes you are more safe when you are less free to defend yourself.
This double standard is on display in Paris, France, where city leaders are upping security measures for Haute Couture Fashion Week. Instead of relying on gun control laws the authorities are ramping up security measures, including the presence of armed military personnel, the erection of cement barriers and frequent bag inspections.
“Paris is the first tourist destination in the world,” François Martins, deputy mayor in charge of tourism in the French capital, told the UK Telegraph. “Incidents sometimes make headlines, for example about Kim Kardashian, but these acts are very rare and exist in all cities in the world.”
Kardashian was robbed at gunpoint. The thieves made off with over $8 million worth of jewelry. Yet, Martin sees that incident as somewhat of an aberration, saying that crime is on the decline, with burglaries falling by 11 percent and violent robberies by 28 percent from 2013 to 2016.
“We are therefore safer in Paris today than three years ago, and as well safer than most other major cities,” he said.
Aggregate crime stats are irrelevant to the individual when he or she is being assaulted by an armed thug. What matters in that very moment is whether one has the capacity to fight back against the threat to protect life and even property. In Paris, only the attendees of Fashion Week will have someone with the capacity to effectively fight back.
The rest of the citizenry will have to rely on the city’s onerous gun laws, which have been anything but foolproof in recent years with the fatal attacks on Charlie Hebdo that left 12 dead and the attack on concert goers that left 130 dead. Turns out that laws that disarm the good guys don’t have the same effect on the bad guys, who ultimately find a means to obtain firearms. As opposed to being faced with armed resistance from law-abiding citizens, spree-killers and terrorists have free rein to kill at will until eventually the authorities arrive on scene.
Parisian authorities know that their gun control laws are ineffective and won’t make a bit of difference to a bad guy with a gun. It’s why they’ve beefed up security for this fashion event. Sadly, though, when it comes to the average citizen, they’re not afforded the same security nor the means to defend themselves when confronted with similar threats.
Anyways, it’s the same old, same old, “guns for me but not for thee” mentality from the ruling elites. I guess we should be used to it by now. #RichLivesMatter
The French. Cheese-eating surrender monkeys.
I hope the Hypocrite, Lefty, Liberals, of the French Fashion Industry, get a little taste, of what they support!,
The French have become gutless morons. They deserve what they get. Pitiful.
If I recall correctly when serving with the French on security duty, first we had to have a cop with us. Our gun was not loaded. Three, the ammo was in pouch sewn that we could tear open to get to the ammo, then load the gun, then think about it, and if we would be checked and found with an open pouch we were submitted to an Inquisition like inverstigation.
And remember they are in a “State of Emergency”
Now, when serving in what they used to call “The Departments” in what was labeled “Operations to maintain Order” working to suppress the “HLL that is Hors La Loi aka Outlaws” in reality, fellaghas, moslem-marxist (yes indeed) terrorists, we had loaded guns.
So I would not bet big money on the French using soldiers to protect rich or poor residents and visitors.
I’ll believe those gun grabbing idiots when they actually start to look at how guns committed in crimes were obtained, and not simply want to ban firearms because they are scary looking. In other words, never. You will never get anywhere arguing with insane people. You carefully and thoughtfully answer one of their wild statements, and their answer is not to have a rational discussion, but to spout another dozen crazy lies.
Absolutely right on! Excellent article, excellent points. Makes me also think of a-holes like Bloomberg, who’s surrounded with well-armed bodyguards. The point being, his hypocrisy is moot; it’s more about taking power away from the citizenry.