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Book Review:
“The Man Who Hated Work and Loved Labor — The Life and Times of Tony Mazzocchi” This is a fascinating book about a labor leader who has had tremendous influence on our lives, but whose name is not even known by millions of Americans. Please read my review.

From:
The American Rifleman
October, 1999

Studies indicate that firearms are used over two million times a year for personal protection, and that the presence of a firearm, without a shot being fired, prevents crime in many instances. Shooting usually can be justified only where crime constitutes an immediate imminent threat to life limb or in some cases property. Anyone is free to quote or reproduce these accounts. Send clippings to: “The Armed Citizen,” 11250 Waples Mill Rd., Fairfax, VA 22030

Army retiree John Langwasser, 68, heard glass breaking in his Jasper, Tennessee, home one morning and armed himself with a Smith & Wesson .38 Spl. revolver before going to investigate. According to Marion County Sheriff Jim Webb, Langwasser was met in the living room by a man with outstretched arms asking, “Did you know someone was breaking into your house?” Realizing the ruse was ineffective, the man jumped Langwasser who fired the handgun, fatally striking the intruder once in the chest. (Chattanooga Times, Chattanooga, TN, 7/22/99)

Seventy-one-year-old Lee Carter had operated his Four Oaks, North Carolina, pharmacy in relative peace for a decade before coming face-to-face with a gun-wielding bandit 15 years ago. Following that incident, Carter began keeping a .22 cal. handgun nearby. The decision doubtless saved his life on a recent evening when a gunman entered the store around closing time and demanded Valium, morphine and other drugs. In the ensuing gun battle, Carter took one bullet, but managed to inflict several gunshot wounds on the would-be robber, sending him to the hospital in much worse condition. Carter’s longtime friend said later, “That is one criminal they don’t have to worry about catching.” (The News & Observer, Raleigh, NC, 7/17/99)

Bartender Shannon Allen had no way of knowing that cutting off a patron at her workplace, E-Jay’s Tavern in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, would lead to a deadly confrontation. After bouncers ejected Scott Kniss from the bar, he returned minutes later bent on revenge and armed with a handgun and a rifle. Firing 35 shots, some of which seriously injured Allen, into the roomful of patrons, Kniss was finally halted when bar owner Mike Jaber shot him twice with a .45-cal. handgun. “I was forced to act in self-defense to protect myself, my employees and my patrons,” said Jaber following the traumatic incident. (Johnstown Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, PA, 7/4/99)

Emily Peso’s tranquil Gaithersburg, Maryland, back yard was quickly transformed into a horror-movie-like setting one Sunday night when a 12-ft. snake appeared out of the darkness and coiled around the family pet: a mixed terrier named Dusty. Family members fought the beast with a leash, a shovel even a surfboard-until the snake finally relented and released the limp, breathless Dusty who was later revived and rushed to a veterinary hospital. Having been told by animal agencies after an earlier sighting of the snake that no help would be forthcoming, the family’s nightmare finally ended when a neighbor showed up with a rifle and dispatched the snake. (The Dallas Morning News, Dallas, TX, 7/29/99)

Michael Lamotte told sheriff’s deputies in Greene County, Tennessee, that the double-wide mobile home he rented became the scene of a home invasion one Tuesday evening when two masked men kicked in the front door, ordered him to the floor and robbed him of his wallet. Lamotte was determined not to take the roughing up lying down, however, and managed to crawl to a closet, retrieve a shotgun and shoot at one man before he escaped through a window. When the second intruder appeared from the basement stairs pointing a shotgun at him, Lamotte fired two shots, fatally wounding the home invader. (Knoxville News-Sentinel, Knoxville, TN, 7/15/99)

A 34-year-old Boulder County, Colorado, woman became the trapped prey in a life-and-death contest with her estranged husband one Saturday when he invaded her home and held her against her will for more than five hours. The woman finally managed to break free by crawling through a second-story window. Then, turning the tables on her tormentor, she re-entered the house this – time with a gun – and ordered him to leave. The man was later arrested at his home and charged with attempted murder, burglary, felony menacing, harassment by stalking and false imprisonment. (Rocky Mountain News, Denver, CO, 7/19/99)

Quick thinking and his 9 mm pistol helped a former Marine save seven family members when five gun-toting thugs descended on his Tucson, Arizona, home early one morning. The victim was awakened by a loud bang as three of the men broke down a garage door that led into the home. When they mysteriously retreated to a vehicle outside, the victim followed. That’s when a gun battle erupted, moving back inside and finally littering the home’s floor with 25 spent casings from six guns. Police found evidence that at least one intruder was injured, but could not offer a motive for the incident. (The Arizona Daily Star, Tucson, AZ, 7/3/99)

Ocean City, Maryland, businessman and resident Stephen George was walking his dog late one night when he noticed two men in a passing vehicle turn off the headlights and swing back toward his business, Boat Doctor Marine, Inc. After watching the pair squeeze through the fence, George went to his house nearby and retrieved a stainless steel, .357 Mag. revolver. Surprising the men who were hefting new batteries back to their car George commanded, “Hold it right there.” He then instructed the pair to keep their hands in plain view and marched them back to the business to dial 9-1-1. Sheriff Charles Martin later said, “I think it was a good, common sense move on his part. We’ve got limited manpower, and we need all the common sense help we can get:” (The Daily Times, Salisbury, MD, 7/14/99)

If you have had a firsthand “Armed Citizen” experience,
call NRA-ILA Grassroots at (800) 392-8683.

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Last Updated — June 20, 2008