First, watch the following video:
Transcript:
A brazen hold up in Florida didn't exactly go off as planned, again, thanks to one gun-toting senior citizen. Look at the surveillance video again, we just saw it, the two armed robbers storming an internet cafe. Watch the back right of your screen, 71-year-old Samuel Williams is not taking that anymore. Pulls his own gun, takes aim, and would save the day. The suspects actually made a run for it. They were hit twice as they flee out the door. The suspects, later arrested. We should point out, Williams does have a gun license and is not expected to be charged.
Two men tried to rob a cafe in Florida. A 71-year-old man took matters into his own hands, firing on the suspects with his own gun. He fired five times, hitting the suspects three times.
The media has been acting like this man is a hero, but watch again:
He fires without regard for who may be in the line of fire if he misses. He's slow and clumsy on the trigger. He even chases the suspect, firing as he is running, well wombling, even though they are clearly fleeing the scene and no longer a threat. Of course, under stand your ground, he could probably have legally followed them out, chased them to their homes, and executed them in their sleep.
The man was not a hero. He put himself and others at risk when he pulled that gun. It could have ended in a hundred different ways. The suspects with the gun could have fired back. One of the bullets that missed could have hit and killed someone else.
If the media wants to report on it, great, show the video, tell what happened, but don't editorialize and declare the man a hero.
1:01 PM PT: I think my point was not clear. I disagree with the actions of this man, particularly the way he chased down two teenagers who were running away. But my point is not that. It is that the news broadcasts I have seen are holding him up as a hero. The media should not be declaring him a hero. They should be reporting the facts and letting the viewers decide whether he is a hero or not.
2:13 PM PT: Wow. I've never been the target of so much venom before. I've been called rude, pathetic, stupid and told to STFU, among other things.
I stand by my opinion. I believe his actions were dangerous. I believe he shot blindly through a door and put bystanders at risk.
Sat Jul 21, 2012 at 5:12 PM PT: Erm... Not sure how this ended up on the rec list. It's been two days since I wrote it. I thought the debate had finally died, but I guess not.