Blood in the Streets

by Skip Coryell

  Henry fell silent as they watched the empty screen and listened from a distance as Luke tried in vain to call his daughter in New York City.

  A few seconds later a different newscaster came on the screen, filling the void.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, this is Brian Becker of TV 8 news in New York City. It would appear that we have lost contact with Neil Champion who was covering the attack on the twin towers. We have no word yet as to his condition, but we can only hope and pray that he is okay and especially that most of the people inside the building were able to get out in time.”

  The announcer hesitated, waiting for information coming in through his earphone.

  “Our sources now tell us that both World Trade Center buildings at this time of day contain approximately 10,000 people either working or visiting to do business. But of course, we have no way of knowing how many have just been killed or injured. I don’t see how anyone could have survived the collapse. I just don’t see it.” Tears welled up in Brian Becker’s eyes and the camera zoomed in on him.

  “How could anyone do such a heinous thing? I don’t understand. I just don’t understand!”

  He listened to his earpiece again and hesitated once more, then continued in a more animated voice.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, we take you now to Arlington, Virginia, for a live eyewitness report, where a third airliner has crashed into the Pentagon.”

  Both men at the table walked around their chairs and stood transfixed in front of the television screen, their mouths dropped open gaping dumbly like big, black holes.

  “I don’t believe it Henry! I just don’t believe it!” Henry, a large-bodied farmer in bib overalls, about 70 years old, closed his mouth and stood resolutely in place.

  “It don’t surprise me none Jack. It’s been a comin’.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You know darn well what I mean. We let ourselves get weak and it’s happened again. Pearl Harbor all over again. Why don’t people ever learn?”

  Jack looked up at the Pentagon’s broken rim, the symbol of our nation’s might, burning in flames.

  “My God! What’s gonna happen now?”

  Luke hung up the phone and walked back over.

  “Can’t get my daughter.”

  He bowed his head solemnly, the look of hope, slowly fading from his face, gradually being replaced with anger and rage. When he looked up again, his lips pursed tightly together and then he spoke with a resolute sneer.

  “I’ll tell you what we do - only one thing to do. We find ‘em, and we nuke ‘em! We’re obliged to.”

  Henry and Jack nodded their heads in unison.

  “Yep. I guess we have to. We’re obliged.”

  As soon as Ted Nugent walked in the room, it ceased to be a pistol-free zone. This picture was taken back stage at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Ted gave a profoundly outrageous speech titled “God, Guns, and Rock-n-Roll”. I have been Ted’s friend for many years, and there is no greater patriot than the Nuge. He stands up to the anti-gunners like no one else can, and he makes them all look silly.

  Chuck Perricone was the Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives back in 2000 when the CCW bill was passed. Chuck was instrumental in shepherding the bill through the convoluted political process until it was finally signed into law by Governor Engler. As Michigan State Director of Ted Nugent United Sportsmen of America, I worked closely with Chuck on subsequent CCW law improvements. I am honored to call Chuck a staunch friend and ally. Chuck now serves as the Executive Director of Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners (MCRGO). MCRGO is the largest and most effective state-based pro-second Amendment organization in the United States. Go to www. mcrgo.org to join and find out more.

  This picture was taken in Chicago, Illinois at a class taught by Massad Ayoob called “Judicious Use of Deadly Force”. It was 20 hours of intensive training on the legal and emotional ramifications of being involved in a lethal shoot-out. Massad’s Lethal Force Institute gives some of the best training in the world. You should make time to train with Massad. Massad is the master. (Go to www.ayoob.com for info on his classes.) Two friends and Lethal Force Instructors, Bob Houzenga and Andy Kemp, are kneeling in the front row.

  Massad is kneeling in the number one spot and I am standing behind him. Andy and Bob are kneeling in the number 4 and 5 positions, respectively.

  Four of the original RKBA rebels of Barry County are pictured here. Left to right: Sheriff Dar Leaf, Skip Coryell, Walt Herwath, and Dave Stevens. All of us worked hard, putting our reputations on the line to advance concealed carry in Michigan long before it was popular to do so. We’ve been in the RKBA trenches together and that’s a bond that lasts a lifetime.

  This picture was taken in Delton, Michigan at a charity golf outing. I golfed with the Sheriff and we had a great time despite our high scores. Tiger Woods has nothing to fear from anyone in this picture.

  Roger Burdette (left) is a registered lobbyist in Des Moines for IowaCarry, Inc. He is a member of the Board of Directors and a tireless supporter for the right to keep and bear arms in Iowa. Here he is shown with State Representative Clel Baudler (right). The honorable Mr. Baudler has introduced several pro-CCW bills into the House but the climate is not yet right for passage. When the shall-issue bill is passed into law in Iowa, it will be the result of hard work by a team of dedicated individuals composed of citizen activists like IowaCarry Inc., elected officials like Representative Clel Baudler, and law enforcement supporters such as Sheriff Mark Denniston in Jones County.

  We lived in Iowa only one year, but it was enough to spoil me for a lifetime. The bucks are huge and plentiful. Look at the high rack on this one, and it was considered by the locals to be a bit on the “small” side. My neighbor across the Wapsi River let me hunt his 500 acres of river bottom and timber land. It was prime white-tail habitat, and I hunted it all by myself all through bow season. The things I do for my country!

  The week following the Virginia Tech Massacre, Steve Deace of WHO radio, 1040 AM, in Des Moines invited me to be a guest on his afternoon drive show and I graciously accepted. Steve talked to me about my views on gun control and personal defense, and we hit it off well from the start. Steve had me on his show three times in 2007 and we had a good time talking about the right to keep and bear arms. I am pleased to now call him my friend and fellow Christian brother. Go to www.whoradio.com and check out Steve’s own book “Without a Vision the People Perish”. It’s an excellent read and I highly recommend it.

  Pictured here are some of my family and friends at a book signing in Menomonie, Wisconsin. My daughter-in-law, Michelle, is holding my book “Blood in the Streets” and my oldest son, Chris, is standing behind her flanked by some of my YWAM friends. In the front row is my son, Phillip, and baby Cedar who is being held by my daughter, Cathy.

  I’ve written and published six books, but “Blood in the Streets: Concealed Carry and the OK Corral” is by far my best seller.

  (Photo courtesy of Jennifer Gibson)

  Here I am with my two-year-old son, Cedar, speaking to lawmakers at a public meeting at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan. Cedar has a way of breaking the ice and disarming strangers, allowing my ideas to be better received. It was an informational meeting sponsored by Gun Owners of America designed to bring attention to the growing “open carry” movement. For more information on open carry, go to www.opencarry.org.

  Here’s my 2-year-old son, Cedar, playing with his toy gun. When I was a kid, toy guns were no big deal. Now, because of brain-dead, political correctness, kids get expelled for drawing pictures of toy guns at school. I think kids are smart enough to tell the difference between a real gun and a toy gun. All we have to do is teach them the difference. After all, it’s our job; that’s what parents do, teach them right from wrong, safe from unsafe, etc. If my 2-year-old son can learn it, then so can your children.

  Teach the NRA Eddie Eagle Gun safety Program for kids. When you see a gun: �
�Stop! Don’t touch! Leave the Area! Tell an Adult!” It’s so simple a 2-year-old can understand it. So why can’t some adults?

  (Photo courtesy of Vernon Jenewein)

  Midwest Tactical teaches all across Michigan, but our home range is here in Middleville at the home of Dave Stevens, fellow RKBA activist and NRA Instructor. Our basic concealed carry classes have doubled in size since nine-eleven, and now, since the election of Barak Obama, they are growing even larger. We also teach Advanced Tactical classes several times a year. You can check out our course offerings and class schedule at www.mwtac.com.

  Last year Midwest Tactical Training partnered with Midwest Training Group (www.midwesttraininggroup.net) to bring Massad Ayoob’s Lethal Force Institute to Michigan. It was a huge success and we’ll be doing it every year now. Be sure to check our website for class dates and times.

  Photo courtesy of Barbara Caris

  Here I am being interviewed by a local TV station before the Hastings, Michigan open carry rally. My family and I got there and saw TV cameras out front. I kicked into public relations overdrive and gave three interviews before even entering the building. When I got inside I was shocked to see the room packed with 50 gun-toting Second Amendment supporters. We had a great time. (My wife, Sara, is holding our son, Cedar, in the right side of the photo.)

  Photo courtesy of Barbara Caris

  This picture shows me marching at an open carry rally in Hastings, Michigan in summer 2008. My friend, Dave Neeson, is in the lead wheelchair toting an antique six-shooter. His grandson, Brock, is pushing him.

  I hate the taste of crow. Even with garlic, butter and a few choice herbs and spices; it still doesn’t taste like chicken. But on the topic of open carry, I ate some crow, a full helping and then went back for seconds. I had always been adamantly opposed to open carry, but this past summer I helped to organize an open carry march in Hastings, Michigan. I re-evaluated my position and my way of thinking about it. Although I still prefer to carry concealed for personal reasons, I now see the potential value of open carry to the RKBA cause. The people at opencarry.org hold regular open carry events but they do it in a safe and friendly way. (www.opencarry.org)

  “I was pulled over for rolling through a stop sign and when the police officer asked me for my identification, I told him I was a CCW holder and that I was carrying today, just like I’m supposed to. The officer immediately drew his pistol and pointed it at me. My two little girls were in the back seat and they were terrified!”

  CCW and Law Enforcement

  Some years ago, I lived in a city where the Chief of Police believed that the individual right to keep and bear arms did not exist. I remember vividly the first conversation we ever had. I had just become the Southwest Michigan Area Director for Ted Nugent United Sportsmen of America, so I took Ted’s advice and went in to introduce myself to the local authorities in hopes that we could work together on some worthwhile projects to better the community. It was not to be. We were both very polite and professional, but at the end of the meeting, we were still diametrically opposed on Second Amendment issues. He told me that the Second Amendment referred to the National Guard, and not to the individual. He said that no person would ever carry in “his” town. That’s odd. I thought it was my town too. One of the most striking and memorable things he said was this: “You don’t have the right to own a shotgun for hunting unless the government says you can.”

  I was amazed. I’d never run across this attitude with any law enforcement officer before. That conversation took place many years ago, and today, a lot of people carry in “his” town. However, as it turned out, the town wasn’t big enough for the both of us, so I got out of Dodge. I still respect his authority and his political views, but we’ll never see eye to eye. It seems the two of us will always be at odds over the right to keep and bear arms.

  Two years ago, in my own home county, we had one of the most anti-Second Amendment Sheriff’s in the state. To this date, I’ve only had one conversation with him, and that was over the phone. I recall that I was working with Dave Stevens, a man who had created a group called Barry County Citizens for Second Amendment and Firearm Rights (BSAFR). Prior to the passage of shall issue CCW in Michigan, Dave had been working with the Sheriff, trying to get him to issue a few CCW permits to good applicants. Dave told me that the Sheriff had promised to loosen up and issue a few after his re-election. When this didn’t materialize, I called him up to talk about it. The conversation started out great until I mentioned CCW. It was all downhill from there. Here is how I remember it:

  “What do we have to do to get you to start issuing at least a few CCW permits here in Barry county?”

  He said it was a mute point since the new law goes into effect on July 1st. I said “Hey, let’s be candid here. You are working with “People Who Care about Kids” to try and block that law aren’t you? He said, “Yes, what’s wrong with that?” I told him that in all likelihood, they would be successful in finding an anti-Second Amendment judge on the east side of the state to block the law until December, but that waiting an entire year is unacceptable to us. He said there was nothing he could do about it. If he starts voting yes on the gun board, then he would be going against his convictions and he will never do that. I said I’d hoped we could come to some sort of agreement in order to avoid certain unpleasantries for him.

  He said, “What type of unpleasantries?”

  I said, “Well, recalling you for one. Starting a media campaign and giving you a lot of bad PR that could make your life very uncomfortable.”

  He said, “Are you threatening me?”

  I said, “No, I’m promising you!”

  He said, “Go ahead! Bring on the recall!”

  I said, “Okay, we will!”

  That was about it, other than I thanked him for returning my call. Quite frankly, I don’t think I’ll ever be on the man’s Christmas card list.

  There was no doubt that this man was finally admitting he was anti-CCW and that he would do whatever it took to block the new law. Later on, we did find his name on the website for “People Who Care About Kids”. He was listed as a supporter of that organization’s efforts to stop the new shall-issue CCW law from going into effect. They almost succeeded, but not quite.

  In all my dealings with law enforcement, I’ve noticed that the rank and file officers seem to be supporters of the individual’s right to keep and bear arms. I like that. But this doesn’t appear to be true for much of the upper management segment of law enforcement. Sometimes I wonder: “Before they promote someone to a management position, do they take them into a dark room and suck out half their brain?”

  I want to thank my good friend, Barry County Sheriff Dar Leaf, for helping me to keep a good attitude about law enforcement. Dar is one of those special people who remembers that the law, without common sense, is a disservice to the community. He sees himself as a servant, someone who was chosen by the people to do a dirty job that no one else wants to do. He does that job with integrity and with compassion, and he always remembers that he is accountable to the people who elected him to that position with no resentment whatsoever. Serving and protecting the public is an honor. Dar realizes that, and he never feels arrogant or abuses the power of his office. He’s one of the good guys.

  As the State Director of Ted Nugent United Sportsmen of America, I was pleased and honored to support Dar in his election campaign. He ran against the above-mentioned anti-CCW Sheriff and defeated him by a margin of almost two to one. Now, Sheriff Leaf teaches the legal portion of all my CCW classes, and does an outstanding job.

  By and large, the vast majority of law enforcement are good people, and I get along with them just fine. In this chapter, I would like to focus on that vast majority of good guys in law enforcement, but I can’t. Primarily because it’s not the good guys that CCW holders need to worry about; it’s that miniscule percentage of bad apples who join law enforcement either for the wrong reason, or who just don’t have the temperament or good ju
dgment for it. But it seems like there’s always that “ten percent” of bad apples in every segment of our society. Law enforcement is no exception to that, though I suspect that in this case, the percentage of “bad” officers is much less than ten. Please remember, police officers are drawn from the general population, so it stands to reason that not all of them are the sharpest knives in the drawer. (Remember, there are a few bad CCW holders as well.) Sheriff Leaf is an NRA Training Counselor, teaching the legal portion for all my CCW classes, and when he talks about civilian encounters with law enforcement, he is quick to point out: “Just because he’s a cop, doesn’t mean he’s good at his job. Be careful.” I respect that he’s able to notice and acknowledge that his own profession, just like all others, has its problems that need fixing. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. High and mighty people have no business in law enforcement, but still, a few inevitably slip through the cracks.