An Op-Ed from the Michigan state director for Women for Gun Rights has zeroed in on the “dangerous” double standard from the political left and the media in the aftermath of the mass stabbing incident recently at a Walmart in Traverse City.
Marcy Jankovich, operator at Michigan Combat Dynamix, LLC with her son, authored the 576-word opinion piece which appeared Aug. 6 in the Detroit News. Headlined “Walmart stabbings show flaw in gun control logic,” the opinion piece echoed sentiments expressed by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms in the aftermath of the stabbing spree, which was stopped when an armed private citizen intervened.
Jankovich notes the different reaction to this attack and what typically follows a mass shooting.
“The media covered the initial shock. The politicians issued generic statements,” Jankovich writes. “But something’s missing — something that always seems to go missing when the narrative doesn’t fit: no one is talking about ‘knife control.’ Why is that?”
“Because deep down,” she notes a few lines later, “we all know the glaring truth: it’s not the object that commits the violence; it’s the person. But the moment a firearm is involved, the story changes. The headlines explode. Politicians scramble to propose more restrictions. And the blame shifts from the criminal to the tool they used.
“This double standard isn’t just frustrating,” Jankovich explains, “it’s dangerous. It distracts from real solutions, and it deliberately ignores the fact that, in Traverse City, a law-abiding citizen with a firearm stopped the attack before more people were stabbed.”
When CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb initially reacted to the stabbing spree a few days earlier, he noted in a statement to the media, “Armed citizens have often intervened to stop deadly attacks. When such incidents occur, we are often disappointed when the establishment media seems to quickly downplay, if not completely ignore, the use of a firearm by an armed citizen to intervene and stop the mayhem. This time, the incident was captured on video, so it cannot be ignored. (Derrick) Perry’s courageous action deserves recognition, not just by his fellow Michigan residents, but by Americans everywhere.”
Perry, described as a former Marine, drew his sidearm and confronted the suspect, identified as Bradford James Gille. Perry was backed up by at least three other citizens who held the suspect for police, who arrived moments after the stabbing was reported.
In her Op-Ed, Jankovich also discussed an issue which has been discussed frequently by conservative commentators following such incidents.
“This incident also highlights another uncomfortable pattern that truly undermines the efficacy of gun control,” she observes. “Authorities said the suspect had a history of ‘assaultive incidents.’ In other words, they knew he was dangerous and capable of violence. While shocking to hear, this isn’t an isolated occurrence. Over and over, we’ve seen mass casualty events carried out by individuals who were already on law enforcement’s radar. The signs were there. The threats had been made. Reports were filed. But the system didn’t act.”
In Traverse City, the suspect attacked at least 11 people with what was shown to be a folding knife, which is a common implement carried by outdoorsmen and women all over the country, especially during camping and hunting seasons. Such knives can be purchased at virtually every sporting goods store and hardware, or even online.
So far, as Jankovich notes in her opinion piece, nobody has demanded background checks on knife purchases, and no politician has stepped up to a microphone to call for “knife control” legislation.
The incident in Traverse City underscored another contention often made by gun rights advocates, that people determined to create havoc are not deterred by gun laws, and they will find a way to commit mayhem with something other than a firearm.
TGM reached out to Jankovich, but did not receive an immediate response.
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