The host of an NRA podcast has broken the association’s silence over the death of Philando Castile who was shot by police during a traffic stop on Wednesday. Thousands of people had attacked the NRA for its unusual silence after Castile was killed while armed, despite telling the officer that he had a handgun and a permit to carry it. Cam Edwards, host of the Cam&Co podcast, told listeners on Thursday: “What we know doesn’t look good. Our right to keep and bear arms is not based on the color of our skin.” Thursday night during a Black Lives Matter protest over Castile’s death in Dallas, TX, 5 police officers were killed and another 6 were wounded by snipers.
The National Rifle Association issued a statement regarding the shooting, saying that “this terrible incident could have been prevented if only the protest had not been deemed a gun-free zone.” Apparently, the NRA feels that if police had allowed protesters to carry guns during the event, the sniper attacks could somehow have been prevented, namely by the protesters themselves. “We deeply regret the events that led to this protest. They do not reflect the position of the National Rifle Association on the matter of gun control; however, we still emphasize that any and every citizen of the United States of America who owns a weapon is a good citizen.”
Asked to comment, a spokesperson for the NRA told the Dallas Morning News that “everybody in the organization mourns the deaths of honest police officers, even though we firmly, now more than ever, believe that all of this could have gone peacefully and without any injuries or tragic outcomes.” Asked to elaborate, the spokesperson said, “Well, I don’t believe any of the protesters were there to cause chaos. I have faith that they were there in a peaceful capacity, that they were there to mourn a fellow American, and to show their dissatisfaction in a calm and peaceful manner. I don’t even think some of them would have carried guns even if they had been allowed to.”
“But the ones that would have, I mean, they could have reacted so much faster than police officers,” the spokesperson argued. You see, when you own a gun, and I speak from personal experience, you’re trained to always be alert and on the lookout for potentially dangerous situations. Guns can be lethal and so you can never let your guard down, even when the safety is on. So, unlike police officers, who typically carry weapons only when working, a licensed gun owner is around his weapon 24/7, which makes him more accustomed to both having it on his person, as well as using it. Bottom line, I think the protesters themselves would have taken out those snipers and saved those police officers.”
“There were much more protesters present at the scene than there were cops, so that’s another reason why I think they would have been the better option. But, as always, the police thought they knew best and were too stubborn to listen to anyone else. They had to go and declare the protest a gun-free zone, which ultimately meant they were setting up their people to be nothing more than sitting ducks for sniper wanna-bees. And look how that’s turned out. Maybe next time they’ll be more open to other people’s suggestions,” they concluded.
