Jackpot!

Since the recent shooting at a church in Texas, there have been streams of foolishness from the gun ban lobby trying to explain away the success of an armed citizen in stopping a mass murder. But there have been few sillier than the Twitter feed of Tom Nichols, which featured this gem:

In equating the outcome of the shooting to a “lucky break,” Nichols misses the mark entirely.

Snake eyes, Tom.

For starters, it was not “luck” that placed the right person, with the right training, in the right place, at the right time. It was not “luck” that resulted in a would-be mass murderer dead on the ground after only firing two shots. It was deliberate planning, preparation, and action by citizens whose government got out of their way and returned to them the freedom to defend themselves…even in church.

But Nichols’ bigger mistake is in equating this outcome to good fortune is in comparing it to winning the lottery. There is a huge difference in choosing to buy a lottery ticket and being present at a shooting. The difference with the lottery is that you can choose not to play. You don’t have to go into the 7-11 and buy that scratch-off ticket…it’s your decision.

Don’t want to play? Don’t buy a ticket..

But mass shootings? You don’t get to decide. The killer is going to decide…is going to buy your lottery ticket…for you. We all have a ticket in the violence lottery, whether we want one or not. And if you happen to score the “jackpot” and a killer walks into your church, your school, your workplace, your life…the only choice you will have is whether it will be a gunfight or a massacre.

And here’s the thing: You have to make that choice in advance. You can’t wait until the shooting starts to decide to carry your gun and to be trained any more than you can wait to see if you’re going to be in a car crash before deciding to put on your seat belt. Luck can be either good or bad, and luck is no replacement for planning and preparation. Just like the congregation in Texas, you are in the lottery, every day, whether you like it or not.

Make your own luck.