Len Lisenbee's Outdoor World

    Len Lisenbee is the Outdoor Columnist for the Canadaigua Daily Messenger, Shooting Editor of the former New York Sportsman, retired Special Agent with the US Fish and Wildlife Service and book author of "TALES FROM THE MARSH AND OTHER DRIVEL" a unique look with fact and fiction of his years as a federal game warden.
 

It is a sad fact in today’s world that many people seem to have “blinders” on. You know what I mean, those things that horses wear that prevents them from becoming distracted or startled by activities that may be occurring right next to them. And this fact was never more true than when it comes to striving for the ultimate political climate of total left-wing socialist-liberal domination.

What am I rambling about, you might wonder? Well, I’m talking about the situation that currently exists in England where private ownership of guns has been all but eliminated. It is a situation that defies any logical thought process, much less the slightest hint of common sense. It is a situation that is so astounding that, for many people in this country, simply cannot be believed, much less understood.

Tony Martin, a farmer from Norfolk, UK, is in prison, and the most important, highest-ranked British government lawyers are actively arguing to prevent his parole anytime soon. You see, Mr. Martin is the owner of a house on his rural farm, a house that he happens to call his home. And this home of Mr. Martin has been burglarized no less than two dozen times. TWO DOZEN BURGLARIES OF HIS HOME!!!

Well, Mr. Martin got fed up with all this crime occurring in his home, so he decided to do something about it. On the night of August 21, 1999, he once again heard burglars inside his home, so he took “action.” Armed with his shotgun, he confronted three men in his living room. They, instead of following his instructions to lie on the floor, advanced on him. He fired his gun in self-defense, killing one burglar and wounding another. The third escaped unharmed into the night, but only to be captured later by police.

The British police with jurisdiction in his area began their investigation into this incident. They discovered that each of the three burglars had a criminal history. In fact, those three individuals had been hauled in front of the British Bar no less than 110 times in the past. ONE HUNDRED AND TEN PRIOR APPEARANCES BEFORE THE COURT OF JUSTICE!!!

However, it was Mr. Tony Martin who the British government attorneys prosecuted the most vigorously. Their argument was that burglars in Great Britain were members of the public, and as such deserved to be protected from violent home owners. And Mr. Martin was found guilty in a British courtroom of murder, and sentenced to life in prison. That sentence was reviewed, and later reduced to guilty of manslaughter with a five year prison sentence.

During the trial the British government lawyers disputed Mr. Martin’s claim that he did not pose a threat or risk to the public because he only represented a threat to burglars and other criminals who might have nefarious cause to trespass on his property. And those government lawyers would not be denied, either. They even disputed Mr. Martin’s claim that, since he no longer owned any gun (his legally owned shotgun had been confiscated by the British government), he no longer posed a threat to anyone. Those lawyers wanted a “platform case” on which to eschew their “burglars rights”, and poor Mr. tony Martin was it.

Burglar’s rights? Criminal’s rights? Rights for criminals that take precedence over the rights of honest, law-abiding citizens? What kind of madness is this!! What Insanity!!! How could any so-called civilized country give precedence to criminals over honest citizens? There is absolutely no way any reasonable person could rationalize such a concept, much less understand or accept it. And British citizens not only have to accept it, they must now live in complete subjugation to the will of the criminal element surrounding them. If they attempt to fight back against the criminals, they will end up fighting their government. And that, by any definition, is nothing short of governmentally-supported insanity.

Mr. Martin has been in jail every since the incident occurred. He has been persecuted, prosecuted and hounded by the government authorities that are supposed to protect honest individuals like him and millions of other Brits. He will remain in jail until the last day of his five-year prison sentence has been served. And, his only crime was protecting himself from criminals.

Ladies and gentlemen, friends and neighbors, do not for an instant think that such a situation as that of which you have just read cannot happen here in the good old United States of America. We are heading in that exact same direction even as you read this essay. Massachusetts has recently prosecuted several homeowners for defending rather than retreating from their homes when confronted by burglars. Washington, D.C. has also had several similar cases. And California, which leads the country in wacko criminal charges against its honest citizens, recently had a case so similar to Mr. Tony Martin of England that is makes one shutter.

The left-wing liberal democrats want us to arrive at that very same destination of utterly no common sense left in government just as soon as possible. They know that the elite of this country, be they political, educational, media-related, or entertainment-based, can far better take care of the populace (that’s you and me, folks) then we can take care of ourselves. They know what we need for every aspect of our daily lives far better than we will ever be capable of knowing ourselves. All we have to do is role over on our backs, expose our bellies, and wait for them to rub us like the dogs they consider us to be.

The bottom line is that we have lost our ability to look down the road. It used to be that, when Congress or one of the state assemblies proposed a stupid law, the citizens would rise up and protest, causing our governmental representatives to back off and go in another direction. Today, however, no one seems to care. Congress and most state governments have a free rein, and they are literally running amuck with legislation. We no longer care that, with the passage of every single law, each of us loses a little bit more of our own personal freedom. We have voluntarily put on blinders. We do not want to be distracted or startled by what might be going on right beside us. Now that is a real shame, isn’t it.

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Plan Ahead! Remember that is wasn't raining when Noah built the ark.

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A LITTLE COMMENTARY ATTRIBUTED TO ANDY ROONEY

I like big cars, big boats, big motorcycles, big houses and big campfires. I believe the money I make belongs to me and my family, not some governmental stooge with a bad comb-over who wants to give it away to crack addicts for squirting out babies.

Guns do not make you a killer. I think killing makes you a killer. You can kill someone with a baseball bat or a car, but no one is trying to ban you from driving to the ball game.

I believe they are called the Boy Scouts for a reason, that is why there are no girls allowed. Girls belong in the Girl Scouts!!!! ARE YOU LISTENING MARTHA BURKE!!!!???

I think that if you feel homosexuality is wrong, it is not a phobia, it is an opinion.

I don't think being a minority makes you a victim of anything except numbers. The only things I can think of that are truly discriminatory are things like the United Negro College Fund, Jet Magazine, Black Entertainment Television, and Miss Black America. Try to have things like the United Caucasian College Fund, Cloud Magazine, White Entertainment Television, or Miss White America; and see what happens. Jesse Jackson will be knocking down your door.

I have the right "NOT" to be tolerant of others because they are different, weird, or tick me off.

When 70% of the people who get arrested are black, in cities where 70% of the population is black, that is not racial profiling, it is the Law of Probability.

I know what sex is, and there are not varying degrees of it. If I received sex from one of my subordinates in my office, it wouldn't be a private matter or my personal business. I would be "FIRED" Immediately!

I believe that if you are selling me a milk shake, a pack of cigarettes, a newspaper or a hotel room, you must do it in English! As a matter of fact, if you want to be an American citizen, you should have to speak English!

My father and grandfather didn't die in wars so you can leave the countries you were born in to come over and disrespect ours.

I think the police should have every right to shoot your sorry ass if you threaten them after they tell you to stop. If you can't understand the word "freeze" or "stop" in English, see the above lines.

I feel much safer letting a machine with no political affiliation recount votes when needed. I know what the definition of lying is.

I don't think just because you were not born in this country, you are qualified for any special loan programs, government sponsored bank loans or tax breaks, etc., so you can open a hotel, coffee shop, trinket store, or any other business.

We did not go to the aid of certain foreign countries and risk our lives in wars to defend their freedoms, so that decades later they could come over here and tell us our constitution is a living document; and open to their interpretations.

I don't hate the rich. I don't pity the poor. I know pro wrestling is fake, but so are movies and television. That doesn't stop you from watching them.

I believe a self-righteous liberal or conservative with a cause is more dangerous than a Hell's Angel with an attitude.

I think Bill Gates has every right to keep every penny he made and continue to make more. If it ticks you off, go and invent the next operating system that's better, and put your name on the building. Ask your buddy that invented the Internet to help you.

It doesn't take a whole village to raise a child right, but it does take a parent to stand up to the kid; and smack their little behinds when necessary, and say "NO!"

I think tattoos and piercing are fine if you want them, but please don't pretend they are a political statement. And, please, stay home until that new lip ring heals. I don't want to look at your ugly infected mouth as you serve me French fries!

I am sick of "Political Correctness." I know a lot of black people, and not a single one of them was born in Africa; so how can they be "African-Americans"? Besides, Africa is a continent. I don't go around saying I am a European-American because my great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather was from Europe. I am proud to be from America and nowhere else.

And if you don't like my point of view, tough.

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Did Mr. Rooney, commentator on CBS's "60 Minutes", write the above commentary. Probably, but I'm not absolutely sure that he did, so it is only possibly attributed to him in this space. However, I do believe completely in what the author said, regardless of who he or she actually is.

Furthermore, I feel the author, whoever he or she might be, did not go far enough with his or her statements. For instance, I would have added that animals do not have "rights" of any kind. Humans pass laws to protect animals, or not. And, no bunny hugger could ever convince me that he or she has the right to burn down a medical research laboratory or release a single penned animal he or she does not personally own.

I would also have added that I do not care whether or not a fish feels pain when I set the hook in its mouth. I go fishing to have fun and maybe catch myself a fish dinner, and the fish is providing the entertainment. The more he jumps and dashes, the better I like it. If pain causes those reactions, that's too damn bad.

I am also a hunter, and proud of it. I shoot deer, and I eat the meat. I also hunt squirrels, rabbits, grouse, turkey and the occasional wild boar. I eat that meat, too. And I enjoy hunting crows and woodchucks, but I do not eat either of those two species. I hunt them for the "sport" of the hunt. A crow diving and dipping at my decoy is an extremely difficult quarry. The same can be said for a groundhog sitting 250 yards away. However, if my efforts to kill woodchucks and crows aids the local farmers by preventing crop and farm equipment or livestock damage, so much the better.

I also believe that environmental extremists are the most dangerous enemies currently facing our nation, ranking far above either Osama Yo Mama or any of his motley crew. Where he and his ilk would wantonly destroy a few buildings, the enviromental nut cases would gladly destroy America's entire industrial infrastructure, and all in the name of fighting pollution, or saving endangered species, or just because America has so much more of everything than anyone else and we should be ashamed of ourselves for our many successes.

At some point we as a nation of individuals must regain at least a modicum of common sense. Do you remember what that is? It's the ability to remember the discomfort received the first time we hit our thumbs with a hammer so we do not willingly repeat that event. It is the necessity of remembering that a few nut cases or different thinking people, living by themselves in places like Waco, Ruby Ridge, or any other similar place in America, and not hurting anyone else in the process, do not deserve to be invaded by an army of federal agents, regardless of what crimes they might have been accused of committing. It is the absolute imperative of remembering that it is a serious crime to lie to any Grand Jury, regardless of whether that lie involves sex acts or not.

We have some of the strangest debates in this country. For instance, I know what the definition of "is" really is, but I have to wonder if the New York Times knows it. The (dried) blood-soaked glove still fit, but that little fact didn't seem to matter to twelve brainwave-challenged Californians.

I understand what loyalty to a true friend is, which is better than I can say for France. And, I know in my heart that America is the greatest country in the world, and I am proud to call it my home. What I do not understand is why so many Americans hate this country. And, why so many other Americans want to tear down our Constitution and make it say something it does not say. But, since I can't even understand why New Yorkers elected Hillary Clinton, I guess I might be brainwave-challenged, too. Oh, well.

Len Lisenbee