From OP-Ed section Here is an unkind word from our anti-gun friends at the New York Times. The fvkcers are such a low-down SOBs that they want to connect the NRA to terrorist. Of course I would like to remind everybody that the NRA has trained more police officers than any other organization combined. If you click on the link for the actual story, the site requires that you sign-up for a free sign-on id.
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[url]http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/19/opinion/19KRIS.html[/url]
Visiting N.R.A. Heaven
March 19, 2002
Visiting N.R.A. Heaven
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
SUQ AL-TALH, Yemen - Want to buy a submachine gun?
This little market town in the wild, wild north of Yemen has more than 50
shops selling all kinds of toys for boys. A used Uzi goes for $170, a
machine pistol with silencer is $350, and a brand-new AK-47 assault rifle
goes for nearly $400.
Grenades are $4 each. An antitank mine is $22. A rocket-propelled grenade
launcher is $500. An arms merchant I met here might even be able to find
you an antiaircraft gun or a tank. No sales tax.
This is Yemen, where we're preparing to send American soldiers to open a
new front in the war on terrorism. I admire the instinct of trying to
boost security here, but the bottom line is that we're going to send our
troops on a poorly defined mission into a country where they're not
wanted, where grenades cost $4 each.
The plan is for the Americans to train Yemeni troops. But the Yemen
government's main problem in controlling terrorism is not that soldiers
are poorly trained. Instead it is that for reasons of history, culture and
tribal politics, the central government doesn't entirely control the
hinterlands.
Americans who gripe about big government and high taxes, who believe the
state that governs best governs least, would love Yemen. The central
government controls the beautiful old capital, Sana, and a chunk of turf
to its south and west. Beyond that is a delicate balancing act with local
sheiks.
When I wanted to come up here into northern Yemen, I took an escort from
the government including, for one stretch of road, a pickup truck loaded
with seven soldiers and a heavy machine gun mounted in back. But more
important, to avoid kidnapping (Yemen's favorite sport) it was prudent to
get invitations from the leading sheiks.
"No one will pay attention to the government escort," a wise Yemeni
explained to me. "But if you're invited by the sheiks, they won't dare
bother you. They'll be afraid of retaliation from the sheiks."
The frailty of the government's authority was underscored on the road
north, when we were stopped at a roadblock by a group of men with assault
rifles. It was Yemeni code: a stick across the road means you stop, or you
get your tires shot out.