Some of those injured may have been accidentally shot by the officers, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.
Because only the police are proficient enough to safely use handguns.
I'm not saying that a street full of armed citizens might not have resulted in some innocent bystanders being shot, but when there is more than one cop shooting you can pretty much count on 1) every other cop starting to shoot, too; and 2) someone/something besides the intended target getting hit.
But rather than sit behind my keyboard and bad-mouth the poor marksmanship of the cops, I'd like to offer up a suggestion that might actually improve a few things. I say it's high time we each adopt a cop - take them with you when you go to the range so they can have more than once- or twice-yearly practice shooting that brick they carry around. Take them with you when you go shopping for groceries, or stop to get a hot dog, fries and a Super Big Gulp after the kiddies' ball game. Take them with you when you go to the library, or the laundramat, or to the city council/board of supervisors' meeting. Let them see lawfully armed citizens going about their daily routine with a handgun properly holstered, who are not threatening store clerks, or maiming their spouse/children, or that the handgun did not jump out of the holster and go on a rampage at the mall or by the kiddie swings in the park.
You see, what with cops being so prone to hitting people/things they did not mean to hit when they start shooting, I have a feeling that cops are afraid - not so much guns as they are afraid of the other cops who are shooting their guns.
Letting cops get used to being around people with guns who do not use them recklessly might calm their fears, and might get them to think that training on their own time and their own dime might be a good idea.
And then I woke up and realized that there was no porridge, and no bears, and no little girl either. It was all a dream.
stay safe.
