1) Mark and Patricia McCloskey lived in an upscale suburb of St. Louis. BLM demonstrators broke an iron gate off its hinges, marched down a private walkway, and confronted them on their front porch. Reportedly the mob yelled threats to kill the McCloskeys and take their house. They pointed guns at the crowd and ordered them to leave, after calling police. Mark claimed his rifle was unloaded, and that Patricia’s pistol was inoperable. They were indicted on felony charges, pleaded guilty to misdemeanors, and later were pardoned by the governor.

2) Kyle Rittenhouse, then aged 17, went to Kenosha, Wisconsin after a BLM riot. A video shows him cleaning grafitti. Later he was involved in altercation with the crowd, from which gunshots are heard. Rittenhouse ran toward police, was accosted by members of crowd who attempted to grab is rifle, pointed a handgun at him, and hit him with a skateboard. Rittenhouse shot 3, killing 2. His is on trial for reckless manslaughter. A shooting victim admits he pointed a gun at Rittenhouse before he was shot. One of the dead described as acting crazy, threatening to kill people. The prosecution appears to be collapsing as the judge angrily admonishes the prosecutor.

In real life the choice is sometimes not between good and bad, but between bad and worse. What would critics have preferred? That the McCloskeys remain in their house? But what if the rioters set fire to it, as they had to other St. Louis buildings? Would they have preferred that Rittenhouse remain at home and watch buildings being burned, property be destroyed, and people be injured? Or that he be unarmed, and killed by armed rioters?

Would it have been better if the McCloskeys remained passively in their house, waiting to see what the crowd decided to do to them and their neighbors? Would if have been better if Rittenhouse remained passively in his house, waiting to see how much more destruction would be visited on the city? Would it have been better if their were no 2nd Amendment, and people had to huddle helpless in their homes, vulnerable to  the most violent among them?

We get more of what we reward and less of what we punish. We reward rioters by doing what they want: defund the police. We punish citizens who defend themselves and their community. How stupid and self-destructive can we get before our civilization collapses into anarchy, and a strongman arises promising to bring order? If we don’t come to our senses, that’s exactly the grim future we and our children face.

https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/kyle-rittenhouse-takes-the-stand-in-his-own-defense-live-updates