“Growing up, the mere thought of owning a gun or handling a gun was taboo. However, once I started having conversations with people after Tree of Life, I found the reality is everybody might be somebody who would buy a gun. It just depends on what it takes to get one,” he explained.

Still, he and his wife shelved the idea five years ago.

Then Oct. 7 happened — and everything else that went with it in the following days and weeks, like the brazen antisemitic graffiti splattered on the front wall of Allderdice High School and throughout the Summerset neighborhood, as well as the tire slashings, the defacing and burning of lawn signs that support Israel, and the woman using a hammer to hit the window of Marvista Design where a sign read “We Stand With Israel.”

[Well, good! The Second Amendment exists to allow all Americans access to effective self-defense, and these days, it’s getting clear that Jewish Americans have special need to that access. They may still prefer not to take advantage of the right granted to us, but this demonstrates its value when the mobs come after you. — Ed]