Of course, it didn't take long for some nut (See "Og") to comment that "more guns equals less crime" and to imply that gun-free churches actually invite gun violence.
More guns are not the answer. If anything, more cell phones are a better answer.
I'm a soldier in the Utah National Guard and I've worked closely with Lehi PD several times in the past. I know that LPD is well-equipped to respond to these sort of events, and will respond with swiftness if alerted. Calling 911 should be citizens' first course of action!
While serving in Iraq I never feared for my life as much as when one night our camp was alerted to an intruder. My fellow soldiers instantly donned "full battle rattle" and "locked and loaded" their rifles - yet they had not been ordered to do so. Coordination and communication is key to a proper defense, and this deployment lacked both. We had a certain job to do in Iraq and a "perimeter defense" was not it. It was something we'd never even talked about, much less received training on. Moreover, there was a Quick Reaction Force nearby whose job it was to respond to these sort of threats. That night I feared fratricide more than an enemy bullet.
Drawing from this and other similar experiences, I believe that a ragtag band of armed but untrained and uncoordinated vigilantes poses a great threat to public safety, and it is a grave mistake to write a blank check to "guns rights" supporters to carry guns wherever they desire. Law abiding and well-intentioned though you may be, I don't know you and I don't trust you.
Leave the crime fighting to the professionals.
By the way, that is a church service, and those soldiers are armed. While in Iraq, I attended church services each Sunday armed with the good book in my left hand and my rifle in my right.I much prefer worshiping without arms.
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