The Wild West is back?

Op-Ed Columnist - Gunning for Health Care - NYTimes.com: "“The question is, why don’t people bear arms these days,” said William Kostric, when asked why he came to welcome President Obama to Portsmouth, N.H., on Tuesday with a protest sign and a loaded handgun strapped to his thigh. This turned out to be completely legal under New Hampshire law"

They started to talk about the Wild East a while ago about Russia but I wonder if the Americans are not reclaiming their epithet of the Wild West lately. The very American political meetings in so called Town Halls have recently experienced severe turmoil. Speakers often have to leave assisted by the police after having been shouted down.

In New Hampshire the state motto is "Live Free or Die" and the comment above seems to say that we are living in turbulent times. It is interesting to think about how a person with a gun strapped to his thigh would appear here in Sweden? We see them on police but not on private citizens.

Gail Collins recognizes that the US is divided on the issue of carrying weapons. You apparently need to have a licence in New Hampshire if you want to carry your weapon concealed. Dangerous Nation indeed! She brings up the question if it is a good idea to carry weapons at Town Hall meetings where the emotions run high. I don't think so! They used to hang up their weapons before entering the church, for example.

William Kostric above is probably not a particularly representative American though. It doesn't take that many individuals to make Town Halls look like brawl all across the US. Today there is an article on SvD.se where a complaint is forwarded against President Obama. They say he is just full of words. I wonder why they don't say instead that he has accomplished a lot during his first six months. It would be more true to the point. The critique I have seen lately is rather because there has been too much change for the American people. They will probably be ready for more after the August recess.