Posted by
on Monday, April 07, 2008 12:05:08 AM
"From my cold, dead hands!"
When Charlton Heston uttered these words at the annual meeting of the National Rifle Association, he probably hadn't realized he had defined his own legacy for millions of people. He is probably better remembered as the actor who starred in such sweeping epics as "The Ten Commandments" and "Ben-Hur," but his tenure as president of the NRA was as memorable as any of his make-believe roles.
Heston did much to restore the pride of the beleaguered gun owners of our nation, standing in the face of political correctness and anti-gun sentiment throughout the country, refusing to apologize for his strongly held beliefs, and never backing down from political opposition.
Who can forget the series of public service announcements aimed at then president Bill Clinton, delivering stinging rebukes at his anti-gun views and helping the hapless chief executive to remember what constitutes a lie. Classic.
To a gun owner, he was a hero. Few may remember, however, that Heston also marched alongside Martin Luther King during the Civil Rights Marches in the sixties, risking his career and his life to stand up for what he believed. As he showed in his later years, it would not be the last time he would risk it all for his principles.
The world is saying goodbye to Charlton Heston today , but it was a life well lived, and we have enough memories of this good man to bring a smile to our faces whenever we think of him.
Appropriately, I bought a gun yesterday, the day he died....a Henry Golden Boy rifle. It will be difficult not to think of Heston whenever I pick up this gun. It is somewhat similiar to the musket he held over his head in North Carolina that day. May his spirit be with me then, as an NRA Life Member, to take up the mantle....to fight for the rights guaranteed in the Constitution as provided by our Creator.
You can take my gun when you can pry it from my cold, dead hands.
God bless you Chuck, and God bless all of you....
paddy