(Burn Fresno) – There have been several shootings recently here in Fresno that have driven the homicide rate up to double what it was a year ago. The three most recent were said to be gang related by Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer. As such, the Fresno Police Department has announced they plan to launch a crackdown on guns.

Here’s a video clip from ABC30.com explaining the situation in a little more detail:

They say they plan to replicate their “highly successful” community gun buyback program again this summer. What I think the Fresno Police Department fails to realize (or maybe they do realize it and just don’t care as they enjoy the positive PR) is that they are essentially paying the criminal gun dealers much more than market value for guns that they get their wives, girlfriends, and family members to turn in to cash for them.

Basically the Fresno Police Department is putting MORE money into the local firearms trade by running an event like this. Many guns on the street are poorly maintained and come with a cheap pricetag. By paying people for these weapons the police are simply helping the arms dealers to clean out their supplies, make more money, and buy more guns to distribute.

There are obviously a lot of complications with the illegal gun problem in our city, state, and country; and certainly more than one solution is needed. A good place to start (which I believe is already done by some of the Fresno PD – if not they should begin right away) would be educating kids in their classrooms at a YOUNG age. A young enough age that you will reach the kids that will be dropping out of school and having poor attendance later on – kids that might miss such an educational presentation on firearms.

It needs to be stressed to these kids that firearms are a very primative way of dealing with problems and should only be used in self defense or while hunting (debatable – but that’s a can of worms for another time). They need to drive into the kids heads at a young age that life isn’t like a video game, a movie, or a song and that using a gun has serious long term consequences that cannot be reversed.

Baca will hit the streets from 2 to 10 p.m. Friday in a two-person patrol car, according to spokesman Steve Whitmore.

“He grew up in East L.A., so he knows the neighborhood,” Whitmore said. “He patrolled the same streets when he was a deputy, and he was a lieutenant at the East Los Angeles Station.”‘

Baca has checked out equipment he will need, including body armor and a ticket book, Whitmore said.

The Sheriff’s Department and several other county departments have been asked to cut 9 percent from already stretched budgets in order to make ends meet. Each eight-hour shift covered by an executive saves the county $660 in overtime that would have been paid to a deputy, Whitmore said.

Overtime by sheriff’s deputies has been the subject of scrutiny by county officials since an audit found that the department had exceeded its overtime budget by an average of 104 percent for each of the last five years.

Some deputies worked more than 900 hours of overtime in a single year.

Whitmore said money also could be saved in the Sheriff’s Department budget by downsizing the north facility at the Pitchess jail in Castaic.

As someone who was born and raised in Fresno, California, having come from a lineage of truckers and entrepreneurs, nothing is more dear to me than my country – The United States of America.

When I say nothing is more dear to me than the USA, I’m talking about the glorious mountain ranges, beautiful rivers, impressive architecture, bountiful national parks (thanks Yosemite!), bustling urban metros, quiet small towns, a melting pot of people from all nationalities (we don’t even have to travel to get to experience so many cultures), national monuments, and most importantly – THE PEOPLE!

For some reason (convenience) the word “patriot” has gained a definition that is unique to the person using it. Fortunately, there is only one true definition of the words “patriot” and “patriotism”. Carefully consider these defitions after reading them before jumping to any thoughts or conclusions. Let the words soak into your brain and try to comprehend the different ways that people might take this combination of words:

From Merriam-Webster dictionary:

Main Entry: pa·tri·ot·ism
Pronunciation: \ˈpā-trē-ə-ˌti-zəm, chiefly British ˈpa-\
Function: noun
Date: circa 1726
: love for or devotion to one’s country

Main Entry: pa·tri·ot
Pronunciation: \ˈpā-trē-ət, -ˌät, chiefly British ˈpa-trē-ət\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle French patriote compatriot, from Late Latin patriota, from Greek patriōtēs, from patria lineage, from patr-, patēr father
Date: 1605
: one who loves his or her country and supports its authority and interest

This is why throwing around the world “patriot” so much is such a crime to the word itself. Love for your country is a requirement, but things get a bit hazy when it comes to “supports its authority and interest”. A lot of the people calling people “unpatriotic” these days are guilty of failing to support its’ authority. As far as supporting the country’s’ interests go, this can change entirely from person to person depending on their mindset – which is where the problems come in.

Supporting your country’s interests is not supporting your own interests – it’s about doing what is best for the country as a whole and a lot of people seem to forget that.

Take some time and think about what patriotism really means to you and compare it with the definition of true patriotism. Some people may be surprised by what they find.