Why You Should Always Have a Gun and a Knife With You

From the January 2, 2012 Washington Post comes this heartwarming tale of passers-by who stepped in when a car went off the road, and into a river:

One of the first people on the scene was former police officer Chris Willden, who didn’t hesitate when he realized children were trapped in the upside down Honda Accord. He pulled his handgun, pushed it up against the submerged windows, shot out the glass and reached inside.

“I was trying to grab arms, but I couldn’t feel anything,” Willden said. “I’m thinking ... ‘What are we going to do?’”

He turned to see up to eight other people had scrambled down the 10-foot embankment to help after coming upon the accident along U.S. 89.

Everyone survived, although some of the kids weren't breathing when first cut out of their seatbelts. Most of the time, we think of a gun as a defensive weapon, but it can also be a useful tool for situations like this.  Obviously, you do something like this when the alternative is someone drowning--you certainly don't want bullets flying around wildly if you have time or some other option available.  A strong person could probably accomplish the same ends with a shovel, but not all of us that strong.