I’m a huge fan of NBC’s Richard Engel. We’re watching one of the best-ever war correspondents in action.

As a quasi-journalist, I’ve always been a fan of war correspondents. Ernie Pyle set the standard during WW2. Walter Cronkite and Andy Rooney cut their teeth during WW2. The New Yorker’s AJ Liebling wrote “Molly,” the best piece of war writing I’ve ever read; it shows up in most WW2 anthologies. I reread it a couple months ago.

Vietnam gave us David Halberstam, Michael Herr, Joe Galloway (“We Were Soldiers”), and Peter Arnett. Arnett, of course, also covered the Gulf Wars and everything in between. Christiane Amanpour did superb reporting in various conflicts, including Bosnia.

In the current conflicts, two men stand out to me: Dexter Filkins of the NY Times, and Richard Engel.

I love listening to Engel. When on camera, he is totally prepared. He can answer every question asked of him, showing that when off-camera, he’s doing diligent reporting. He can put conflicts in historical context–both recent history, and history going back centuries. He can explain the dynamics of the various parties in a conflict (like in Iraq). He knows the perspectives of everyone, from top leaders to grunt soldiers and civilians on the street. He is fluent in Arabic (and Italian and Spanish).

Some reporters, like Geraldo Rivera, like to be chummy with the troops. That’s crowd-pleasing, but it isn’t reporting. Engel goes deep to get information, and he skillfully conveys it to the public.

Probably most of the best war correspondents work in print, mostly for major newspapers or freelance. They aren’t as visible as TV reporters, but usually go far beneath the surface in their reporting. Engel started out there, going to Iraq in 2003 as a freelance journalist. NBC quickly snapped him up, recognizing his brilliance. He has since reported from the midst of every hotspot–Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Egypt, Gaza, Somalia.

Enjoy him while you can. Engel operates in a dangerous career. As we know, sadly, from Ernie Pyle, who died on Okinawa from Japanese machine gun fire.

This Open Carry Texas story amazes me. A bunch of men armed with AR-15s and shotguns go into a restaurant to eat, claiming it’s their Constitutional right to devour a Big Mac with an automatic weapon at their side. Frightened employees of one Jack-in-the-Box, seeing a bunch of armed men enter, locked themselves in a freezer. Open Carry Texas supporters have done this at various restaurants, plus other retailers like Target.

How would you react if you’re eating with your spouse and kids in an Applebees, and in walk a bunch of men carrying rifles?

It would scare the crap out of me. I would immediately grab Pam’s arm, and we’d leave. I don’t know who these guys are. The fact that they are making a public statement with loaded weapons, in the presence of children, tells me they are NOT responsible gun owners. I’d head for the door pronto.

I’m fine with concealed carry, the key word being “concealed”–nobody knows you’re armed, and you don’t publicly announce it. But this Open Carry Texas stuff is just lunacy, and I’m happy to see many gun owners criticizing such tactics online. Responsible gun owners know this stuff is irresponsible.

Besides, do any of the guys in these photos look like the type of person you would want carrying around an AR-15 in public?

Here’s a real good article on the issue. I read it a few weeks ago. Makes the point that while the open carry people say it’s all about “freedom,” the freedom is only for them–because what restaurant employee is average citizen is going to argue with a stranger carrying an automatic weapon?

“In the real world, sane people do not confront armed men and women. They don’t argue with them over politics. They certainly do not put their kids in harm’s way in order to make a point….The rest of us just have to be very polite, keep our voices down and back away very slowly, saying, ‘Yes sir, whatever you say, sir,’ and let them have their way.”

It also tells about a guy in Georgia who showed up at a Little League park waving his gun around and saying, “Look at my gun! There’s nothing you can do about it.” Police were called, but the man wasn’t doing anything illegal. So the parents did what any sensible parent would do in that situation–they took their kids and went home.

I hope open carry never comes to Indiana…but I fear it will.