James Shaw Jr — American Hero
James Shaw Jr. is an American hero. Let me tell you about him, may I?
On this night, this man refused to die in a Waffle House at 3:30 AM. He refused to accept his fate. He took matters into his own, capable, strong hands. His actions saved lives, most importantly, his own. He is a great American.
The Antioch Waffle House shooting was an enormous tragedy, but from it emerged an interesting story – that of James Shaw Jr, an unlikely hero who went mano-a-mano with the gunman and wrestled his weapon from him, throwing it behind the Waffle House countertop thereby stopping the killing spree. At 3:30 AM in a Waffle House in Antioch, Tennessee this man found out who he was and he let us in on the secret.
James is a reluctant hero who makes no bones about the proposition that he was acting in his own self-interest. Faced with the highly likely proposition of death, James refused to go quietly into that dark night. If the gunman was going to kill him, it would not be without a fight. It is a strikingly American thought. We Americans will not go without a fight.
What did he do? He attacked the gunman when the gunman was dealing with his weapon – not clear whether the gunman was dealing with a jam or re-loading. James was smart. James picked his moment and acted.