Man Outraged Over Gym Goers Without Masks Pulls Gun, Is Subsequently Tackled By Army Vet

Written with contribution from Sheriff David Clarke

What do you think is more deadly—COVID-19 or fear of it?

This has been one of the primary philosophical questions discussed among those who are at least still intellectually honest enough to see what’s going on to our society post-pandemic.

And in the case of a recent incident at a Minnesota gym, a potentially very deadly situation was quickly averted not by the wearing of masks, but by an everyday hero forced to tackle a guy so triggered by a lack of adherence to Minnesota mask mandates that he busted out a firearm.

Yup—this is where we’re at.

I’m thinking right about now, self-defense skills are more important than masks, if this dude’s meltdown is any indication.

The Daily Caller reports that an LA Fitness club manager in Maplewood, Minnesota was forced to tackle a man who pointed a gun at his chest while complaining about gym goers who failed to comply with local mask mandates.

33-year-old Army veteran Mike Olson took down 64-year-old Michael Florhaug after the older man brandished a firearm and turned away from him, as the Anchorage Daily News reported.

Florhaug was not a member of the club at the time of the incident, apparently, but was in possession of a state-issued permit to carry a firearm.

“I just kind of knew it had to be done. It didn’t take much thinking. It was more of a reaction,” Olson told the Anchorage Daily News.

Florhaug was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, which is definitely a lot more serious than not wearing a mask during a media-hyped pandemic, believe you me. But then again who knows. The world is upside down right now.

The Daily Caller noted that “He reportedly complained to an employee at the front desk about people exercising without masks and threatened to take photographs of club members who weren’t complying with the state mandate.”

We can blame the state for this as they have set up hotlines that implore residents to turn in their fellow residents when they see them violating COVID mandates.

Olson raised his hands to prevent the irate man from entering the club, at which point Florhaug produced his firearm.

All jokes aside, it’s pretty disturbing to think of what could have happened had Olson not acted quickly. For his part, he “thought Florhaug was going to shoot members who didn’t have masks on.”

Florhaug, however, says he merely “flashed the gun” which is of course what totally sane and sensible people do when they’re upset about something and not at all criminally violent, right?

“[While] we definitely recommend that people call the police and try not to take matters in their own hands, it appears that the manager didn’t really have a choice. He felt like people’s lives were at risk. … He did a great job,” Maplewood Police Sgt. Joe Steiner said, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

I don’t necessarily agree with calling the police as your best first option. When seconds count, police are usually minutes away if not longer due to defunding efforts. This ironically, is why Americans should take their Second Amendment rights seriously.

Of course, it’s important to note that being triggered by people in a gym who aren’t wearing a scrap of fabric over their face like Dear Leader Walz tells you to is not actually considered a justifiable means of deploying a firearm, as this dude just learned the hard way.

Fortunately for this goof, Mike Olson wasn’t himself armed with a gun. I doubt that Olson would have just “flashed” Florhaug back.