The 1972 Olympics in Munich were supposed to be a time of peace, but terrorism reared its ugly head, and 12 innocent lives were taken. That was 52 years ago today. As a result of what happened, many nations set up their own specialized anti-terrorism teams, with some having multiple such organizations depending on the mission.

So it's more than a little unsettling that someone took shots at the Israeli consulate in Munich earlier today.

An armed man was shot and fatally wounded in a shootout with Munich Police in an area near the Israeli consulate, according to statements by law enforcement.

The Munich police said that officers were operating at the Munich Documentation Center for the History of National Socialism in the Karolinenlatz area, next to the consulate, when officers opened fire on a "suspicious person” warmed with a rifle. The suspect was wounded and later died of his injuries.

A helicopter and a significant police presence was mobilized to the area, but law enforcement saw no indication of any other suspects in connection to their operations. Police warned of disruptions in traffic and the city as operations, collection of evidence, and investigations continued.

Luckily, the consulate was closed in preparation for an event honoring those killed in the 1972 attack.

However, there's something we should recognize here and now, especially in light of events in Winder, Georgia on Wednesday.

Germany has extensive gun control laws. They have some of the most extensive in the world and anytime there's been an attack of any sort, they seem to jump to do what anti-gunners here want the US government to do. They enact still more gun control laws.

Yet I can't help but notice that it didn't stop this attack. What saved lives was the consulate being closed and the gunman apparently being unaware of that fact.

We've all heard the phrase, "Where there's a will, there's a way."

We use it to motivate people to do hard things or to explain how someone did that hard thing, but there's a darker side to the phrase, too. Where there's a will to do evil, there's a way.

Germany's extensive gun control laws couldn't prevent this and Georgia's relative lack of gun control laws didn't cause Winder to happen.

Evil hearts were at play.

Whether it's anti-semitism, jihadism, or just rage, the problem still lies in the hearts of men.

It should also be noted that both of these attacks were thwarted by people with guns.

Guns are not evil. They're a tool that has no volition of its own. It can't influence the wielder toward either good or evil. It simply is, and when placed in the hands of the good guys, it can stop evil. It would seem to be a no-brainer to make sure more good guys have guns, then.

Unfortunately, that's not what happens. Too many people see a no-brainer as a non-starter. They oppose it with every fiber of their being and there are enough of them, particularly in the media that likes to push an anti-gun narrative, for anything to change.

So we'll see terrorism and mass murders and know that the only thing anyone wants to do is the one thing we've seen fail time and time again.