Albus nodded. It [i]was[/i] true that the sheriff's men had guns and could use them.

"You're right, of course. In the short term, the town will be safe from most threats. However, I am not talking about the short term."

Albus stood up, and plumbed his memory for stories and anecdotes. One in particular shone very brightly. His teeth gleamed as he smiled at Achilles.

"Have you ever been to Arizona, friend? My father once encountered a city of lights and industry. Mesa, a land of milk and honey for many  men living in the area. Mesa was virtually impregnable to raiders. Turrets, lasers, grenades-- they had it all! They had defended themselves for decades, but had grown to depend on their irreplaceable technology. The men, not needing their guns for anything but sport and hunting, didn't bother to learn how to shoot-- the turrets did that for them! The security council, armed with lasers and trained to use only the finest in weapon repair tools and medicine-- they didn't bother to learn how to make herbal remedies or improvise weapons! The small bands of raiders that plagued them earlier now didn't bother to come at all! Life for them was as simple and carefree as a babe in the cradle!"

Albus' tone became grimmer.

"Of course, where do you think those raiders went? They banded together-- grew powerful and cunning. Overwhelming defense can only be met with overwhelming force. They bombed supply caravans, burned and salted farms, instigated terror across the community wherever they could get in! The people of Mesa grew terrified, and eventually collapsed into civil war. Those few that survived were picked off and enslaved. Met with an impenetrable fortress, these raiders undermined and corrupted-- and the city's people were not hardened enough to cope."

Albus decided to leave out the parts where Caesar's Legion rolled through, enslaved the raider tribes, and assimilated the remaining survivors into the Legion. It would put somewhat of a strain on his point.

"We [i]need[/i] to ensure that our defenses are only capable of just barely exceeding the current threat, and that all of us are prepared for the worst-case scenario. Otherwise, we'll grow soft in our cradles, and be destroyed when that cradle falls!"