For years I've seen newspaper and television pictures of weapons seized during drug busts--and a few confiscated firearms in person as well. But the sight yesterday of nearly a dozen menacing handguns and rifles seized by Merced County Sheriff's Department deputies was downright intimidating. Lined up on a big folding table, those weapons looked deadly, like sleeping rattlesnakes ready to strike at a moment's notice. Thankfully they will be destroyed before someone else gets to use them.

One of the Chinese SKS rifles was particularly disturbing. It had a bayonet on the end and a night vision scope on top, along with tripod-like legs. Another rifle had a flash suppressor and silencer. A shotgun with a collapsible stock and pistol grip also looked like it meant business. All were loaded and ready to go.

Sheriff's deputies seemed to take the weapons cache discovery in stride, part of their job, but it certainly illustrates the risky business law enforcement officers are in. It's all a matter of timing, intercepting this heavy-duty firepower before it can be used on you. All these guns aren't for hunting or defending yourself - they are simply killing machines. This should be Exhibit A that drug dealers aren't to be messed with and should be taken off the streets for good.