“They were some of the most heavily armed people on earth before the commies took over” Under the Reign of Autocrat and Tsar Nicolas? Where do you find this kind of absurdities?
“What about pointed knives?” If you run faster than you aggressor, you survive the aggression by knife. Not a chance against a rifle, even the biggest of the obese get you.
“an armed populace was a massive deterrent to foreign invasion” When and where?