Firearms in your home??

RyLaneB

I grew up with my dad having guns in our house, my husband did also. They taught both of us, as well as my brother and his, safety and proper usage. We have known how to load, unload, fire, and even clean both hand guns and rifles most of our lifes. My husband is a Sheriff's Deputy, and also a member of our county's SWAT team, guns are part of his both on and off duty (often he is carrying off duty). Also, we have an 8 year old son and a 3 year old daughter who have both been taught about guns since they were tiny. Our fathers and my husband have recently started taking our son hunting with them. Guns are not scary if you are familiar with them and have learned how to properly use them. Guns become scary and unsafe when untrained people are handling them. It sounds like your boyfriend plans to take proper steps to become a responsible gun owner. Having once received phone calls from a serial rapist who was sharing a jail cell with a former classmate of my husbands, I feel much safer knowing that when my husband is gone I can protect my children. I hope you can figure out a solution that works for both of you.:flowerforyou:

bbbgamer

If you dont feel comfortable with them, leave them alone. For me, I dont leave home without at least one.

thatgirl125

Honestly, I would let him have the guns in the house. I know you said you have lost friends from them but who is to say it'd happen to you? I personally would not mind to have a gun in my house. It would make me feel soo much safer. Pepper spray just is not enough to use as protection.
I've had creepy guys approach me and my son at gas stations had to lock my son in the car and call the cops, so, to me even having a concealed weapons license would be awesome.
I feel if you love him and know that is something he REALLY wants then you wont let it get in the way of yalls relationship. He grew up with that type of stuff and that is apart of him. If my husband had something like that growing up and wanted his grandpa's guns after he passes I would not tell him no. Years from now your boyfriend could show his kids the guns and go on about his grandpa and not have to regret not keeping them. Some stuff can be sentimental to him.

cruiseking

ok everyone saying the same thing really and I get it. I do. But why guns? If you want protection why not learn a martial art? Kids can't take that from you and use it wrongly. Knowing that you don't have to worry about locks and ammo, etc... You will always be prepared, don't you think?

Try using a martial art when two drug crazed killers are banging down your door at 3:00 a.m. (and possess a shotgun), intent on taking what you have. You can do what you want; but I guarantee I will survive, and you will be a statistic.

AZTrailRunner

It's all very well if you live in a rural area where everyone knows everyone and burglaries are rare. I live in a city, and the fact that you *might* have a gun in your house is the main attraction for burglars who break into houses when people are at work. We got broken into about 20 years ago, and they ignored the TVs and computers and spent all their time in the bedroom looking under the mattress and in the bedside drawers. They might have gotten around to the jewelry if they hadn't been interrupted and run out the back while we were coming in the front, but it clearly wasn't the main thing they wanted.

You have to ask yourself, what type of crime do you have to worry about in your neighborhood? Are unarmed people being raped in their beds, or are their homes being ransacked when no one is home? How long does it take the cops to respond to burglar alarms or 911 calls? Do cops actually investigate property crimes, or do they just take a report over the phone?

Most criminals don't want to meet you in your home, whether you have a gun or a phone in your hand. But if you have guns stored in your house, they're highly valuable on the street. People with criminal records can't get them legally, so they would like to get yours. How securely can you lock them up when you aren't at home? Will you carry them everywhere -- to funerals, for instance, when burglars often target the empty homes of the family members of people listed in obituaries? Will locking them up defeat the purpose of having them for security or for display? Is your gun safe secure enough no one can walk off with the whole thing or smash it with a sledgehammer or axe? (Face it, not many burglars know how to pick locks anymore. They just smash through the door.)

I don't follow your argument. Are you saying "not" having a firearm in your house will prevent a burglary? How does the bad guy know who owns a gun until after they've already broke in. I don't base my decision upon local crime statistics. I base my decision to carry a weapon so I don't become a statistic.

ShapeUpSidney

Honestly, I would let him have the guns in the house. I know you said you have lost friends from them but who is to say it'd happen to you?

You are twice as likely to die by homicide in your home if you keep firearms in the home, so...

http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/160/10/929.abstract

sjohnny

There will always be guns in my house. Some of them loaded (including the chambers). Growing up we had guns, my dad was a cop, his folks lived on a ranch where we hunted and shot all kinds of guns. Most in my family are very into shooting. I'm in law enforcement (my agency's firearms instructor) and am a hunter and just love to shoot. My kids have had gun safety drummed in to them since they were old enough to walk. My 8 year old son has his own .22 (he got when he was 6). My 6 year old daughter enjoys shooting my AR-15 when I put the .22 conversion in it.

Education is the most important thing. I would recommend you getting some instruction and give shooting a try. There's few better stress relievers than blasting jugs of water or whatever and there's a great deal of focus and precision that comes into play in long distance shooting. It can be very enjoyable and relaxing. Kids love it too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQjCimnT6pU

ShapeUpSidney

There will always be guns in my house. Some of them loaded (including the chambers). Growing up we had guns, my dad was a cop, his folks lived on a ranch where we hunted and shot all kinds of guns. Most in my family are very into shooting. I'm in law enforcement (my agency's firearms instructor) and am a hunter and just love to shoot. My kids have had gun safety drummed in to them since they were old enough to walk. My 8 year old son has his own .22 (he got when he was 6). My 6 year old daughter enjoys shooting my AR-15 when I put the .22 conversion in it.

Education is the most important thing. I would recommend you getting some instruction and give shooting a try. There's few better stress relievers than blasting jugs of water or whatever and there's a great deal of focus and precision that comes into play in long distance shooting. It can be very enjoyable and relaxing. Kids love it too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQjCimnT6pU

^^^ ideal gun owner

ShapeUpSidney

Try using a martial art when two drug crazed killers are banging down your door at 3:00 a.m. (and possess a shotgun), intent on taking what you have. You can do what you want; but I guarantee I will survive, and you will be a statistic.

^^^ example of someone who should never own a weapon

cruiseking

ok everyone saying the same thing really and I get it. I do. But why guns? If you want protection why not learn a martial art? Kids can't take that from you and use it wrongly. Knowing that you don't have to worry about locks and ammo, etc... You will always be prepared, don't you think?

I think not. I learned martial arts myself, but until you have worked in an environment with people drugged out of their mind and intoxicated, there's no amount of martial arts that is going to save your *kitten* against those people. Not to mention, if someone assults me, walks into my home, or attempts to car jack my vehicle; Im not going to say "stop or I'm going to attempt to kick your *kitten*", oh no, I'm gonna put another whole in them.

You shoot to injure, you don't have to shoot to kill.

If you shoot to injure, that may be construed that you were not in fear for your life, and had the frame of mind to just "Injure" the perp. Therby, negating the shooting as "justifiable". Shoot to Kill; dead men tell no tales!

MercenaryNoetic26

Get one of those fancay gun vaults. It's worth the investment if safety is your concern.

AZTrailRunner

Honestly, I would let him have the guns in the house. I know you said you have lost friends from them but who is to say it'd happen to you?

You are twice as likely to die by homicide in your home if you keep firearms in the home, so...

http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/160/10/929.abstract

And every year THOUSANDS of lives are saved by homeowners using weapons against intruders.

lor007

Having firearms in your home will not cause an accident, only untrained handlers can do that. Like others have said, take a safety course and keep them safely locked away. If you have children in the home, be especially sure they are out of reach.

In my opinion, all people (and children once they are old enough) should take a firearm training course. I took the course when I was 8 years old and had a "refresher" course each year until I was in high school. You never know when you could be placed in a situation where it could save your life.

AZTrailRunner

Try using a martial art when two drug crazed killers are banging down your door at 3:00 a.m. (and possess a shotgun), intent on taking what you have. You can do what you want; but I guarantee I will survive, and you will be a statistic.

^^^ example of someone who should never own a weapon

I would call him a "survivor", and not a "victim". Save your judgement.

ShapeUpSidney

I would call him a "survivor", and not a "victim". Save your judgement.

On the contrary, it's my judgement that always saves me

IvoryParchment

I don't follow your argument. Are you saying "not" having a firearm in your house will prevent a burglary? How does the bad guy know who owns a gun until after they've already broke in. I don't base my decision upon local crime statistics. I base my decision to carry a weapon so I don't become a statistic.

No, I'm saying the guns stolen out of the houses of people who thought their guns would protect them are in the hands of the criminals selling drugs in our city. It's a matter of being responsible enough to secure your weapon and make sure your gun is not the cause of an innocent person being crippled, blinded or murdered. I've got no problem with all the law abiding people keeping guns if they actually kept them. I know far more innocent people killed in crossfire from shooters they never even saw -- when carrying a gun would have been no use to them anyway -- than I know people whose own guns protected them.

Contrarian

I'm pretty accurate with a rubber band. That stings!

Justjoshin

Honestly, I would let him have the guns in the house. I know you said you have lost friends from them but who is to say it'd happen to you?

You are twice as likely to die by homicide in your home if you keep firearms in the home, so...

http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/160/10/929.abstract

PLEASE NOTE-- These studies took into account gangbangers who were killed in their home by drive bys.
NOT just the average American.

Take into account that a large number of homicides in the US are gang/drug/crime related, clean up the study to only include lawfully owned firearms, in homes without these types of people, and then let me know what the numbers say.

ronda_gettinghealthy

Appreciating the advice. He is not just looking to have the guns but also in getting a license to conceal them. He has nothing to shoot at. We live in the city. We don't even have a large yard to shoot cans at. I want him to have his grandpa's guns cuz I know how much they mean, but why ammo and a license to carry? I just don't get it I guess.

Why not?

This actually shows responsibility. It's more than allot of people do and it's just one extra step in protecting our constitutional rights by him going through the system to be legal vs doing as he pleases. He might even take classes which is important vs having something and not knowing how to use it. I think they should do the same thing for dogs that are known to be more dangerous.

we have numerous guns in the house..and conceal carry licences too....but it is a choice---if it is a deal breaker then you guys need to have a long heart to heart talk....I am glad he is taking the classes--shows responsibility and an awareness of the dangers of a gun...

best wishes in your journey...this is def a difficult issure... but eating wont help either way....

Semperfione

Let me start by saying you have a right to feel the way you do. I will also say it took many guns in the hands of many great men and women to make you and I able to say what we wish to, and to own or not own a firearm. Many of us have served in the service, and as I look out my door to my neighbors, there are so many people that also served and yes we have guns in our home.

It seems to me the crime rate is still an issue, and more home break-ins continue, so, I will continue to have the right to protect my family, which have also been trained in the use of a our firearms.

They are not toys, they are not for others to look at or touch, they are here to protect loved ones. Keep them safely out of the hands of young ones and respect them. Enough said, other than one more tid bit...I think if we were ever invaded from another country, they would have their hands full going into neighborhoods to take control, there are more homes with weapons than not, I for one am glad to know this.

Please be safe is the best advice I can give.