Guns??

I didn't read all 10 pages so not sure where you are but my DH has guns stored in a locked safe in a alarmed and locked room. I don't have a problem with guns in the house if they are properly secured. In Canada you wouldn't be able to buy a gun unless you have the proper licensing, which means you can own a gun or buy one.not something I would want under the tree but DH would love it and I have many years ago bought him one but not now.

Without guns, the Brits would be speaking German, and the USA would be speaking Japanese.

Guns are merely an instrument. It takes a person to make an instrument dangerous.

I like the way you think!

I would not want one in the house. The only justification for a gun is if you need one as a working tool on the farm, or in the forest. Even hunting guns are dangerous.

If you do get one, keep it under lock and key, uncharged, with the ammunition under lock and key in a different room. There are so many accidents with kids and teens playing around with the dad's hunting guns without realizing that they are loaded. Most people that know don't have them around for that very reason.

<sigh> Grassette, do you have bleach and ammonia in your house? Bet you, or at least most of your friends do.

Do you keep them under lock and key separately?

Do you lock up your car separate from the keys and gas?

Do you keep kitchen knives locked away?

What about a pool, if you have one, do you have it indoors with a door only you can access?

All those things are just as, and in some cases MORE (cars) dangerous than a gun. Yet because they're part of every day life for EVERYONE, no special precautions are really taken. Cars by far outrank damage and devastation caused by guns, because there's far more idiots with cars than with guns. We trust 16 year olds with cars unsupervised.

Yes, guns can be dangerous used incorrectly, but there's quite a few other justifications for guns than as working tools. Like enjoyment, discipline, decoration, group activity, relaxation, self defense, pest management, and yes, hunting. I'm sure there's plenty more others can think of too. Yes, they have a negative connotation to those that have little to no experience with them, but they are not inherently dangerous. They do not fire themselves. They do not kill on their own. The people that use them for negative causes are to blame, as they will use any device they can to cause harm if that is their goal. Is a person stabbed to death any better off than someone shot to death? Or bludgeoned to death? Would the person be better off that their killer opted to use a pipe to murder them rather than a gun?

And as far as kids accessing them, how many kids are killed falling into pools? Drinking Chemicals? Due to improper child restraint seats? See where I'm going with this? Guns should be a consideration when kids are around, yes, but same as quite a few other things should be a consideration. They once again aren't inherently any more dangerous than most other things you keep in your house.

I would not want one in the house. The only justification for a gun is if you need one as a working tool on the farm, or in the forest. Even hunting guns are dangerous.

If you do get one, keep it under lock and key, uncharged, with the ammunition under lock and key in a different room. There are so many accidents with kids and teens playing around with the dad's hunting guns without realizing that they are loaded. Most people that know don't have them around for that very reason.

<sigh> Grassette, do you have bleach and ammonia in your house? Bet you, or at least most of your friends do.

Do you keep them under lock and key separately?

Do you lock up your car separate from the keys and gas?

Do you keep kitchen knives locked away?

What about a pool, if you have one, do you have it indoors with a door only you can access?

All those things are just as, and in some cases MORE (cars) dangerous than a gun. Yet because they're part of every day life for EVERYONE, no special precautions are really taken. Cars by far outrank damage and devastation caused by guns, because there's far more idiots with cars than with guns. We trust 16 year olds with cars unsupervised.

Yes, guns can be dangerous used incorrectly, but there's quite a few other justifications for guns than as working tools. Like enjoyment, discipline, decoration, group activity, relaxation, self defense, pest management, and yes, hunting. I'm sure there's plenty more others can think of too. Yes, they have a negative connotation to those that have little to no experience with them, but they are not inherently dangerous. They do not fire themselves. They do not kill on their own. The people that use them for negative causes are to blame, as they will use any device they can to cause harm if that is their goal. Is a person stabbed to death any better off than someone shot to death? Or bludgeoned to death? Would the person be better off that their killer opted to use a pipe to murder them rather than a gun?

And as far as kids accessing them, how many kids are killed falling into pools? Drinking Chemicals? Due to improper child restraint seats? See where I'm going with this? Guns should be a consideration when kids are around, yes, but same as quite a few other things should be a consideration. They once again aren't inherently any more dangerous than most other things you keep in your house.

I beg to differ. I don't know anyone who have lost their children to bleach an ammonia, and several who have lost their teens due to them fooling around with their dad's hunting rifle. I'm not an American BTW, so have a different attitude about it. I can't get over how Americans arm themselves to the gills and feel that a handgun is a guarantee of personal safety. We get along fine without them, unless, as I noted, you need them because of animals. But the USA has its own gun culture, and that is one of the big cultural differences between us.

I am a retired police officer so my perspective is kind of jaded...

I think guns are great in the hands of responsible people....this is not said to upset any group of people but I worked 31 years and dealt with guns being taken away from people and used back on them...you wouldnt believe the number of crimes that have gone bad not because the bad guy had a gun to begin with but the bad guy found a gun in the house or business he broke into, or took it off someone who didnt know if he could actually use the gun to protect themselves or others...

A gun is a great thing to have only if you know how to use it and are proficient with the weapon..... If your state allows carry concealed...please take the course and carry it on your person daily...if you have a gun above the stove or in teh night stand or under the mattress and the bad guy breaks in...you got to tell him to hold on till you go get your gun....

DONT BUY SOMETHING BIGGER THAN YOU CAN HANDLE BECAUSE SOMEONE SUGGESTED IT...buy a gun you can handle...those of you who have shotguns, they are fun to shoot skeet and make big noise...or as one person said..they liked the sound it made and Im only guessing it was when (she) racked a shell into the chamber...it does make a cool sound....again not good when you hear the noise because you were in the back yard or not in the same room as the gun and the bad guy got to it first...

so buy a gun easy to carry and get to ....i have a gun on me all the waking hours of the day and at night, under the edge of the mattress .... I live in Florida and we have carry concealed laws here SO I DO CARRY...that might be a police thing...I also have one premantly mounted in my truck where i can put my hands on it in a second...the one I carry on my body is usually and North American Arms 22 magnum on a necklace holster..that is the coolest thing ever made....I have a Kel Tec PF 9 (9mm) mounted in my chair in the living room... I believe you have to have it where you can get your hands on it in a second...carry it like your life depended on it..oh, shotguns are also good for bird hunting.....

Im not much on shotguns as personal protection....if you have a fortified home and have plenty of time to walk to the bedroom and get it and load it and go to the observation place and patiently wait for the bad guy..

this is getting too long...but when I went to Gander Mountain to take the carry concealed course, there were some people in there who after the course would have a permit to carry that absolutely scared the crap out of me as a retired police officer....
one lady was about 90 years old and sat there shaking the whole class....scary ...one young girl asked if she was in a bar and a guy said something bad to her , could she pull the gun and tell him to go away...scary..there were others who had no idea of why they were there...scary....but i do believe in that right to protect yourself and carry (within law limits)

dont buy a gun and put it in the drawer.....if you get a gun....hold it...draw it....clean it....carry it where you can get to it in a second....dont put it under the seat or in teh trunk...

obey all laws and enjoy the feeling it gives to you that if something bad did happen you could protect yourself or others ....
study your states laws...be comfortable and for Gods sake...dont brag to people that you are carring one or have ones at home..that is an invitation for the bad guy to break into your home
...

have fun...be responsible..oh one last thing...if you dont feel completely comfortable with owning a gun, there are great new products for personal protection on the market...pepper spray...tasers...and other cool stuff..

sorry this was so long..

I am a retired police officer so my perspective is kind of jaded...

I think guns are great in the hands of responsible people....this is not said to upset any group of people but I worked 31 years and dealt with guns being taken away from people and used back on them...you wouldnt believe the number of crimes that have gone bad not because the bad guy had a gun to begin with but the bad guy found a gun in the house or business he broke into, or took it off someone who didnt know if he could actually use the gun to protect themselves or others...

A gun is a great thing to have only if you know how to use it and are proficient with the weapon..... If your state allows carry concealed...please take the course and carry it on your person daily...if you have a gun above the stove or in teh night stand or under the mattress and the bad guy breaks in...you got to tell him to hold on till you go get your gun....

DONT BUY SOMETHING BIGGER THAN YOU CAN HANDLE BECAUSE SOMEONE SUGGESTED IT...buy a gun you can handle...those of you who have shotguns, they are fun to shoot skeet and make big noise...or as one person said..they liked the sound it made and Im only guessing it was when (she) racked a shell into the chamber...it does make a cool sound....again not good when you hear the noise because you were in the back yard or not in the same room as the gun and the bad guy got to it first...

so buy a gun easy to carry and get to ....i have a gun on me all the waking hours of the day and at night, under the edge of the mattress .... I live in Florida and we have carry concealed laws here SO I DO CARRY...that might be a police thing...I also have one premantly mounted in my truck where i can put my hands on it in a second...the one I carry on my body is usually and North American Arms 22 magnum on a necklace holster..that is the coolest thing ever made....I have a Kel Tec PF 9 (9mm) mounted in my chair in the living room... I believe you have to have it where you can get your hands on it in a second...carry it like your life depended on it..oh, shotguns are also good for bird hunting.....

Im not much on shotguns as personal protection....if you have a fortified home and have plenty of time to walk to the bedroom and get it and load it and go to the observation place and patiently wait for the bad guy..

this is getting too long...but when I went to Gander Mountain to take the carry concealed course, there were some people in there who after the course would have a permit to carry that absolutely scared the crap out of me as a retired police officer....
one lady was about 90 years old and sat there shaking the whole class....scary ...one young girl asked if she was in a bar and a guy said something bad to her , could she pull the gun and tell him to go away...scary..there were others who had no idea of why they were there...scary....but i do believe in that right to protect yourself and carry (within law limits)

dont buy a gun and put it in the drawer.....if you get a gun....hold it...draw it....clean it....carry it where you can get to it in a second....dont put it under the seat or in teh trunk...

obey all laws and enjoy the feeling it gives to you that if something bad did happen you could protect yourself or others ....
study your states laws...be comfortable and for Gods sake...dont brag to people that you are carring one or have ones at home..that is an invitation for the bad guy to break into your home
...

have fun...be responsible..oh one last thing...if you dont feel completely comfortable with owning a gun, there are great new products for personal protection on the market...pepper spray...tasers...and other cool stuff..

sorry this was so long..

Thanks for posting your perspective and giving us such good info! You're one of the good cops, it seems. I like the info you've given here.

oh, in my long ramble about guns, I NEVER DID MENTION THE DEAL ABOUT THE KIDS...

that is a special problem in itself...I have 2 boys and as a cop, my belief as they were growing up was to make them very familiar with all the guns i had....I took them out and let them see how deadly they could be..and yes I let them shoot them when I thought they were old enough..so they knew what would happen if they pulled the trigger..

it was still a challenge to keep all the guns safe and still have them where i need them to be...

I did use a gun safe for most of them but did have one near me at night and while i was at home....thats where the small gun came into play...i could just put it in my pocket...

In 31 years as a cop I had to use my gun 2 different times and that will stay with you for life...so dont think it would be cool to shoot someone...its not......

anyway....even when kids are familiar with guns and what they can do, they ARE STILL KIDS...wow that curiosity .....

i love your ticker quote... i have had the same feeling about guns... not safe but then again much research later.... i have rebuttled and have decided to own some as long as my husband will take my kids and me to the ranges

oh, hoppinglark...I absolutely loved your post...dang good

treesloth...also it was never said if it was an entry wound or an exit wound.!!!!

true???