A Question For Gun Owners

[Liberty Belle]

I don't own guns, but my husband does. He enjoys them as machines (he's also into antique guns) and he used to use them for target shooting, though he hasn't done that in years.

 

[sha_lyn]

I'm not going to argue with you about this, but there is plenty of information available on the practicality of using frangible ammunition in areas where ricochet or wall penetration is a concern. We will just have to agree to disagree.

 

[Michelle67]

We (my sisters and I, and both our parents) grew up around guns. We never messed with them, and never had an incident anywhere in our family. We knew the guns were there, and we were taught the mantra over and over again; do not mess with the guns. Guns are not toys, and guns are not for intimidation. Guns are good for only one thing; killing. Do not ever pick a gun up if you don't intend to USE it. Do not ever USE one unless you intend to kill someone. Now of course, we also did learn to shoot when we were older, and of course in that instance we were handling guns without the intent to kill. But the mantra stuck. We are in our 40s and 50s now, and can all do a reasonable impersonation of my father delivering "the mantra."

I own a pistol, and it is not kept locked up but it is kept up high in an area that my kids have no reason to want to investigate, and separate from the clip.

 

[chrisw127]

My first husband was a police officer so there were several weapons in our house; an off-duty 9mm since sworn officers in FL were required to carry one, the 9mm he carried for work, and another he wore on his ankle at work. Since we didn't have children, they were next to the bed and loaded. We were both former military police officers and we both knew how to handle them; in fact, the military police have probaly the best, safest firearms training.

When we got divorced, he insisted that I take a .38 for protection. I kept it for a while; it's a nice weapon for someone with a smaller hand. But, when I moved in with my second husband, he freaked out about it. The two of them are polar opposites on the handgun issue (I call my husband a big flaming liberal) and I sold it. At the time it kind of annoyed me, but now that I have kids, I'm glad I don't have them in the house. Frankly, I don't think most people would handle a weapon properly in an emergency, but that's just my opinion.

 

[tonilea]

I used to keep a shotgun in my closet with the ammo on the shelf. I could load it in the dark with no problem. When DS was born, we bought a gun safe. We have a varied collection of rifles, shotguns and handguns. DH also has a collection of WWII guns.

Right now, I have a .45 w/ night sights in the top of my closet - gun on one side and clip on the other. It would only take a second for me to slam the clip in the gun and rack a round into the chamber. For DS to access it he would have to take a chair into the closet - there is no way he could climb up to the shelf. Since there isn't a chair he could move in our bed room, I am confident this is safe - right now. In the future, we may have to take other steps.

DH is a police officer and I am a former officer. We have made a lot of enemies over the years. We have been the target of threats and are vigilant about possible danger.

DH is a firearms instructor and a firearms safety instructor - DS has been taught from the time he was able to hold a BB gun about gun safety.

It is my opinion that if you are not certain - absolutely certain - you can use a gun against another person, then you shouldn't have one.

 

[doxdogy]

No children in our home. So all guns are loaded and with easy access. Fortunately for us we also have dogs in the house. DH knows if Isaiah is giving I am thirsty bark or I hear something outside bark. When DD was younger, she knew not to touch any of the guns in the house. We removed all curiousity surrounding the guns by letting her touch them (unloaded) and she knew at an early age that it was not a toy. Now she enjoys going shooting with her dad.

 

[Michelle67]

No children in our home. So all guns are loaded and with easy access. Fortunately for us we also have dogs in the house. DH knows if Isaiah is giving I am thirsty bark or I hear something outside bark. When DD was younger, she knew not to touch any of the guns in the house. We removed all curiousity surrounding the guns by letting her touch them (unloaded) and she knew at an early age that it was not a toy. Now she enjoys going shooting with her dad.

I failed to mention that in my post. My dad always did that too. He would let us handle them while he was cleaning them, after making absolutely certain they were unloaded. Even unloaded, we were never allowed to point them at anyone, and "the mantra" was going on while we were handling them.

 

[Barbossa]

I have an ex-boss who keeps a .44 magnum revolver under his pillow at night. He and his wife had better not get into an argument in bed!

I have two pistols in my safe, unloaded, with no ammo in the safe. I haven't made the decision to use it for home defense because I have two kids. Don't know if I ever will.

 

[Oreo Cookie]

I don't have guns, but I do keep a bat under the bed. I plan to go down swinging.

 

[luvsJack]

A baseball bat under your bed would be much quicker to get to and you can do some serious damage to an intruder if you swing at the right areas..

Thats what I have! DH is away from home a lot and my son (being 24 and an adult) doesn't always stay at home at night so many times its just me and dd. The house is locked tight, I keep both my cell phone and the house phone on the head of my bed for either of us to quickly call 911 (she sleeps in the room with me when we are alone) and right beside the bed is an aluminum bat. We also have the protection of two large dogs outside.

DH wanted me to have a gun. By the time I could find the gun, find the ammo, load the gun; I figure it would all be over. Besides, I am terrified of guns. I can swing a bat pretty hard and pretty fast.

I know a lot of hunters that have kids and have guns. I have been told many times that the kids are taught not to touch the guns. I just can't bring myself to take the chance that just that one time they won't follow the rules.

 

[GeorgeG]

Fast-forwarding past the gun vs. anti-gun arguments, keeping a gun in your home safe from the wrong hands, yet ready if you need it is probably one of the most difficult issues for any gun-owner to come to grips with. There is no single solution that applies to all households.

If you have a lot of traffic in your house, both in family members and friends/children's friends, then the obvious answer is to keep all guns safely locked away all the time with maybe one loaded and kept in a quick-access safe that only you can open. Still, kids can be pretty resourceful when they want to be so some form of gun education and disciplne can be good. Make sure they know they are not toys and not to be touched without your supervision. Even so, there have been more than a few accounts of teenagers saving their parents' lives during a home invasion by retrieving a gun. It's a gamble and only the parent/homeowner/gun owner can place that bet.

On the other hand, there are people who, like me, have very little traffic. It's just me, my wife (who is quite handy with a gun) and two cats. We rarely have children in the house. We also rarely have anyone in the house I wouldn't be comfortable having a loaded gun in the nightstand around. When there are kids or people I'm not sure about, the gun goes in the safe with the rest of them. Now, I don't live in a high-risk area so why do I keep a loaded gun handy? Too often you don't know the risk until it's staring you in the face and then you don't want your gun locked away, or unloaded, or both.

Basically, it comes down to common sense in assessing your household situation and your level of risk and then coming up with a solution that keeps family and friends safe from your gun while also being able to keep those same people safe from the bad guys. That's rarely an easy thing to do.

 

[GRUMPY PIRATE]

I'm not going to argue with you about this, but there is plenty of information available on the practicality of using frangible ammunition in areas where ricochet or wall penetration is a concern. We will just have to agree to disagree.

Thats fine.

Just to let you know. I have been a firearms instructor since 1990.

I don't want you to think you are safe, because you have frangable ammo. It can kill a person if they are hit by it. In fact, the ammo mentioned in the article you quoted is famous for being able to penetrate body armor, and many law enforcement agencies worked to get it banned for general sales to the public.

 

[genius118899]

My dad bought a .40 semi maybe 2 years ago, with the insistence that my mother, my then 13 year old brother, and I would all take firearm safety classes and go to the range with him once, so we could feel what it would be like to handle one if we ever needed to. The three youngest kids in the house didn't even know he had one until last year. My dad decided it was better to tell them, and he took everyone out to a friend's farm, where he had a shooting range set up (along with several other guns). Everyone from the five year old up got a chance to shoot at least once, with serious safety talks, and with an adult holding on to each child at all times.

My dad usually keeps his gun in his glove box when driving, and in his hip holster that fits inside his pants when at work and while running alone. At home, it's stored in a gun safe that he keeps near his bed. I'm only 19 and still live on campus, but once I get an apartment next autumn, I'll get myself a handgun for safety.

 

[GeorgeG]

Thats fine.

Just to let you know. I have been a firearms instructor since 1990.

I don't want you to think you are safe, because you have frangable ammo. It can kill a person if they are hit by it. In fact, the ammo mentioned in the article you quoted is famous for being able to penetrate body armor, and many law enforcement agencies worked to get it banned for general sales to the public.

If it comes out of a gun barrel, it can hurt you. Some years back, an actor was fooling around with a gun loaded with blanks and shot himself in the head. He died instantly!

There are some bullets that penetrate less than most, but sheetrock shouldn't be considered a barrier for any of them. Some will penetrate sheetrock, insulation, and the outside walls of a home. For home defense the best ammo is something with enough power to decisively stop an attack while having the least penetration. That will vary depending on the caliber of gun and you will end up with a compromise, at best.

You should be familiar enough with your own home to have an awareness of the directions not to shoot, but when your life is on the line, there may not be much choice. If there is time, it is often recommended to gather the family in one place, but that's usually a big if.

 

[Barbossa]

I read that tasers are a good alternative to firearms for self defense. Hitting the wrong target would not likely result in serious injury, but they can stop an intruder in his tracks. I think they're legal for home use in most states.

 

[friendofgusgus]

A baseball bat under your bed would be much quicker to get to and you can do some serious damage to an intruder if you swing at the right areas..

The problem is that the bat requires you to be very close to the intruder - the gunshot crosses a distance that you do not have to cross yourself. If you are close enough to hit the intruder with the bat, you've already lost - the intruder should never get that close!

 

[Jennasis]

A baseball bat under your bed would be much quicker to get to and you can do some serious damage to an intruder if you swing at the right areas..

We have one of those two

our gun is loaded and ready to go in the nightstand. We have no children, but DO have an alarm system on the house, two dogs who go berserk if the wind rustles outside the window, and enough motion lights/dusk-to-dawn lights on our property that my neighbors joke that a plane might accidentally land on our farm thinking it's an airstrip.

 

[sha_lyn]

Thats fine.

Just to let you know. I have been a firearms instructor since 1990.

I don't want you to think you are safe, because you have frangable ammo. It can kill a person if they are hit by it. In fact, the ammo mentioned in the article you quoted is famous for being able to penetrate body armor, and many law enforcement agencies worked to get it banned for general sales to the public.

I never said it can't hurt/kill a person. I said it doesn't penetrate sheet rock

 

[sha_lyn]

I read that tasers are a good alternative to firearms for self defense. Hitting the wrong target would not likely result in serious injury, but they can stop an intruder in his tracks. I think they're legal for home use in most states.

Tasers either require you to be in direct contact with the aggressor, or they are a one shot deal. Miss the target and you aren't getting a second chance.

The problem is that the bat requires you to be very close to the intruder - the gunshot crosses a distance that you do not have to cross yourself. If you are close enough to hit the intruder with the bat, you've already lost - the intruder should never get that close!

 

[GeorgeG]

I never said it can't hurt/kill a person. I said it doesn't penetrate sheet rock

Would you be willing to stand behind sheetrock and let someone shoot at you with it? It may not make it all the way through a wall with sheetrock on both sides... but then again, it might.

Years ago I had some Speer plastic bullets for indoor practice. The shells and bullets were reusable and they were powered by nothing more than a primer. They were safe to use shooting into a cardboard box with a target on it and a piece of carpet hung from a wooden dowel stopped the bullet and let it drop to the bottom of the box. Sometimes they would imbed into the carpet, which being allowed to swing backwards on the dowel helped absorb the energy of the plastic bullet. A couple friends who are police officers and I experimented with them on sheetrock. Those same plastic pullets powered only by a primer would go clean through sheetrock every time unless it hit a stud.