Would you want a gun?

[Minnie_me]

My brother and SIL live out in the woods. Their road is an unmarked road off of an unmarked road. SIL has MS and doesn't get around very well. She's quite small and frail.

My brother works long hours, 7 days a week. So SIL is alone a lot.

My brother worries about her safety, although there has NEVER been a violent crime in their area. And they have absolutely nothing of value in their home (other than the normal stuff that people have: a tv, a dvd player, etc.).

So he got her a gun. A 9mm. Kel-Tec sub 2000 para-military collapsible assualt rifle, to be exact. (i just copied and pasted that from his email, so don't blame me if it's not right)

I just don't see the point. I think that, given her physical condition, anyone who broke in would easily overpower her and take the gun away (and kill her with it?).

I'm not totally anti-gun, but this just doesn't seem necessary to me.

Thoughts?

 

[WDWBarb]

I'd have 3-4 very large dogs, but no gun. A stun gun, maybe. Not a real gun.

 

[Minnie_me]

I'd have 3-4 very large dogs, but no gun. A stun gun, maybe. Not a real gun.

They have lots of cats. They're not dog people, unfortunately. I'd prefer that solution as well!

 

[aristocatz]

I'd have 3-4 very large dogs, but no gun. A stun gun, maybe. Not a real gun.

I agree about the dogs. I think they would be better protection, given her situation.

 

[luvmy3]

Just because a violent crime hasn't occurred doesn't mean one won't. Also there are other reasons to break into a house other than stealing, especially for a woman who is alone alot. I don't have a problem with anyone owning a gun in order to protect themselves from the what ifs. I hope that along with the gun your bro makes sure SIL is properly trained on how to use it.

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

I want one... but I'm too lazy to take the classes.

 

[Epcot luvr]

9 mm glock
and a 38

 

[Pigeon]

Under no circumstances would I have a gun.

 

[GOOFY4DONALD]

Just because a violent crime hasn't occurred doesn't mean one won't. Also there are other reasons to break into a house other than stealing, especially for a woman who is alone alot. I don't have a problem with anyone owning a gun in order to protect themselves from the what ifs. I hope that along with the gun your bro makes sure SIL is properly trained on how to use it.

ITA. There are people that just wait for a woman to be home alone and have no interest in belongings. I think that even a frail woman could defend herself if she was properly trained with a gun. My DH is a hunter and we have many guns in the home. All but 1 is unloaded. The loaded one is put up and locked in my bedroom. The kids don't know where it is and even if they did it is locked and only DH and I have the key. When DH is working nights I feel safer. (BTW we have dogs too..I think they can alert me and keep intruders busy until I can get the gun)

 

[Serena]

It sounds like a lot more gun than she would be able to handle. Make sure she can handle it, get to it and doesn't accidentally shoot him.

My grandma had a gun for a while. Yeah, she's was about 80, has some sort of palsy where her hands shake and some idiot bought her a gun. It was her boyfriend, he lived with her for a while. Luckily when he left he took the gun with him.

My grandma had a live in boyfriend in her 80's, yes she did.

 

[Hercules10]

So he got her a gun. A 9mm. Kel-Tec sub 2000 para-military collapsible assualt rifle, to be exact.

That's not a good home self-defense gun. And if she doesn't know how to use it, it could be more of a liability then asset.

 

[doxdogy]

Definitely not a good gun for her. She would have been better off with just your run of the mill .38 snub nose pistol. But most definitely a pistol and not a rifle, and yes I do own a gun.

 

[Caradana]

This is a cultural decision. In NYC, no. In Arkansas, maybe.
The perception among my friends is that owning a gun drastically increases the odds of harm coming to your household.
I spent time in NZ, and there, they truly feel that handguns were created for the sole purpose of killing people (they have no other purpose) and the notion of owning one is so ignorantly white-trash and literally illegal that they can't fathom why Americans are so hot on these things.
It's interesting.

 

[kid-at-heart]

Under no circumstances would I have a gun.

I agree!

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

My grandma had a live in boyfriend in her 80's, yes she did.

 

[PrincessKitty1]

I was briefly stalked in my early 20s, an experience that motivated me to buy a gun and take shooting lessons.

I own a .38 and I wouldn't hesitate to use it on somebody who broke into my house.

That said, the best gun for home protection is a shotgun. You don't need good aim to use it, because the shot sprays out a bit. Nobody should plan to protect themselves with a gun without knowing how to shoot it (and I don't mean a theoretical "knowing how " from reading a manual or seeing a Clint Eastwood movie ).

Assault rifles have a lot of kick (didn't a kid recently shoot himself with an assault rifle at a gun show because the gun had so much kickback? He shot himself in the head). Although it should be obvious, nobody should own a gun without knowing how to shoot it and knowing some basic rules of gun safety (the primary being that you never point a gun, loaded or unloaded, at anything you don't intend to shoot--a lot of gun accidents would be avoided if everybody followed this one rule).

 

[freckles and boo]

I don't know a lot about guns, but I do know something about MS after watching my mother-in-law live with it for twenty years and then die of it. It is a neurological condition and one of the biggest problems is impaired motor control. The message to the muscles gets lost so they don't respond accurately or (eventually) at all. I can't imagine handing a gun to someone knowing that she can't fully control her body.

 

[GeorgeG]

I've had guns all my adult life. I have to agree that a dog (or two or three) makes the most sense in this situation. I also agree that a shotgun is usually the best defense weapon for a home, but given that this woman is frail with MS, the best choice would be a small .38 revolver loaded with wad-cutters. She may have some disability, but that doesn't mean she should simply submit to someone who breaks into her home. Of course, any firearm should come with adequate training. The gun her husband bought her is far from being a good choice.

An additional thought...

Given her condition and circumstances it would seem wise for them to move to where help is much closer, for many reasons.

 

[tonilea]

I don't have a gun.... I have nine.

 

[parrothead365]

I'm a "I carry a gun because a cop is too heavy" kinda guy. But when you get right down to it, it is a personal decicison. If one chooses to carry or own a gun, there are responsiblities that must be concidered. As for the gun the OP mentioned I think it would be fine. It's a smaller weapon in 9mm (a pistol cal)and in a rifle configuration. Should be easy to mount aim and fire with a minimum of recoil. Just my thoughts.