ok, I have to chime in here. I'm not 100% against Fake Nick's thoughts, I understand the reaction, First...a pic:
Second, some comments, keeping in mind that I speak for myself:
1-The original purpose to bear arms in this country was so that we could fight against a suppressive government and/or protect ourselves in anarchy of a fallen government. Something an occupying body (like the English Monarchy) doesn't want the people they control to have. It was never about the concept of Freedom, it was about how we would protect it from a hostile force (including our own government).
2-I have had guns for years, my kids (7 and 3) have seen them, held them, know how they work, how to properly (at least my 7 YO) check that the chamber is empty (for example that just because the magazine is out does not mean there's not one in the chamber), how to handle them (always aware of what is down range), and seen and heard them fired. They have no (or little) curiosity because of this and can look at them supervised anytime they want. That's the education element, and it is curiosity that is the result of a child playing with a gun. that's why so many kids shoot themselves, they want the gun to shoot, but are not strong enough to pull the trigger so they hold the gun facing themselves, and use both thumbs...happens all the time. However, We must also understand that they cannot make adult decisions so my guns are always trigger locked and unloaded in an inaccessible place anyway.
3-I do not have a gun in case a "robber" comes into my house. If that happens, I'm on my own. Hopefully I can fight better than him, but most likely he'll run. My feeling is that you can't protect your children 100% and still have the gun 100% available. If there was a trespasser it would take me about 1-3 minutes to be ready to shoot...but I'm not counting on it. If I am going to use a gun...it's because I have decided to go out and use a gun. Whether for sport or self protection, that's my business...it's proactive use, not reactive (not with kids in the house anyway), not for me.
4-I agree with fake nick that stupid people should not be allowed to have guns. But I also understand that the sacrifice of safety and what happened to that child is a sacrifice we make as a nation in order to reserve the right to protect ourselves. If it were my child I would be devastated, I would not be able to live or even breath a breath. I cannot imagine the sorrow, but I would lay them to rest not blaming the laws, because the laws that allowed that asshole to have a gun, allow me to protect my family and my property as it does other Americans.
Our natural reaction is to want to do something to fix it, so that never happens again. You can't make a guy smart when he's stupid, so you figure you can stop the gun. But we all know that stopping the guns will not stop stupid people from doing stupid things.
5-I don't believe all this bullshit about how safe all us gun owners are. We are human, and make mistakes all the time. How many of us run a red light, or have gotten behind the wheel with a drink or two under our belt in our life. I'm not talking all the time, I'm talking that once or twice when you fucked up and took a chance. We have all done it, and should not bullshit about how perfectly safe we are. We just hope that if we ever do fuck up that educational element arms our kids with enough smarts not to touch or shoot. If not then just as one could get struck by lightning, a responsible gun owner could have an accident happen. It's that simple.
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