gun in houses

Anyone up for a good debate about guns in the houses? Any thoughts? How many of you have them for protection??

Hubby had 2 when I met him ......... I dont remember what kind they are...... I think they are the ones the cops carry, but I could be wrong? They are black and are automatics, I think? Anyways, the one is underneath the matress, just in case a lunatic tries to break in & hurt one of us. I was talking to my dad earlier about something, which brought up the issue, and he was like "well, i'm not crazy about that gun being in the house." Now, I am sorry, ok, I understand he is just watching out, but it is my life, and having it in the house makes me feel protected. And, I told him that. He was in the military, and I guess where it comes from. (anothe reason why I can never tell him something because he's always got to have the last word) It's not like I pick it up and play with it. I don't even go near the thing.

Speaking of guns, the woman who is a lead at my new job, had a tragedy result of a gun. I feel sorry for her. She lost her 14 yr. old son a month ago, I guess him & a friend were 'tossing' it around, and he got shot in the back. The friend said it was an accident, but she doesnt believe it because friends dont shoot each other, which she made a good point, and I guess it is being investigated now. The friend is in jail. What gets me, and she also didnt understand, is there was no media coverage.

Now, let's start the debate!

My dad always had a gun in the house when my sisters & brother and I were growing up. The gun was kept hidden in a place that wasn't accessible and we never even thought about it being there.

One problem with having guns in the house is that loaded guns aren't always locked up. Sometimes a person thinks the gun has been unloaded when it actually still has a bullet left in it. If there are young children (around 4 or 5 years old) in the home they sometimes find these guns and start playing with them and someone gets killed...

My brothers and I grew up with guns in the house. Both Daddy and my stepfather were career Marines and hunters. We were taken out, by Daddy and taught the proper use of firearms. We, also knew that we were NEVER to touch a weapon, without express permission and supervision.

As an adult, I've always had a gun. For many years, I was single and working crazy hours. I felt more secure, knowing that I could defend myself and the kids.

When the boys were small, I kept the gun, out of sight and out of their reach. As they got older, I took them target practicing and taught them, the same way that I was taught. I bought Mark a .22 rifle, when he was 10, the same age that I got mine. As a precaution, I locked up the gun in one place, the ammo somewhere else and the clip, elsewhere. Mark went through an NRA safety course and the rifle never left the house, without me.

Nowadays, Bill and I each have a personal weapon. He has a .45 automatic and I have a .38 detective's special.

Recently, here in Tucson, a woman saved herself from being raped. She was awakened by an intruder on top of her. She was able to get her gun, from under the mattress and shoot the guy. The only thing that I saw wrong with that - she didn't kill him. She just winged him.

Between Ike and the guns, I feel completely safe at home.

Tigger, I hope that you know HOW to use those weapons and won't hesitate, if the need arises. I practice, as much as possible.

Cindy,

I've been target shooting a few times, but that was before we were married, and let's just say that when we went shooting in the desert (way out, I dont remember where), I blew up a rock because I aimed wrong. It's not that I am afraid of them, well I guess I am. When we went target shooting, I was always afraid the gun was going to backfire & the bullet would come flying out of the chamber or something, but I guess with his, it can't. I ought to ask him sometime to take me to the indoor shooting range. I could always take classes, too, couldn't I? Plus, I've always wanted to learn martial arts. I think the fact that guns are such deadly, is what scares me.

When we lived in Rochester my husband worked the graveyard shift and he wanted to teach me how to shoot a gun and keep one for protection. We went out and looked at some guns but we ended up not getting one after all. My husband's brother also worked the graveyard shift for awhile and his wife did have a gun for protection. One night she didn't know what to do so she took the gun out and started playing with it. The gun went off accidently and the bullet went through the ceiling and into the apartment above theirs. Fortunately, that tenant wasn't home at the time.

Guns, like any other tool, can be dangerous if misused. They are TOOLS not toys. I didn't allow my kids to have toy guns. I didn't want them to get used to pointing ANY kind of a weapon at anybody.

Guns, in themselves, are not dangerous. A gun can lie there, on the floor, forever. Until SOMEONE picks it up, it is merely a hunk of metal.

As an averaged-sized woman, with spinal arthritis and carpal-tunnel syndrome, I am no physical match for an average man. That .38 special just levels the playing field for me.

I have no particular beef with a gun kept in the house, provided it's secured properly. But I agree with katl8e, the time to learn how to use it is now. There is no point in trying to take a crash course in the middle of a situation that's an emergency. That's when people get hurt or killed by their own weapons. If the gun is there for your protection, you should be knowledgable and comfortable with its use.

Guns are scary, but only when in the wrong hands, such as a criminal or someone who isn't sure what to do. I grew up with guns in the house. My father was a state trooper and hunter, guns were just another part of the house. I never picked one up, unless my dad was there with me.

I went target shooting for the first time several years ago. I did pretty good. It is something I would like to be better at. I don't know if I would ever carry a handgun, but I would keep one in my house. Both of my parents carry, I rarely see my dad without his ankle holster.

I think most states or towns have gun safety classes, especially around hunting season. Or maybe contact your local police.

My husband is Pro-Gun in the house for protection. He feels its necessary for self defense, and that as long as its locked up and kept away from the kids totally that it is fine.

I am against guns. I don't like the idea of any child having access, and I don't buy that ANY gun can be completely inaccesible. There is always a chance, and its not one that I want to take. Maybe when the kids are a bit older and wiser ,but not at their ages now.

Short of it, we don't have a gun in our home.

Daniela.
I would have to agree with you about what you said. There's always a chance. Lately, fortunately, they havent reported anything on the news like that. I think it was last year, or this year (i cant remember) but a young child was shot by his dad's own gun. The father was a cop, too. Somehow, the child knew how to unlock the cabinet. I don't remember if he died or not. I also think that no matter how much you tell a kid how dangerous & deadly they are, there is always a chance that something could happen.

Wow, I didnt think this would get that much discussion! Any other debates we could talk about?

I have mixed feelings about having a gun in my home. I do think that I would feel safer having one, but on the other hand, I am scared of one. :LOL: Hubby and I have talked many times about getting one, but I was always the one to say NO. I guess the best thing to do before getting one is to go to the shooting range and practice and also take a gun safety class. I think that without those classes and the practice, a gun is nothing but useless and harmful to everyone in the house.

Hubby works the graveyard shift, so I am home alone at nights. At first I was terrified, but I've gotten used to it, since its been about a year now since I've had to sleep alone. I'm not that worried though, because I live in a good neighboorhood and because I live on the 2nd floor of our condo building. I think that I would be much more scared if we were on the first floor.

We have about 5 more months until hubby turns 21 and about 1 year until I turn 21, so we have some time to talk about this some more and decide if we are going to get one or not. I wouldn't mind having one now since we don't have any kids in the house, and we aren't planning on having kids for awhile.

Tucson has had a high number of home invasions, this past year. Most of those have been related to drug dealing but these things happen. There are, also, a couple of serial rapists, working the University area. I feel better, knowing that we CAN defend ourselves.

I grew up in a terribly liberal-democratic household and guns were evil. We fished, we didn't hunt. As a teen and young adult I was such a pacifist that I went to a Quaker College. I attended many anti-nuke, anti-war type demonstrations. My high school sweetheart, who is now my husband, wanted to learn about socialism and went to Israel and joined the army. He was being turned into a deadly weapon while I was trying to save the world from itself.

When we moved in together (neither with kids) I had to deal with the gun issue. Having lived in New York City for seven years and having previously been raped, I was certainly more open to the idea of guns than I would have been 10 years earlier.

I simply took the practical attitude. Hubby lived with a gun professionally and on a full time basis for almost 10 years. I decided to view guns as a tool. But unlike the circular saw, the gun needed a different kind of respect.

As long as they were going to be in the house, I needed to learn how to use it properly. We shoot regularly. I know how to use and clean all the weapons we have, and we shoot regularly. I really enjoy it, actually.

I think that if there are going to be weapons, ALL the adults in that household need to know how to use them. And are comfortable with them, meaning shooting and weapon maintenance are a regular part of the schedule.

Maybe that's how guns should be sold. Kind of like my professional stuff. I hold a number of licenses to do my job, and I am required to conduct a minimum number of hours of "continuing" education each year in order to keep my licenses active. It is a part of our constitutional rights that we are allowed to bear arms. But maybe all weapons need to be licenses and registered, and unless we certify that we performed X number of hours of shooting and maintenance with each weapon each year, we lose our licenses or something.

And Daniela, I'm not sure that I agree about guns and kids. The problem is how guns are handled in the house and the adults' attitudes about guns. If the adults are participating in a regular program of "training and maintenance" and are responsible about it, instead of hiding guns in the closet, children can learn at a very early age the consequences of and respect for the weapon. If required to learn how to use and clean the gun, at a range, at a young age, the "mystery" of the gun in the closet doesn't exist. Children don't understand mortality, but they do, for the most part, understand pain.

As far as the home protection reasons for having a gun go, I believe we all have a right to protect ourselves, our families and our property. But we never keep a loaded weapon in the house. The clips are in, but no bullet is in the chamber. Shells are kept in the rifle but not chambered. Shells are kept near the shotgun.

Hubby no longer carries a weapon when we go out. But neither of us work late shifts. The only place we'd really want to take one is when we have to head into New York City (almost weekly), and especially since 9/11 that isn't something either one of us is willing to risk without legal carry-concealed permits there.

So I guess that's a lot more than my "two-cents"!

One thing that makes me feel safe is that the Gilbert Police Dept. is no more than 1 second away from my house. I guess it's a good thing. I dont know if they have block watch in our sub-division because it's only 4 yrs. old, but during the afternoons, I see a cop car going down the street every now and then. It also could be because the HOA wants to put in speed bumps down the street because people speed.

It seems most of you are pro-gun. So I'm probably going to get slammed.

More people are killed by their own guns (or hosehold guns) then by a criminals.

What good is a gun under your mattress when you're just getting home from an evening out and there's someone already in your house?

Kids are smart. No locked gun case is going to keep them out for long.

Burglars usually stake out potential targets before actually breaking in. They typically bypass homes with dogs, not matter what size.

Kristin

There are an average of 300 rapes, robberies and murders PREVENTED, each year because the potential victims were armed. THIS doesn't get much mention, in the liberal press.

I wouldn't say I'm pro-gun. I think there are both pros & cons to owning one. I also know that guns land in the wrong people's hands (for ex. gangs, domestic violence cases, druggies) and innocent people are killed. They are so easy to get a hold of, even with that 5 day holding period, or whatever it is. But, then I also think that gov't officials should be the only people allowed to carry weapos. Then again, someone is always going to find a way to get one.

Cindy, we must have been posting at the same time, lol:tounge2:

We have two guns. They are not locked up, but are put out of reach. However, I wish they were locked up, I would feel better,especially now that we have Amber. They aren't loaded either, so that does make me feel a little better.

I have mixed feelings about it...but I do think it is okay, as long as you teach your children early on to respect the guns and to treat all guns as if they were loaded, even if they aren't. Brent has always taught his kids this way, and they never point a gun at anything they wouldn't want to shoot, even if it has no bullets in it. Blake has a BB gun and he treats it with the same respect he would a regular gun.

I think it is good to have a gun to protect yourself, but I still worry about accidents happening with children in the house.

When Amber is a little older, I will worry about it more, and we may have to get a locking gun case.

It does make me feel better that he never keeps them loaded, just keeps the bullets where he can get to them easily if need be. But sometimes someone might think the gun isn't loaded, and might not have gotten all the bullets out. I think the main thing is you have to be very careful, and never assume the gun isn't loaded.

I need to learn how to shoot one...I have never shot a gun in my life!


Oh and one more thing...I am totally against the government trying to take our guns away from us!!!! I feel it is the right of every person to bear arms, and to keep a gun to protect themselves. If they take the guns away from us, then the people who don't obey the laws anyway, will still be able to get guns, and the rest of us will be defenseless. Not a good idea. I do think it should be harder for some people to get guns, though, especially if they have been in prison before or in a mental institution.

Also....it really is necessary for us to have a gun out here where we live...not too long ago there was a skunk down by the barn, and it acted like it might have rabies. Hubby had to shoot it. What else would he have done? Went up to it and beat it to death?

Growing up, my father and I went deer hunting, so I do have some experience with guns. I think 2 or 3 of the hunting rifles are in my old closet at my mom's house. The guns are in their cases, and the shells are on a top shelf and hard to reach.

I live with my fiancee and her son in our house, and there are no guns there. I work at night, but I do not worry about my fiancee's safety. We live in a fairly safe area, so I am not worried. Besides we have are 3 dogs who can beat someone up with their tail, and 5 cats that can scratch their eyes out

Oh, I agree that having guns should not be controlled by government. I think it should be personal choice.

We don't have guns here. It's illegal without a license. The police don't carry guns. Most of the crims don't either - but drug related shootings are on the increase in urban areas.

If rapes and domestic attacks are still being carried out - surely that is proof in itself that the guns are not succeeding in their role as deterent.

Can I risk wrath and ask what use is having a gun (possibly hidden or locked away or not loaded) when somebody is in your house already or breaks in while you are there.

How long will it take to get to a cupboard, unlock it, load the gun etc etc.

I'm not pro- or anti-guns. It's not really been an issue for me. I also realise it is (correct me if I'm wrong) part of the American constitution to be able to bear arms.

But - are they really working to deter crime, is what I'd be interested to know, or can these accidents that happen (there was a documentary some years ago about a US boy horribly disfigured due to a firearms accident) be avoided by not having guns in a domestic environment?