Joyce,

Since the boss is on vacation, I'm supposed to be at lunch, but I'm
shivering in my office with my parka zipped (all 'poor baby' comments
gratefully accepted).  Meaning, I got time to get windy...

When I saw on my news ticker about the six year old girl shot in Michigan
yesterday, I was stunned.  An hour later, when the ticker flashed that she'd
died, I felt the hair on my neck stand up.

So I thought long and hard about my own position and possession of firearms
and came to some conclusions based on personal experience:

You might be surprised to know that I've never owned a handgun.  Never will.
Sure, some people use them for target shooting, others for hunting (small
percentage), but the vast majority are kept by people to defend themselves
against a criminal attack--or by criminals themselves.  Personally, I see
little value in their existence.  For personal protection I have unloaded
shotguns in several areas of the house--each of these weapons has a valid
function as a hunting gun and the self-protection aspect is secondary.
Meaning they are unloaded with the ammunition stored in a separate area.  I
practice, occasionally (when no one else is home) getting to the closest
weapon and loading it in the shortest time possible.  Amazingly, even with
some spasticity, I can safely load and prepare the firearm in a far shorter
time than it would take for someone to break into my home.  Unlike any
handgun ammunition available, the shotgun ammo I use is designed to inflict
incredible wounds on any attacker--highly unlikely they would survive even a
peripheral wound.  I'm firmly entrenched in the school of thought that if
you feel you must have a gun for home protection, a handgun is not the best
tool.  And though it may scream "Bubba", it's doubtful that many people
would confront you with a shotgun displayed in your vehicle window.  And,
for god's sake, there is "never" any reason to keep a loaded gun in the
house.  If you can't prepare your weapon, loaded with a round in the chamber
in less than ten seconds, you should consider some other means of self
defense.

Having said that, there have been only two purposeful shootings in my county
in the last two decades (our sheriff was gunned down in 1985 by a
transvestite burglar, of all things!  Right here in River City!).  The other
was when a local grocer (personal friend) was killed trying to disarm a
robber during a holdup at his IGA grocery store.  Statistically, my county
is no different, per capita, than most places in the country.  Few of us
have any real need to worry about violent attack from strangers (domestic
violence is another issue altogether).

I do, however, enjoy hunting and appreciate the priviledge to do so.  That
is the primary reason guns are in my home.  Do I keep them locked?  Not
until yesterday.  Not even the ones that see only sporadic use.  Is this
foolhardy?  Possibly.  I never had much reason to think about it before
yesterdays news.  But then I started thinking about how much my six year old
daughter (how ironic) enjoys watching me shoot.  She's seen me load and
operate each of these weapons.  She's been drilled and drilled in firearms
safety, though she's never fired a gun in her life.  Intellectually, she
knows the inherent dangers of firearms, yet she's still a kid.  What young
kid, fascinated with the fun of shooting, is not going to one day sneak into
the closet and "try one on for size"?  Even more so, I think, will be that
tendency with my son as he ages.

Therefore, it's my responsibility as parent and protector of those children
to make sure, try as they might, that they have no access to these guns
without my direct and constant supervision.  Trigger locks, gunsafes,
aircraft cable locks, disassembling the action, whatever it takes.  The
primary responsibility for that gun lies with its owner.

So, if you think you need a gun for protection:

1)  Don't consider a handgun as your first choice.  After all, there's
nothing in the world like the sound of the action racking on a pump
shotgun...and no mistaking what it means, either.

2)  Take a firearms safety course approved by local law enforcement or NRA

3)  If you use it, you will be taking someone's life.  Unless it is
absolutely clear by the evidence at hand that your life was in immediate
danger, you probably will be charged with manslaughter or worse.

4)  There is nothing more stupid than the idea of shooting them outside and
dragging them in.

5)  Realize that you are responsible (morally if not legally) for that
weapon--even if you're not there.

6)  Once you or your child pulls the trigger, there is no way to undo the
consequences.

Mag asked who posted the USA/Swiss gun article.  That was me?  What's the
difference between the two cultures?  Maybe they just take responsibility
for their own actions at a greater level than we do.

-Kyle