Ah, poor baby! There does that help? BTW your "poor baby" fell asleep on my
lap at 11:30 and has been asleep ever since. He's never done that before.

----------
> From: Kyle E. Cleveland <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Gun's Gun's (and more guns)
> Date: Thursday, March 02, 2000 2:32 PM
>
> 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