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Pros and Cons of Owning a Handgun
ref44
Member Posts: 251 ✭✭✭
Does anyone know of a website where a single mother with two teenage daughters might find concise and readable information on the pros and cons of handgun ownership?
Comments
I can't come to work today. The voices said, STAY HOME AND CLEAN THE GUNS![This message has been edited by mudge (edited 03-30-2002).]
NIKLASAL@hotmail.com
"The 2nd Amendment is about security, not hunting. Long live the gun shows, and reasonable access to FFLs. Join the NRA -- I'm a Life Member."[This message has been edited by offeror (edited 03-31-2002).]
So, you've bought yourself a gun... What are you going to do next? I hope you'll invest the time needed to learn about your firearm, and how to handle it safely. I hope you'll get training with it, so that the tool for self-protection you have will be exactly that, rather than becoming the least touched item in your nightstand drawer. Think about it this way: would you buy a new car without knowing how to use it, orplanning to learn how? Would you buy a computer, or any complex tool, and toss itand the owner's manual in a corner until you absolutely need to use it, and had touse it well? If you do that with a gun, you can make it more likely that you'll get hurt. Or killed. Guns are tools-tools for self defense. It takes time and practice to learn to use yourgun properly. If you invest the time well, getting quality training, it will repay youwell. Even if you never need to draw your gun, the knowledge that you can stop adeadly threat is a comfort to many people. Starting out with your gun:If you haven't bought a gun yet, before you do, please read my previous article inthis series about buying a firearm. It's important that the gun match your needs andbody well. If you have a gun, the first thing to do is learn gun safety. Most gunaccidents stem from not always, always following gun handling rules. Briefly, theyare: Always treat a gun as if it's loaded, even when you know it isn't. Don't point a gun at anything you don't want to shoot. Make sure of your target and what's beyond it. Keep your finger off the trigger until you're ready to shoot. Whenever you're handed a gun, check to see if it's loaded. If you don't know how todo that, give it back or to someone who does know how to check it. Always use eye and ear protection when practicing. Never use a drug that might affect your judgment while you're shooting. (includingprescription drugs) The first thing to do is read the manual, so you thoroughly understand the workings of your gun. This will help you clear a malfunction safely, too. Read through themanual with your gun out, so that you can look at the diagrams and your gun.Practice working the controls. (they'll vary, depending upon what type of gun youhave and its action) until you can work them smoothly. Most experts instructindividuals to use the dominant hand to work them as much as possible, so that timeisn't wasted switching the gun between hands. If you're new to guns, it's a very good idea to get basic firearms instruction from aqualified instructor. A local range may have such individuals; a sure bet is the NRA.Whatever you may think of their politics, the National Rifle Association does a finejob with its various educational programs; visit the NRA web site to find the closestNRA range. Good training is important, because you don't want to ingrain bad habitsinto your motor memory. When stressed, people fall back on that motor memory,and lose most fine motor control; it's crucial to have solid gun-handling skills in place from the beginning. If there isn't an NRA range nearby, check with gun-owningfriends to find a good instructor. If you already have a gun, decide which one is goingto be most important for your personal defense system. That needs to be the gunyou practice most with. Gun storage and safety:If other people live with you, it's crucial that you devise and follow some plan forkeeping your firearm safe, yet accessible to you. If you have an adult roommate,encourage him or her to buy a gun, then go through training individually and as apair. At a minimum, this person must be taught safe gun handling, or the gun mustalways be inaccessible to him or her. Most firearm accidents happen due to carelessness by owners, and unsafe handling by those who don't know about guns. If an adult in your household can't or won't learn safe handling, she or he must not have access to your firearm. Trigger locks don't offer much protection; a cable lock that prevents the gun from being loaded (and the key always stays on your person) is a better solution. Greater security is offered by lockboxes, and more by gunsafes.As you move up this ladder, the gun becomes less accessible. You need to decide what balance of safety and accessibility is appropriate for your situation. Read aboutvarious safety tools, look at them at gun shops, and talk to gun owners. If you have children, safety becomes more complex. Young children are constantlyexploring things. Many experts therefore encourage parents to teach their youngchildren never to touch a gun, and to leave a place where they find a gun and tell aparent or other adult about the gun. I think this is a bad idea. Forbidden items become much more tempting to curiousminds. The gun becomes an alluring object, one they'll go to great lengths to find.You can't childproof your gun. Instead, gun-proof your children, starting as early asthey understand speech. (around 1 year old) Handle your firearm safely andmatter-of-factly in their presence. If they show interest, talk about the gun, showthem the gun-while under your very strict supervision-and tell them what it's forand how dangerous it can be. If they ask to see it, indulge them as much as possible.As they're able to understand, show them the safety mechanisms and teach them safe gun handling. For them, this means never touching your firearms without permission and supervision, until they've shown they can be responsible with them. (a B-B gun is a good first test of their abilities) Give your children a demonstration of the power of firearms, including that B-B gun,as soon as you can. (when they can follow basic safety rules) Fill some gallon milkjugs with water, get a cantaloupe or watermelon, and thick wood blocks. Startingwith the smallest caliber gun you have, show them how destructive a shot from it can be. Work your way up to your most powerful gun, letting them walk downrange with you between tests so that they can see the shredded backs of the milk jugs, and the holes in the wood. (or splintered blocks, depending upon your guns) Save the melon demonstration for last; tell them to imagine it's a head. The splattering melon should be an impressive lesson in the destructive power of a gun. The idea isn't to scare your children, but to drive home the points that: 1) guns are not toys; and 2)guns can hurt people very badly. Last, teach your children how to safely check to see if a gun is loaded, and how tomake an unsafe gun safe. Talk with your children as they get older about what to doif they're at a friend's house and a gun is discovered. If you've done all this, they'llunderstand the potential danger of such a situation, and either will be able to defuseit, or will likely leave. With this background, you can be reasonably sure that your children will be safe with firearms anywhere. As with anyone else present in the home who isn't willing or able to practice gunsafety, all firearms and ammunition must be kept safe from a child. Exactly how toaccomplish this changes as the child matures, both physically and intellectually. The tradeoffs are the same, too; only you can decide what will work best in yoursituation. Ammunition:Ammunition comes in different types as well as calibers. Depending on the personaldefense situation, some may be better than others. If you live in a house withneighbors close by, or an apartment building, you don't want to jeopardize innocent bystanders when you shoot at a bad guy. Frangible ammunition is a good choice in these situations. It's designed to break up in the first thing it hits, which reduces"over-penetration" (going through an object) or ricochets. Quality frangible roundsare made by Glaser and and CorBon. Sometimes, though, you may want morepenetration. For example, heavy winter clothes can absorb a lot of the impact offrangible ammunition. For such situations, a hollowpoint round is a good cartridge touse. In a hollowpoint round, the bullet has a hole in its front, which causes the bulletto expand in its target. This can cause more tissue damage, too. Some individualsload a combination of frangible and hollowpoint ammunition, with the hollowpointsbeing the last rounds to be fired. In any given caliber, you can also find various "loads" to choose from. The bullet can be shaped differently, or the amount of powder can vary. Thus, the same caliberround can fire with greater or less power. Some guns (particularly semi-automatics)can be picky about the kinds of ammunition they'll take. Read your manual, andalways make sure your firearm can handle the type of ammunition you want to use. Getting good defense training:If you expect your firearm to help you overcome a lethal threat, you must be trainedin defensive techniques. Other forms of practice are fine, but they don't hone all the skills you'll need to deal with a drug-crazed bad guy who's decided to make you histarget. As soon as you can after your basic gun training, take a self-defense course. Irecently attended a National Shooting Sports Foundation media seminar, where media invitees received one-on-one training with various shooting sports champions. I asked for their recommendations of the best defensive training facilities. The responses were: Blackwater, in North Carolina; Firearms Academy of Seattle;Gunsite, in Arizona; Lethal Force Institute, based in New Hampshire but conductscourses across the country; and Thunder Ranch, in Texas. Each offers a variety ofcourses designed to improve your defensive shooting skills under safe, realisticconditions. Once you learn the fundamentals of defensive shooting, practice regularlyto keep your skills sharp. Most gun ranges, for safety reasons, don't allow practicingmany of the defensive techniques you'll learn; devise some way to safely do thesedrills on your own. A good choice for regular, basic practice is to join a shooting club or range. Check your local phone book for any close to you. You may want to join the International Defensive Pistol Association, or the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Each offers shooting events throughout the year, at locations around the country. The Single Action Shooting Society focuses on cowboy style guns, that shoot single action only. Their emphasis is on shooting as quickly and accurately as possible, a valuable skill. Beyond your firearm:Personal defense is more than carrying a gun. It involves becoming more aware ofthose around you, potentially dangerous situations that could develop, and usingvarious tools to stop different threats. You cannot use your gun for every threat, just as you can't use one screwdriver on every screw in your home. Firearms are the last resort, when you're in fear for your life or that of loved ones. There must be areasonable threat of lethal force present for you to justify using your gun. A jerkthree houses away shouting insults and threats isn't an imminent threat, and youwould almost certainly be found guilty of a crime if you shot him. Getting to knowthe local legal consequences of shooting someone, even in self defense, is animportant part of your defensive plan. Consider how prepared you are to defend yourself beyond your gun. Are your livingquarters secure, or are there easy places where bad guys can hide, and enter yourhome? How secure are your windows? Do you wear lots of jewelry, thereby makingyourself a potential target? Do you look like a easy victim? If you're a woman, do you take risks that put you at a greater risk of rape? These are some of the questions to consider in constructing a complete personal defense strategy. It needn't cost thousands of dollars; it does require thinking andplanning. In these times of heightened unrest, the time, money, and effort investedinto creating a sound personal safety strategy is well worth it. Resource Books:The Truth About Self Protection, and In the Gravest Extreme, by Massad AyoobEffective Defense, by Gila Hayes Gun Accessories:Bianchi InternationalGalco (their purses with holsters are great, and well made)Mitch Rosen Extraordinary Leather (his items for women are made to fit women, notcut-downs of men's items)Uncle Mike'sHoppe'sKleen BoreOutersLaserMax Sunni Maravillosa is a psychologist, writer, parent, and gun owner. She can be reached at sunni@free-market.net. |
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