I recently received a questionnaire from the NRA asking me about my views on gun ownership. I’m neither pro nor con gun ownership. I found the questionnaire to be fairly enlightening though. This organization seems to be a proponent of less regulation regarding the ownership of dangerous firearms.
One thing I am fairly sure of is that more, not less, regulation of weapons is probably in all of our best interests. I grew up around guns. My three younger sisters and I knew that my Dad’s service revolver (he was a policeman) was placed on top of the highboy in his room when he got home from work. We absolutely, positively, and emphatically knew that we were never to touch that gun. And we never did.
Dad also had a rifle and went deer hunting once a year. He bought home deer when he shot one, and butchered it into steaks for our neighbors. Mom would not allow it to be eaten in our house because of the movie Bambi. The rifle was kept in a case in the basement. We knew where it was, but we were never even tempted to open the case and look at the rifle. Maybe having four girls is different than having four boys.
When I was twelve, my Dad (a police “sharpshooter”) would take me to the range with him and allow me to shoot at the target with his thirty-eight. (I really cared much more about the time alone with my father than I did about shooting the gun.) In any case, I learned gun safety from him and he was a good teacher.
My husband has guns. He was in the Military for twenty-five years and had to qualify every year with firearms. He likes guns and has some beauties. We go to the range on occasion to target practice. Are these guns for home defense? Uh, no. I do not see either of us using a gun for any reason other than shooting at a target at a gun range. For home defense we have two big, rowdy, loud dogs and a telephone to call 911. Neither of us would shoot someone for stealing a television or silver candlesticks.
I’m not afraid of having a gun. My husband and I have no small children. If a child does come to visit, the guns are all unloaded and locked away in the safe well before they arrive. Every gun we own is registered and legal.
I find it outrageous that organizations like the NRA want no ban on assault rifles, easily obtained, “carry permits for concealed weapons” for citizens, and criticize the President and as well as any legislator for being opposed to “fewer” controls. The NRA literature I have seen could only appeal to fringe lunatics who are of a survivalist mentality. Maybe the NRA started out as a place for shooting competitors and enthusiasts to get together. Today, the NRA because of their political power and vast financial war chest are a true threat to homeland security.
