Gun ownership question

Reba

Reba

Retired Terp
Premium Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2004
Messages
54,899
Reaction score
1,518
Question from another thread:

Jane B. said: ↑

Since a quite a number of the AD members that own guns have been in this thread I think it is a good place to ask about something I have been thinking about and have it seen by many of them.

I am one of the older members here and did not grow up with gun ownership being common except for those that used long guns for hunting — and I didn't know many that did that. I am wondering how those that are owners came to the conclusion that it was a good idea to get involved with guns and owning them? Also, the timing (fairly recent or quite a number of years ago) of when that happened.
 
I grew up in a "gun-free" zone for the most part. The only family member who had a gun (that I know of) was my step-father who was a college security guard when I was a teenager. He wore it to work and that was all.

I don't recall any big discussions about gun control when I was growing up. Even at my public high school in gun-restrictive Connecticut had girls and boys rifle teams.

The first year I was in the Navy, at age 19, I had an opportunity to learn how to shoot. It wasn't required for women to qualify in those days, so we didn't get any weapons training in boot camp or "A" school. It was at my first duty station that the base gun range offered a beginners' one-day gun training. At the end of the day we could shoot and qualify for the Navy "Pistol" ribbon.

From Wiki:

The U.S. Navy has issued these two marksmanship awards since 1920: the Navy Pistol Marksmanship Ribbon which is currently awarded for qualification on the Beretta M9 9mm pistol, and the Navy Rifle Marksmanship Ribbon which is currently awarded for qualification on the M14 and M16 rifle variants.[1]



The Navy issues the marksmanship ribbon in three levels of precedence: Expert, Sharpshooter, and Marksman. The basic ribbon is awarded for the Marksman level while the specific ribbon device is awarded for qualification as a Sharpshooter or Expert. Those receiving an Expert qualification receive the Marksmanship Medal and Marksmanship Ribbon.[1]

MarksmanDevice.jpg


I got the silver "E" for Expert on my first try. The instructor said because I had no prior experience with guns I had no bad habits to break. I just followed his directions and did it.

For a while, the only other shooting I could do after that was with the loaner guns at the range. It wasn't until many years later that we could afford to buy our own weapons. TCS bought his first, then I got interested enough to want my own. We very slowly built up our collection, sometimes trading up or selling off older ones in order to buy new ones. Most of our purchasing has been since the year 2000.

I don't hunt but TCS does. We both target shoot, paper and clays. We both have concealed carry permits for our state. TCS carries most places but I don't.

Different activities require different weapons.

Generally, Concealed carry obviously is for hand guns. Clay shooting requires shot guns. Various rifles are used for hunting. All of them can be used for target shooting.

TCS and I have a variety of "his and her" guns. We each have a shotgun, semi-auto handgun, and semi-auto rifle. TCS has a second semi-auto handgun for concealed carry, a full-size semi-auto handgun for target shooting, a lever-action rifle for hunting, and a couple of inherited "novelty" guns (guns that we wouldn't have bought ourselves). I also have a small revolver and a convertible youth-size shotgun/rifle combo. We have one additional shotgun that we want to sell.
 
Reba said:
Question from another thread:

Jane B. said: ↑

Since a quite a number of the AD members that own guns have been in this thread I think it is a good place to ask about something I have been thinking about and have it seen by many of them.

I am one of the older members here and did not grow up with gun ownership being common except for those that used long guns for hunting — and I didn't know many that did that. I am wondering how those that are owners came to the conclusion that it was a good idea to get involved with guns and owning them? Also, the timing (fairly recent or quite a number of years ago) of when that happened.
Click to expand...


Reba, your reply never came through. Correction, it finally found it's place.
 
I too, have been around guns growing up. Hunting and target shooting. Now, as an adult, I have learned things about the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (RBKA) and the Second Amendment (2A). And the political can of worms that wants to take our RBKA and 2A rights away.

I don't hunt. I target shoot and collect various guns as a hobby.

What makes me such a strong supporter of gun ownership, is the fact that law enforcement officers do not have a duty to protect us. We are our own first responders. We have a right to defend our selves with guns against harm, loss of property (depending on state) and life.
 
Last edited:
Reba said:
Question from another thread:

Jane B. said: ↑

Since a quite a number of the AD members that own guns have been in this thread I think it is a good place to ask about something I have been thinking about and have it seen by many of them.

I am one of the older members here and did not grow up with gun ownership being common except for those that used long guns for hunting — and I didn't know many that did that. I am wondering how those that are owners came to the conclusion that it was a good idea to get involved with guns and owning them? Also, the timing (fairly recent or quite a number of years ago) of when that happened.
Click to expand...

Jane - just like Reba.... I grew up in a gun-restrictive state... NJ. for the most part of my life, the only gun I had were BBs and toy gun that makes noise. majority of my friends and people I know do not own guns or hunt. I started to get into guns when my best friend came back from army. he exposed me to a lot of things and taught me a lot of things. I started doing a lot of research and studying the philosophy of guns because in gun culture, it's not about gun... it's about responsibility and your mindset.

if you own a gun, you should expect to get shot or shoot someone. I don't consider it as "good idea" like "oh hey yea I think it's a good idea to get a gun for home defense". I put in a lot of thoughts and you must be 100% committed to it and accept all responsibilities and burden of having a firearm.

yesterday in my class, someone asked me about gun and that her husband is considering getting a gun. I asked her - for what? she said for home defense. I said - oh cool... what gun is he interested in? she said a handgun. I said - well if it's just to leave a gun at home somewhere and forget about it until you really need it.... forget about handgun. don't even bother. just get a shotgun. just the sight of it and the sound of racking a shotgun are more than good enough to scare them away.

I own guns for 2 reasons - personal defense and sports. I don't hunt.

around here... people play golf... I don't. people play tennis... I don't. people go fishing... I don't. I don't do most of conventional/popular sports and I don't watch sports. I do shooting competition for fun and to hone my skill.
 
Jiro said:
Jane - just like Reba.... I grew up in a gun-restrictive state... NJ. for the most part of my life, the only gun I had were BBs and toy gun that makes noise. majority of my friends and people I know do not own guns or hunt. I started to get into guns when my best friend came back from army. he exposed me to a lot of things and taught me a lot of things. I started doing a lot of research and studying the philosophy of guns because in gun culture, it's not about gun... it's about responsibility and your mindset.

if you own a gun, you should expect to get shot or shoot someone. I don't consider it as "good idea" like "oh hey yea I think it's a good idea to get a gun for home defense". I put in a lot of thoughts and you must be 100% committed to it and accept all responsibilities and burden of having a firearm.

yesterday in my class, someone asked me about gun and that her husband is considering getting a gun. I asked her - for what? she said for home defense. I said - oh cool... what gun is he interested in? she said a handgun. I said - well if it's just to leave a gun at home somewhere and forget about it until you really need it.... forget about handgun. don't even bother. just get a shotgun. just the sight of it and the sound of racking a shotgun are more than good enough to scare them away.

I own guns for 2 reasons - personal defense and sports. I don't hunt.

around here... people play golf... I don't. people play tennis... I don't. people go fishing... I don't. I don't do most of conventional/popular sports and I don't watch sports. I do shooting competition for fun and to hone my skill.
Click to expand...

How is your marksmanship with rifles versus pistols? I can pluck a turkey's eyelashes from a hundred yards, etcetera, but with a pistol, so help me, I gotta walk to right in front of the target. Lol
I don't like guns, but I like having people around me carrying. Of course, it depends on the people. Ain't worrying. :)
 
Reba said:
Question from another thread:

Jane B. said: ↑

Since a quite a number of the AD members that own guns have been in this thread I think it is a good place to ask about something I have been thinking about and have it seen by many of them.

I am one of the older members here and did not grow up with gun ownership being common except for those that used long guns for hunting — and I didn't know many that did that. I am wondering how those that are owners came to the conclusion that it was a good idea to get involved with guns and owning them? Also, the timing (fairly recent or quite a number of years ago) of when that happened.
Click to expand...


I think everyone who's mature enough to handle the responsibility should own a gun. I live in a somewhat violent small town, the kind of place where violent crime is notable but not at all shocking. Crime in general is also rampant, particularly theft, and the cops and judges couldn't care less. If the guys who rummage through my car at night thought I wasn't armed, they would probably break into my house and harm me in the process. I'm not going to let that happen.

As far as "having a gun is riskier than not having a gun" is concerned, I would say that it depends on you and your circumstances, but mostly you. When you handle your gun, always point it in a safe direction, don't touch the trigger if you don't intend to depress it, and make sure your gun isn't loaded if it doesn't need to be. Lock up your guns in a safe place to prevent children from handling them. Lastly, and this is my own rule, if you don't need to pick up your gun for some (real) reason, leave it be.
 
Last edited:
Beowulf said:
How is your marksmanship with rifles versus pistols? I can pluck a turkey's eyelashes from a hundred yards, etcetera, but with a pistol, so help me, I gotta walk to right in front of the target. Lol
I don't like guns, but I like having people around me carrying. Of course, it depends on the people. Ain't worrying. :)
Click to expand...

not too bad
 
I grew up in Southern CA and Mexico. My brothers started to learn to use handguns through firearm classes. One of them joined Air Force and knows how to use guns, but doesn't own any gun. I didn't take any firearm class. Of course, my father, brothers and husband have been bugging me to take lessons. My brother has taking his wife, and kids to shooting range for years.

In Mexico, I tried a hunting rifle for the first time when I was 15. It was ok. Mexico has the strictest gun control laws. In Mexico, as a civilian, you have the right to protect your home, but you can't carry it with you anywhere outside of your property. If you're a bodyguard or in law enforcement with a gun, you're allowed to carry it anywhere. Many diplomats, including us had government bodyguards with guns. My father grew up around guns since he was born in Mexico. He used to hunt for small animals for meals before he went to become a scientist.

My mother grew up in East Prussia, and West Germany and wasn't around guns except her father. The funny thing is my German grandfather and all of my German relatives moved to US and purchased guns. A few of them joined US military. Hmm...
 
In past, I'm nearly ignorant on guns, all thanks to my families and anti-gun movement in K-12 school, but ironically, my parents own a gun but won't allow me to learn or use a gun because they basically told me that deaf people can't use a gun, so it was back in 1990s and they threw audism on me, so they told me to wear CI before they could teach me to use a gun, but never happened. My parent's movement lead me into anti-gun in the past, also they don't want me to learn to use a gun and they told me that I'm better off to not have a gun.

I had to learn about gun by myself and asked my friends, but sadly, my parents had no issue with my sister, but not me, however my sister taught me about hunting rifle, so they told me that I can watch and can't use it.

What is wrong with society today? With Deafblind, it made situation worse.
 
Foxrac said:
In past, I'm nearly ignorant on guns, all thanks to my families and anti-gun movement in K-12 school, but ironically, my parents own a gun but won't allow me to learn or use a gun because they basically told me that deaf people can't use a gun, so it was back in 1990s and they threw audism on me, so they told me to wear CI before they could teach me to use a gun, but never happened. My parent's movement lead me into anti-gun in the past, also they don't want me to learn to use a gun and they told me that I'm better off to not have a gun.

I had to learn about gun by myself and asked my friends, but sadly, my parents had no issue with my sister, but not me, however my sister taught me about hunting rifle, so they told me that I can watch and can't use it.

What is wrong with society today? With Deafblind, it made situation worse.
Click to expand...


They should have (responsibly) exposed you to firearms if you were curious.

Your post resonated with me because your experience with learning about guns was similar to my own experience of learning to drive. My sister was implicitly trusted to use the family's vehicles. I wasn't. Even after I got my license, I was only allowed to drive short distances (in a small town environment). As a result, I had to teach myself how to drive in city traffic once I got out of high school, which is far more dangerous than being guided by someone who knows what they're doing.
 
Foxrac said:
In past, I'm nearly ignorant on guns, all thanks to my families and anti-gun movement in K-12 school, but ironically, my parents own a gun but won't allow me to learn or use a gun because they basically told me that deaf people can't use a gun, so it was back in 1990s and they threw audism on me, so they told me to wear CI before they could teach me to use a gun, but never happened. My parent's movement lead me into anti-gun in the past, also they don't want me to learn to use a gun and they told me that I'm better off to not have a gun.

I had to learn about gun by myself and asked my friends, but sadly, my parents had no issue with my sister, but not me, however my sister taught me about hunting rifle, so they told me that I can watch and can't use it.

What is wrong with society today? With Deafblind, it made situation worse.
Click to expand...

Seriously, I think you should check out some clubs or groups of Deaf Blind where it can meet your needs.
 
Barbaro said:
Seriously, I think you should check out some clubs or groups of Deaf Blind where it can meet your needs.
Click to expand...

It is unheard to have DB gun organizations and most DB aren’t interest in guns nor cars, so it is usually fell under sighted Deaf groups, but they tend to disorganized and hard to communicate.

I have to learn by myself.
 
Last edited:
Guns are for safety. I guess you can use them for hunting but for primary use should be safety. "But Damian, you would never need to defend yourself." I know the chance is actually pretty small that you would be forced into that position. Infact some police officers never fires at anyone. Chances are you never will need it. But sometimes you might. Gun owner ship is a right of the people. Learn to respect and treat a weapon right. Learn to defend yourself before getting carried away.
 
My family's tradition included gun safety and ownership for generations. Then in my dad's generation one cousin killed his brother goofing around. Enthusiasm took a hit at that point. Of course the cousins had been taught to handle the rifle with care, but teens sometimes act stupid, ever since neolithic times.

My dad collected some firearms but eventually discovered my nutty brother had stolen them to sell for drugs. Personally I was never attracted to guns, but bow hunting fascinated me.
 
I always traveled for business. And many times I drove long distances. I grew up and lived in a state that restricted CHL greatly. So, I never really thought about gun ownership.

If you remember years ago when that designer fellow Versace was murdered, you may recall they had an alert out for the killer. I was driving down I-95 at about 1 A.M. in the morning. I was somewhere in Georgia (if I recall), and the alert came on the radio that the killer was thought to be traveling on I-95. I heard this as I was just pulling into an empty rest stop...And right then and there I wished I had a gun.(...In those years I still had the ability to hear the radio with hearing aids).

So, I eventually moved to a state that had a more open CHL policy. And I went to the gun range for training and got my CHL.

And I then became aware of the fact that people who are anti-gun may not fully understand the mentality and habits of CHL people.

Though I had the right to carry, I rarely carried a gun.... It was too much of an annoyance.

Going about your business, like going out shopping or to the bank or to meet friends - you always had to be aware of where you can carry.

And quite frankly I, and others that I knew at the shooting range, really did not feel it was that necessary to carry in our day to day lives.

So, I only carried when I went on long road trips in the car...Because I was mostly driving on more remote highways in the Southwest and Western part of the country.

Now I am back in the more restrictive state, and I gave the gun away, and let the CHL expire.

But again, I feel that people that are not familiar with owning guns have the wrong idea about people that are CHL people....They are not gun-toting, dangerous nuts...As a matter of fact, they are more focused on the dangers of firearms than others not familiar with guns.
 
I was interested in guns until I lost the driving privilege due to Usher so I gave up the interest in guns because of difficult to transport with rifles, so having a vehicle is essential for easy hauling with many rifles, so I'm disappointed and gave up.

Most DB friendly communities are in states with most gun control laws, beside Austin.
 
Back
Top