Are you a non-gun person because you were just not raised with guns around? Are guns not a part of your life because you live in big city where they just are not around—except in the hands of gang killers? Do you “hate guns?”
This summer, expand your horizons. Broaden your education and experience. Learn to safely handle a gun; learn basic firearms operation; learn to shoot.
Why not? You may not enjoy water sports either, but in a world 3/5 covered with water, it is smart to learn to swim. There are guns. Lots of guns. You cannot guarantee that your loved ones and you will never be around a gun. You may at some point see a gun around and need it. If so, you really, really, really need it. It is smart to learn safe firearms handling even if you never shoot.
If you have not navigated away from this page yet, you might just be considering my proposal. So, …
If you know someone whom you believe is knowledgeable about guns, ask them questions. What kind of guns are there? How do guns operate? Use an AirSoft or similar device for them to demonstrate firearms safety. If they: 1) never point it at you 2) remove any ammo from it and check it to assure it is empty before handling, and 3) show you to keep your finger off the trigger, then those three little tests give you some assurance that they practice safe firearms handling. Ask them to demonstrate operation of whatever guns they own. Maybe you could ask if they would take you shooting.
If you ever ask a friend to show you one of his or her guns, and your friend violates any of those rules, courteously stop the demonstration, and excuse yourself to go to the bathroom while your friend puts the gun away. You don’t want to be around. If you are a true friend, ask your friend to put the gun carefully away, go straight to the nearest computer, get online, and search “basic firearms safety rules” or some variant. Your friend needs your help.
Better: take a course. You have taken basic kayak, Plant Life of the Mountains, Essential Wines, CPR, and Urban Re-forestation. Why not take one of the NRA approved courses you could find here?
Least best but still something: just search “gun safety rules” and consider the simple rules. (Hint: I gave you three of them above.) The next time you read of an accidental shooting, ask yourself, “Which rules were violated here?”
We can make this very simple: anyone who holds a gun and moves it around in a way that the business end where the bullet comes out passes across your body, or who holds it with a finger on the trigger is unsafe. You need to know that, if nothing more.
Take a course. It may save your life, or the life of someone you love. You do not have to convert politically, or change your accent, or join the NRA. But, you are unwise if you let your politics, your upbringing, or your dislike for the NRA (really, its millions of members) dissuade you from exercising common sense.
My hope with this post is that some innocent person’s life is saved.
