Do you have a gun in your home?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I moved to DC to attend college in the late 1980s. There was REAL crime then. Right now, we are looking at the lowest crime rates (murder, armed robbery) in nearly 50 years. Too many people have fear of something that just doesn't exist. Guns in the home are a mistake, and I would never have one. If you are fearful, get a security system. But don't live in the 21st century and pretend its the 20th ... or 19th.

Ditto. Get an alarm system. The chances of an intruder threatening your family are ridiculously minuscule. What would having a gun provide you? The intruder would likely have a weapon also. In the Gabrielle Giffords shooting, someone was carrying a gun on them and didn't even get a chance to use it. A dog and an alarm system would work just as well - maybe more.

I used to work at an organization where we studied gun violence. Interestingly, crime rates are low in areas where people are allowed to carry concealed weapons. Of course, there are many other factors that affect those numbers.

[Anonymous]

Never never never would we have a gun.

[Anonymous]

WE have a labradoodle, and many people are not allergic to this kind of dog. She is sweet and goofy but man, can she bark at people who come to the door. She is the best burglar alarm/deterrent there is.

[Anonymous]

No - and we would NEVER. EVER.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just another plea for the folks who do have guns to be open about this with the parents of your children's friends. You may think you're doing enough to protect your kids - and probably you are - but I'm not confident enough in another parent's idea of safety to take that chance with my own child. We don't do houses with guns.

Yes you do. You just don't realize it.

Well, you may be right, but we do our best not to. That's why I asked. We actually ask parents right now if they have guns in the home before we do a drop-off playdate. I'm sure at some point I'll have to trust my kids to leave if they see guns, but until they're old enough to understand how important it is, I won't take my chances with someone else's idea of what's "safe enough." Many parents think a biometric gunsafe is enough, others think teaching kids to respect the gun is safe, some think locked and separate from ammo is safe, others still are quite lax. I don't know you well enough to know where you fall, and I don't know enough about how guns can be safe to trust what you do, so we avoid them. Now, I'm sure some parents lie, but what can I do about that? I just have to hope there aren't that many people who would find it acceptable to lie to someone about that.

So what do YOU think is enough? Just curious.

I don't know. I don't believe I know enough about guns to determine what is safe enough, so I also don't think I'll trust my neighbor well enough to take his / her word for it. Everything I've read on the subject suggests that no matter how safe the parents think they're being, a kid could gain access. Obviously, a biometric gun lock on an unloaded gun and another biometric gunlock on the ammo is PROBABLY going to be safe enough for a child. But am I completely sure that the parent never has an absent minded moment and leaves it open? Do I trust that the neighbor did his due diligence and bought a good system and not a flawed system. That's why my point is not that I am determining what is safe enough for my kids to visit; I"m just drawing the line at guns in the house. Period. I would most certainly make exceptions for instances where the parent was in law enforcement. For better or for worse society trusts these folks with our lives, I know they've had EXTENSIVE gun safety training, and they see the results of lax gun safety firsthand. I also think these people have a "reason" for owning a gun. Other people who own a gun because they think it makes them safer make me nervous. I think there is something unhinged about that.

I can tell this is offensive. You don't have to agree with me or like what I say! I do believe I'm right; you're free to disagree.

[Anonymous]

Depends which house you are asking about. One yes and one no. The yes house is in a rural area with rattlesnakes and bears, and the guns are in a very large and secure gun safe. In town? No. I haven't seen a rattlesnake in DC, as long as you exclude the politicians. I do not think that, given the safety features that would be required, you could ever get to the gun, load it, and be in a position to use it in time against an indtruder. Instead, we have a large dog and an alarm system, and I know myself well enough to know I would fight literally to the death if I thought my children were in danger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, you may be right, but we do our best not to. That's why I asked. We actually ask parents right now if they have guns in the home before we do a drop-off playdate. I'm sure at some point I'll have to trust my kids to leave if they see guns, but until they're old enough to understand how important it is, I won't take my chances with someone else's idea of what's "safe enough." Many parents think a biometric gunsafe is enough, others think teaching kids to respect the gun is safe, some think locked and separate from ammo is safe, others still are quite lax. I don't know you well enough to know where you fall, and I don't know enough about how guns can be safe to trust what you do, so we avoid them. Now, I'm sure some parents lie, but what can I do about that? I just have to hope there aren't that many people who would find it acceptable to lie to someone about that.

So what do YOU think is enough? Just curious.

I don't know. I don't believe I know enough about guns to determine what is safe enough, so I also don't think I'll trust my neighbor well enough to take his / her word for it. Everything I've read on the subject suggests that no matter how safe the parents think they're being, a kid could gain access. Obviously, a biometric gun lock on an unloaded gun and another biometric gunlock on the ammo is PROBABLY going to be safe enough for a child. But am I completely sure that the parent never has an absent minded moment and leaves it open? Do I trust that the neighbor did his due diligence and bought a good system and not a flawed system. That's why my point is not that I am determining what is safe enough for my kids to visit; I"m just drawing the line at guns in the house. Period. I would most certainly make exceptions for instances where the parent was in law enforcement. For better or for worse society trusts these folks with our lives, I know they've had EXTENSIVE gun safety training, and they see the results of lax gun safety firsthand. I also think these people have a "reason" for owning a gun. Other people who own a gun because they think it makes them safer make me nervous. I think there is something unhinged about that.

I can tell this is offensive. You don't have to agree with me or like what I say! I do believe I'm right; you're free to disagree.

I agree completely.