Did you have access to guns when you were young?

Yes, I grew up around guns from the day I was born. Guns were kept unloaded in the house. There was no need for a loaded gun in the house since we had no dope crazed idiots trying to break into our house in those days. Anyway, there were many guns in my house as a child. They were stored in a closet and I was taught from infancy, I guess, that they were off limits. If I had touched them without specific permission, I would have been shown the error of my ways with a paddle.......an excellent teaching tool.

As I became old enough to hold a gun, about 5 years old, I was allowed to shoot with my grandpa. He would take me out to an old abandoned gravel pit and we would shoot cans. I knew that there was no need to sneak around to look at a gun because I would be taken out to shoot frequently. My curiosity about guns was satisfied at the range. Any urges I had to disobey, about anything, were satisfied with the paddle. Too bad so many people have abandoned the use of such an excellent teaching tool for fear of damaging little Henry's self es team.

Being that I'm 17, I still remember it pretty well lol

We have a gun cabinet and it has a lock on it. It has storage on the bottom too- that's where the ammo is stored. All the guns are unloaded, but the actions are closed because if the actions are open, the springs will get worn out quicker.

I'm also on the local modified trap team and I have my own gun in my room. My shotgun is in a case in the corner of my room- with the gun lock thru it and the ammo is on the other side of my room and only me and my family know here it is- that's the same way with my rifle.

I also wasn't taught how to shoot a gun until I was about 13. But even then the only time that I was allowed to be around a loaded gun was around someone else. Now, since I'vee taken gun safety classes and a hunter's safety course, I can now just ask to get my gun out of my room and get some ammo.

But my dad hasn't really taught me how to use a gun properly (besides the BB gun). I was taught how to use a gun properly by my shotgun coach and my coach is also a gun smith too.

My dad was in the Army and served in vietnam. He was a LRRP. I was born in the late 80's. My dad Had 2 gun cabinets full of firearms one in his room one in the basement, and a gun rack mounted on the wall in the living room.(NO LOCKS) On that gun rack were, 1 AR-15 sp-1, The one that replicates an M-16A1. an m1 Carbine. And 2 shotguns I believe an 870 and a 500A. I was told not to touch the guns without dad's permission, I didn't. As I got older, 8 years old I shot my first rifle. An M1a. I was hooked. I wanted to know everything about firearms... all kinds. My dad gave a 22. to keep in my room. marlin model 60.. And the first gun that was bought for me specifically, was a mosin Nagant M-44 for my 14th birthday. By the time I was 18 I had 10 guns to my name... Including 3 Ak's.

I have been around guns my entire life.. That's why it makes me very mad when people try to take em away.... Or make some firearms "ASSAULT WEAPONS" illegal.

I could go one all day but I won't

hope this helped.

Yes, there were guns in the home and for some reason, I knew better than to mess with them. However, I do recall playing with one once when no one was around. As much as it can be a hinderance at times in a "situation", in today's society the only responsible thing to do is have a good gun safe. Not a gun case, not a gun cabinet, but a gun safe.

I truly believe that the problem with firearms today can be traced back to the problem with discipline in general. There has been a very large cultural shift with regards to parent-child relationships. I am only 21, but I was raised in a large part by my grandparents. I don't remember specific rules regarding the guns we had in the house (most of them kept unlocked, and some loaded). I simply understood that I was not allowed to touch them, and if I did, I could expect the belt or the flyswatter (my grandma is amazingly quick with a flyswatter).

I think it's a good idea to lock guns up to keep them out of irresponsible or ignorant hands. I think it is even more important, however, to raise children responsibly and without keeping them from any reality (firearms included). People who use firearms as children are probably less likely to use them irresponsibly, especially if the parents instill basic safety.

This is not a direct answer to the question asked, but rather, a comment on the answer left here by the fellow from the UK.

No offense, but the Brits are used to living under a monarchy, constitutional monarchy or some other form of rigid government. I applaud the British, as their structure of law is what we base our own US judicial code.

However, I have known many people that have come to the USA from the UK and Germany for specialized work that they did. Once they come to the United States, and get a taste of our brand of freedom (including the ownership of firearms), they never want to leave. Most have applied for citizenship or at the very least a "green card" (permanent resident alien status).

But, what the Brits really need to do is broadcast to the rest of the world how much they depend on their nanny state government. Nothing like telling others that you don't know how to handle a firearm to defend yourself or your country. (But since the entire country of Great Britain is smaller than the size of the state of Oregon, not sure it would do any good to try to protect it.)

I grew up with guns in the house. I remember my father having a gun cabinet that he had built himself,when he was in High School. My parents always kept it locked. It was between the living room and kitchen. Anyone who came over saw it. You just couldn't miss it. Like you, I remember that my brother and I were never allowed to touch it. But I don't recall ever being told we could touch it. We just knew we couldn't.

The only gun that was never locked up was a Traditions Hawken Woodsman .50 Caliber Percussion Muzzleloader, that was part of the living room decor, as a wall hanger. Again, we had the same rules placed on us with that gun too.

One of my shotguns I've had since I was 12. I kept it in my bedroom, along with the ammo. I was responsible for that firearm, just as I am today, and it has made me a much more responsible person in general. I've never had an accidental discharge with a firearm, ever. I've never had the desire to shoot up a school just because I was a teenager in possession of a firearm, nor did I go around shooting animals just for fun.

The real danger in society comes from the 18 year old punk who gets his hands on a gun for the first time in his life, and has not learned proper respect for firearms. They tend to emulate what they see in Hollywood (pro gun-ban liberal driven media!) movies.

In my house, you had to be tall enough to reach the key hanging on the side of the gun cabinet to unlock it. At my grandmother's, it was simply a matter of knowing to stay away from the shotgun until we were older, and we had to ask permission from about age 6 or 8 to borrow her shotty.

I lived with my Grandparents for a long time when I was young. Grandpa taught me to shoot when I was 8 and when I was 14 he showed me where he had a loaded handgun hidden in his bedroom. Many, many, years later when he and Grandma were in a nursing home, their house was sold. I asked my Mom if anyone had removed the handgun. Her response was, "What handgun?" I contacted the buyer to get permission to go to the house and look. Sure enough, it was still there. (No, I'm not revealing his hiding place.) I took it (with the new owner's permission ) and gave it to my Uncle as my Mom didn't want it.