General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsHow many of you have ever fired a gun?
Did you like it? Do you enjoy recreational shooting? Personally, I find it relaxing.
I ask this because over the last week I've read so many anti-gun posts here. I'm trying to understand if DU posters by and large have ever fired a gun.
Thanks
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Wounded Bear
(63,746 posts)not really my thing. Oh, I was non-combat MOS so I only qualified when necessary on the old M16 and the Browning .45 pistol.
Release The Hounds
(467 posts)Just substitute ' Corps' with 'Army' (M16A2).
VMA131Marine
(5,152 posts)Also USMC '82-'90
Wounded Bear
(63,746 posts)Semper Fi!
Ernesto
(5,077 posts)M-16 that is.........
BTW.... civilians should not have AR-15's
ZombieHorde
(29,047 posts)I used to own a .30-.30, and I enjoyed shooting it, but I'm not really into hunting, so I got rid of it.
Hortensis
(58,785 posts)alone in the wilderness. After an event with some men who drove laughing and yelling around our camper a few times in the middle of the night before deciding to leave, we took a couple of my ex-hunter husband's guns with us and I learned to use them.
These days our house is isolated on the top of a wooded hill, and, since we own one, we keep a loaded semi-automatic shotgun under the bed in our attic bedroom. A shotgun for me because I'm not a good shot and it'd stop anyone who came up the stairs, probably just the sound of it being readied.
Gun ownership is far too important to too many Americans (not us, actually) for me to support banning it, but I absolutely support a whole long list of controls that would cumulatively dramatically lessen gun deaths.
deaniac21
(6,747 posts)so getting rid of it was a very good idea.
Agschmid
(28,749 posts)I was much younger, and I did it just for fun.
ETA: I am VERY anti-gun.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)I noticed the image in your sig.
Agschmid
(28,749 posts)And just as a random fact that seems related sometimes uses gunshots as a percussion beat in her songs. Check out "Paper Planes" if you want to hear it.
mwrguy
(3,245 posts)deaniac21
(6,747 posts)anything she was singing.
Agschmid
(28,749 posts)Silver_Witch
(1,820 posts)No civil needs a weapon to kill other humans. People in this country that use their weapon to hunt and feed their family is positive and good.
Shooting for recreation - well that is just weird.
hack89
(39,181 posts)if so, why? It is a harmless sport.
scscholar
(2,902 posts)That is why it should be illegal.
hack89
(39,181 posts)Last edited Tue Jun 21, 2016, 08:33 AM - Edit history (1)
In 35 years I have never harmed a living thing.
Silver_Witch
(1,820 posts)To each his own though.
Why do you need to shoot competitively if you are not going to ever shoot someone or something. In the military people are trained to shoot because they will be possibly be shooting someone.
Hunters who feed their family are shooting a creature to live.
Shooting just for the "fun" is odd as it should never be fun to kill someone or any creature.
Just my belief you do as you will!
hack89
(39,181 posts)Last edited Tue Jun 21, 2016, 05:27 AM - Edit history (1)
I have no desire to nor has it ever crossed my mind. I targets shoot because it takes great skill and I enjoy the social aspect of it.
Silver_Witch
(1,820 posts)To each his own.
SciFiRK
(65 posts)or shoot arrows in a target, or put a little round ball in a little round hole yards away. Gaining skill is fun in itself.
However, I don't need an AK 47 with a multi round mag to gain that skill.
Silver_Witch
(1,820 posts)However as I said to each his own!
metroins
(2,550 posts)Yes fun and yes I like it.
Safety is key.
pangaia
(24,324 posts)Plus when I am done I can eat it. 😎
Travis_0004
(5,417 posts)Admittedly there a a few more steps before you can eat anything.
pangaia
(24,324 posts)I really have no idea. I have never hunted anything...alive, anyway
Brickbat
(19,339 posts)
world wide wally
(21,836 posts)Cooking is NOT a Constitutional right.
Nowhere in the Constitution does it grant anyone the right to cook
But some things are "self evident"
pangaia
(24,324 posts)It guarantees the right to LIFE, liberty, and the PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS.
Aristus
(71,526 posts)Last edited Mon Jun 20, 2016, 10:28 AM - Edit history (1)
But I got out of the service in 1993, and haven't fired a weapon since. Don't need to. As much as I loved being a tanker, there's a time and a place for that sort of thing, and I don't need a home arsenal to recapture the glory days.
I'm perfectly happy not owning a firearm.
Because, as I said above, I crewed a tank and fired its gun. So when I hear guys bragging about their AR-15's, I just think: "That's so cute!..."
We have a winner, as they say.
Cracked me up...
😆😆😆📣📣📣📣
My NG unit had M48s, and not diesel. Then I went on active duty and the M60 was the state of the art. this was back in the early 70s.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)"That's so cute!..." 
you are a manly man!
Aristus
(71,526 posts)I drank wine and good Scotch, instead of Mad Dog.
I read Shakespeare instead of Tom Clancy thrillers.
I spent my time in Germany getting out to see the country and getting to know the people, instead of staying in the barracks watching pornos.
Everyone's definition of 'manly' differs somewhat...
RebelOne
(30,947 posts)that would take me target shooting. And my son has a few guns that I have used.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)We had a good time.
The Velveteen Ocelot
(128,785 posts)A friend took me target shooting. It was sort of entertaining for an afternoon but it wasn't anything I was particularly interested in doing again.
Hoyt
(54,770 posts)Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)Also, do you personally know any gun yahoos?
Not trying to argue with you about this, just curious.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)friendly_iconoclast
(15,333 posts)Possibly the Lord of The Rings tie-in Gandalf Special Edition...
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)and having them run at the knife wielder.
Logical
(22,457 posts)
drray23
(8,568 posts)In the military, many different kinds including shoulder fired missiles. I occasionally enjoy trap shooting even thought I don't own a shotgun. i am however strongly anti nra and pro gun regulations, especially for the so-called assault weapons.
roamer65
(37,813 posts)Last edited Sun Jun 19, 2016, 10:03 PM - Edit history (1)
I let it lapse and didn't renew it.
I refuse to live in that much fear of others.
Hoyt
(54,770 posts)Adrahil
(13,340 posts)Kinda weird.
So I have a cc permit, but never do so, except for twice. Both times, I was escorting a woman who had a psycho ex stalking here. I escorted her home from work twice, as he ex was stalking her and had threatened to kill her. Took a couple days for the local court system to get it's ass in gear. Fortunately, it was incident free.
roamer65
(37,813 posts)In Michigan, just unload it and put in a locked case in the trunk of a car or most inaccessible part of a truck or SUV. Put the ammo in the glove compartment and you are good to go to the range.
Nice of you to watch out for your lady friend. 
Adrahil
(13,340 posts)IF you own a gun, you can take to and from a gun store or gunsmith with a permit, and you can carry it (concealed or not) at your home or your place of business (with the business owner's permission). Any other carriage requires the permit, and you can carry it either open or concealed. It's a SHALL ISSUE state too. Derp.
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)With the in laws.
linuxman
(2,337 posts)1. Sure. 2. Yes.
Mz Pip
(28,333 posts)I learned to shoot a gun before I learned to drive a car. That was decades ago. My Dad was on the police reserves and we lived on a farm for awhile. He always had guns.
I wasn't that interested and after he died my mom and I just gave them to his friends.
I haven't been around guns since.
mnhtnbb
(33,079 posts)not far from Bakersfield, CA, we went out in a nearby field with my uncle's rifle and set up some tin cans. I actually hit one.
Never fired a gun since and have no interest in owning one.
My husband, though, used to hunt ducks and geese with some buddies in Texas every year. The buddies are all dead
and he hasn't been hunting in years. But he still owns a shotgun.
Duckhunter935
(16,974 posts)Rifles and pistols
gwheezie
(3,580 posts)But I haven't hunted in decades and I'm a vegetarian. I have a shotgun and haven't used it in years and don't need it since the livestock are gone. I didn't enjoy hunting with a rifle. I did like bow hunting and used to target shoot. I can't imagine having a reason to keep a gun now. I wouldnt even have the shotgun if it weren't for the goats I had and a couple good dogs were a good predator deterrent
SeattleVet
(5,813 posts)With all the yahoos hoarding ammunition, it has become rather expensive (if you can even find it). With all of the latest gun-ban talk I don't see it getting any better, any time soon.
In the Air Force I earned my expert marksman medal, and one of the rangemasters used to contact a few of us when they had close-dated ammunition to be 'destroyed' (one round at a time). I'd like to get out to the local range more often, and want to start going to the local skeet and trap club range to learn better shotgun skills.
My niece and nephew are ready for me to take them out again, too. The niece 'hates guns', but she shot a better group than her gun-enthusiast brother and thoroughly enjoyed herself. I also gave them extensive safety training before I took them out the first time.
Yes, it makes for a nice relaxing day...just wish that I was able to enjoy it more often than the 1 or 2 times a year.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)NashuaDW
(90 posts)She put 50 shells thru a 20 gauge and a few thru a 12 gauge.
She absolutely loved it, her first time shooting at clay targets and she did very well.
She's also fired several handguns and a couple of rifles including the much-maligned AR-15.
She knows how to handle guns safely, what to do if she finds a gun, and what to if she's ever in an active shooter situation.
Just like with sex education ... knowledge is power. Not teaching/talking to them about a topic puts them at a disadvantage.
Rhythm
(5,435 posts)I captained my high-school's JROTC rifle team in the '80's, and continued to shoot recreationally through my young adult life.
Now, i have precious little 'recreation' time, but my son is an avid hunter and recreational shooter, and i enjoy hearing about his successes on the range and adventures in the field.
roamer65
(37,813 posts)It has a certain historical feel to it. Like its 1875. I am not fond of my semi-automatics. They are a very dangerous class of weapon where too many mistakes can happen.
LongtimeAZDem
(4,516 posts)That means I only own eight guns. Two were my own purchases, the rest are heirlooms.
I shoot for recreation a few times a year; I don't have any need for home defense, though I do carry for self-defense when I'm out in the desert.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)Welcome to DU.
LannyDeVaney
(1,033 posts)I don't allow them in my house, and personally I feel like the NRA willingly allows the blood of children on their hands. And I also do not get why the pro-gun folks prioritize this issue over everything else.
Enjoy your relaxation.
flvegan
(65,663 posts)I shoot a couple times a year to keep whatever skill I might have up. I'm considering another handgun purchase currently.
I consider it maintenance on both the gun and myself. I only own them for defense and hope I never need to use them.
lumberjack_jeff
(33,224 posts)63splitwindow
(2,657 posts)It was/is OK. I would much rather spend my recreational/entertainment/relaxation dollars on other endeavors.
Odin2005
(53,521 posts)I find some of the anti-guns posts here on DU shockingly ignorant and show a horrible, bigoted contempt for rural Americans.
virginia mountainman
(5,046 posts)
hunter
(40,320 posts)God help any camo wearing idiot they peg as a threat to their dogs or livestock.
BooScout
(10,408 posts)No I didn't specially like it and it scared my dog.
Glorfindel
(10,172 posts)I really don't remember the first time I ever shot a rifle. I got a bb rifle for my 10th birthday and a .22 for my 12th. I have never lived in a house without a gun. And, of course, the army graciously allowed me to shoot quite a bit after I got drafted, but I never fired a weapon in Vietnam. We all paid the armorer $1.00 per week to keep our rifles clean and in good condition. I'm sure he retired a wealthy man. As for now, sometimes we shoot at targets on special occasions, but nobody in my immediate family hunts, though I do have cousins who hunt deer and birds.
kentuck
(115,033 posts)It doesn't do much for me. No thrill at all.
PSPS
(15,186 posts)My interest was sparked by my oldest brother, who was really into them. We would go out and shoot at things like targets, road signs, cans on a fence, etc. I even owned an Ingram mac 10 with a silencer for a while (allowed in my state at the time with ATF stamp, etc.) That was something.
Anyway, my interest waned after several months and I disposed of the guns. I never really enjoyed it much other than it was an interest to share with my brother.
Oh, and my brother committed suicide with one of his guns a few years later. I still miss him.
roamer65
(37,813 posts)
just sorta casually bought a Mac-10...breezed through the process, and legal in your state... yeah, right. Sorry, at a casual glance that whole statement is fraudulent. Full autos are governed by federal law, the process is very expensive and time consuming, and the people who undergo it are not folks who 'get interested for a month or so' and lose interest. Not unless they are named Trump or whatever...
Warpy
(114,359 posts)which was incredibly nearsighted, so I couldn't hit a damned thing. Naturally, I didn't like it. I considered them loud, smelly and ineffective. I was much better with a bow and arrow.
Now plinking my dad's empites in a lake with a pellet gun, that was more fun and he didn't mind if I sighted with my left eye. I could hit more stuff when I wasn't legally blind in the eye I used to aim.
That pellet gun was the only gun he ever owned. He said he'd seen enough of guns in WWII.
itsrobert
(14,157 posts)It wasn't recreational.
Crunchy Frog
(28,208 posts)Even if I found it orgasmically pleasurable, I would still gladly give it up for the greater good of society.
romanic
(2,841 posts)But I wouldn't call myself anti-gun, I just think the industry needs to be regulated and people on watch lists need to be prevented from having guns period.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)How did you come up with the philiosophy that people on watch lists need to be prevented from having guns? I realize that line of thinking has been in the news recently. But do you realize that people are placed on those lists without due process protection? How would you feel if Republicans used those lists to deny social security, voting rights, health care, or income/housing assistance?
vkkv
(3,384 posts)They are!
Wiping names off voter rolls if the name is the same as someone who was deported or a same ( Hispanic) name listed twice - WITHOUT DUE PROCESS.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)It was a twenty-two automatic semi with detachable aluminum magnums. It was silenced and suppressed, but the snorkel they sent me down to the bottom of the pool with it didn't work so the subsonic hollow pointed clip never actually worked correctly. And the scope? It never showed a thing.
I almost fucking drowned.
Never. Again.
Knowing what I know about guns; I can safely say anyone who would knowingly pick one up is a psychopath, a sociopath, and probably called their Mother by her first name before torturing small insects while she wasn't looking.
Fuck 'em. Fuck 'em all.
hack89
(39,181 posts)Bravo.
Ilsa
(63,759 posts)Any of them. Simply not my thing. I get no thrill from it.
I've fired several handguns, shotguns, but no rifles.
840high
(17,196 posts)
upaloopa
(11,417 posts)I used all kinds of weapons in Vietnam from m-14 to m-50's
Our enjoyment should take a back seat to public safety
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)
littlebit
(1,728 posts)I have my brothers AR-15. He needed money so I bought it from him. We went to a range and I shot it once just out of curiosity. I didn't like it so the gun has been sitting in my safe since then.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)Just curious.
The AR is probably not a good firearm to start out with for most people. It's better to shoot a .22LR to get used to shooting, learn the techniques, and then move on to other calibers. Shooting for accuracy is much harder than it looks. It takes total focus.
littlebit
(1,728 posts)I guess that's the best way to describe it. You're right I should have started with something smaller.
Bavorskoami
(166 posts)I trained on M-14s and M-16s because I was in the Army. Did I like it or find it relaxing like the OP writer, Kang Colby? No, because I knew the purpose was to learn how to kill other human beings so they would not kill me or my buddies and my training included chanting about wanting to kill. The DI's question was "What do want to do?" Answer: "Kill". Prompt: "What does that make you?" Response: "A killer". I have tried skeet shooting and did not get anything out of that. For me shooting a firearm is now "meh". I do realize some guys and gals, like Kang Colby, really get off on it, but I don't see it.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Where I come from, "get off" means "have an orgasm".
Are you here to tell us you think people who "enjoy" shooting guns have orgasms, they enjoy it so much?
UnFettered
(79 posts)I really don't recreational shoot, but I do hunt. Thats where a good portion of the meat my family eats comes from. I live in a rural area and just about everybody I know owns some kind of fire arms for hunting or livestock purposes.
As far as targets go pretty much only checking my guns and maybe a round or two of sporting clays to stay sharp for hunting season. The majority of the year they just sit locked in my gun safe.
BootinUp
(50,787 posts)But I do not own any.
I enjoyed shooting that 30-6. Powerful weapon. I really liked the precision and smoothness of the colt pistol. Can't remember the exact model. The owner was hesitant to part with it.
radical noodle
(10,462 posts)I didn't find it relaxing or enjoyable. My husband owns a lot of guns (not due to the big scare about Obama taking everyone's guns, but because he has a collection) and he does enjoy target shooting. He grew up hunting with his dad.
He and I both believe this country needs stronger gun laws and better background checks. He (and I) would be happy to go back to the assault weapons ban.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)Honest question.
radical noodle
(10,462 posts)It's simply a weapon that I don't think has a place in our homes or on our streets. It's really not such a good home defense weapon... a shotgun is much better for that. They're not really good as a hunting weapon. I suppose there's a case to be made for target shooting with them, but even that doesn't make much sense to me. It seems to be good primarily for killing people, intimidating people and giving certain people bragging rights. Maybe they should be treated the way machine guns are. I don't pretend to have all the answers; I wish I did.
Response to Kang Colby (Original post)
rjsquirrel This message was self-deleted by its author.
Quayblue
(1,045 posts)And I still hate guns. Next?
KeepItReal
(7,770 posts)Never felt the desire to own or shoot one since then.
hill2016
(1,772 posts)5.56mm, 7.62mm, 25mm, 0.50 inch HMG, 40mm AGL, LAW, 84mm recoilless rife
but never in anger, thank God.
cherokeeprogressive
(24,853 posts)Rex
(65,616 posts)I am trying to understand the stereotype you are presenting.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)Rex
(65,616 posts)Saw how effective they are for the purpose they were designed for. FWIW, I don't have anything against people that want to own a shotgun for protection at home or a deer rifle so they can go game hunting. I can also see why you would enjoy them for recreation, to shoot at targets.
IMO, people want to own an assault weapon, because it is a status symbol with their peers that also own assault weapons. Do they need one? No, of course not.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)I don't want to open a can of worms with technical discussion. People like and find utility in semi automatic rifles, specifically the AK and AR for many reasons. In fact, status symbol isn't even a reason I've ever considered.
So, the AR is sort of like the Legos of the gun world. The parts are generally standard and interchangeable between different manufacturers. Want to build a precision AR? No problem. How about a carbine? People do it all the time. How about a 30 caliber, more suitable for hunting? Easy, just switch out the upper. All kinds of different trigger upgrades, barrel profiles, stocks, grips, and extendable features. People that like to tinker tend to go for the AR.
The AK is a remarkable firearm. It's such a simple design that at least one was built from a shovel. People like shooting the AK for a number of reasons, cheap ammo is usually right at the top of the list. Bringing an old kit to life with a new receiver is something any history buff can appreciate.
Just food for thought.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)Coming home to it is insane.
Rex
(65,616 posts)even the absurd like, 'well it is just a 22 so chin up.' 
jmg257
(11,996 posts)JackRiddler
(24,979 posts)It does not qualify your opinion on these matters in any way. Sorry, you'll have to get by on facts and argument.
What a stupid question.
Response to JackRiddler (Reply #85)
Inkfreak This message was self-deleted by its author.
drray23
(8,568 posts)You bet I listened very well to the instructor telling me you should duck behind the protective wall after throwing it...
After you get used to it, its not so scary.
drray23
(8,568 posts)that i do agree that one does not need to have thrown a live grenade or shot a weapon to have an opinion on it. All one has to do is look at the results of unfettered weapon access in this country.
trackfan
(3,650 posts)We called ourselves the Liberal Democratic Gun Freaks Club.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)
catnhatnh
(8,976 posts)"That 70's Show goes Wolverine!".
doc03
(38,773 posts)needs a safety course.
trackfan
(3,650 posts)At least the dad that drove us all out was wise enough to veto our idea of bringing beer.
LeftyMom
(49,212 posts)One of the criteria for being home alone was that if the wrong person came through the door I needed to be prepared to make them stop breathing.
csziggy
(34,189 posts)He insisted it would be needed for snakes and other varmints. He also taught me how to shoot - we sat up a target on a rise in the ground and practiced until I could consistently hit where I was aiming.
That was the only time I did target shooting - ever. I've shot two snakes with it - rattlesnakes close to the barn or workshop. The rest of the time the gun stays in the safe.
I don't enjoy shooting. A gun is a tool to be used for a specific purpose - killing. Unless I want to kill something that tool needs to be locked up, the same as any other dangerous tool.
The friend who helped me buy and learn to use the gun had grown up with them. His father was on the US Olympics competitive shooting team at one point. Neither my friend or his father ever hunted or used guns or shooting for recreation. His father was in the military when he got his place on the team. Once he retired he never fired a gun again.
vkkv
(3,384 posts)Yes, that is the likely origin of the weapon.
People then practiced so to be more accurate and efficient. They found it to be fun.
Clay pigeons, trap and skeet are for practicing bird hunting, people found clay pigeon shooting fun.
I see no problem with these developments...
Billiards is fun but then the pool cue can become a killing tool..
as can a kitchen knife, a can of gasoline, hammer, wire..
The pool cue started out as a mace.. odd huh?
Just reading posts
(688 posts)Someone who is really into shooting can go through a thousand rounds (or more) in a month.
rusty quoin
(6,133 posts)In Japan it's samari and ninja. And it has all been reflected in the movies made in each country.
Here, westerns have been extremely popular since the start of Hollywood, and fizzled out in the 60s to 70s. I love westerns myself.
My daughter is dating this nice American who's parents are from India. We had this discussion about what I just said. There is no martial art film industry in India. Bollywood plays peaceful everyday life situations.
I actually don't know what it all means, except we are a gun country.
BTW, I used a M-16 at the range to qualify for military service, which I did, but just barely. I'm not a gun fan, and I cannot believe civilians have access to assault rifles. I'm old school and like how the military locks up arms unless in training or in battle.
phylny
(8,791 posts)We aimed at/shot cans. We also went to a range. I didn't find it particularly thrilling. Now that I'm older, I hate guns.
HockeyMom
(14,337 posts)I also shot at cans and went to the range with my husband when first married. I realized that I didn't like it either and was only doing it to please him. That is not a reason to shoot a gun. Haven't shot a gun in 40 years, and do not ever intend to again. Yes, I hate them too now.
It kinda blows the argument that people who dislike guns have never shot a gun.
MrScorpio
(73,761 posts)Guns really aren't my thing.
Zynx
(21,328 posts)There are appropriate guns and there are inappropriate guns. The inappropriate ones are those that are designed for mass slaughter.
kairos12
(13,456 posts)I have zero interest in firing any weapons now and would not own a weapon.
They were tools, that's it. No interest in them now.
onehandle
(51,122 posts)Relaxing? No, it's exciting.
Firing a gun is like setting off fireworks.
It's an abberation.
And unnecessary.
The right to stay alive outweighs any right to kill my children.
Say bye-bye to AR-15s.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)When did you become so in favor of gun control? Honest question.
swhisper1
(851 posts)MyNameGoesHere
(7,638 posts)Bunch of the family and some friends. For some reason this time I started noticing the change in the people as they started loading and shooting all different types of weapons,. There were handguns, rifles, some Chinese SK, m1, shotguns etc. And the more we shot I noticed the aggressive behavior increase, more colorful language and a general look at me I am a bad ass behavior. I haven't been neat a weapon since, about 20 years eats now. Guns change people and not for the better. It was quite an awakening.
Frustratedlady
(16,254 posts)My father had a rifle that we used. The only time I ever saw him use it was if/when a raccoon got into the chicken coop.
I shot one time at a squirrel that was lying on a branch while sunning. I killed him. Then, I sat down and cried about what I'd done. I never touched another gun.
AgadorSparticus
(7,963 posts)It is just not a pleasant experience. Kind of like when you go to the eye doctor and get that puff of air test to your eye. You know it is coming but it is never pleasant. Same with shooting.
womanofthehills
(10,682 posts)Something in the powder. I also hate the kick.
Shrike47
(6,913 posts)the Confederate rifles.
hunter
(40,320 posts)Gun love is disgusting.
MFM008
(20,042 posts)I have shot guns. Not rifles. Don't like em. Don't mind target shooting. I think hunting anything is pointless. Especially since you can't throw a rock without hitting a food store or fast food joint. Im trying to get off meat period.
Demonaut
(9,848 posts)
Bayard
(28,322 posts)An old Winchester, probably considered an antique now. I've fired it any number of times. Just a matter of practicality on a farm. I have another shotgun that was a gift from an old boyfriend. Its the kind cops carry in their cars. I've never fired it. It scares the crap out of me. I need to sell it.
Runningdawg
(4,660 posts)I grew up hunting with my cousins and now that I am getting older I have more fun at the range. My old bones don't do well crouched down in a blind or perched on a tree stand.
My husband and I each have a pistol and we also have a rifle and a shotgun. Several members of my family still hunt with black powder. In rural areas along the OK/AR border you need to be armed and ready to shoot a wild animal. Wild boar are a concern as is the occasional bear. If you hike or breakdown in those areas and have to walk, you need something more reliable than a sharp stick.
Rhiannon12866
(249,141 posts)I learned how to shoot at the summer camp I went to for several years and then shot on the rifle team for my school. I was the first - and only - girl at the time, though I was "second man," LOL. My camp - and the team there - was only girls. And in order to shoot for my school, NRA membership was required. I didn't pay much attention since the coach took care of that, but that was not today's NRA, back in the day. These days, I am firmly in favor of gun control and a renewal of the AWB.
Ex Lurker
(3,966 posts)but rarely shoot because I have extremely sensitive hearing, and it's painful even with ear protection.
Buzz cook
(2,829 posts)Shooting guns is fun.
I am also in favor of gun control.
Binkie The Clown
(7,911 posts)and I haven't become an avid hand grenade hobbyist either.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)Agschmid
(28,749 posts)
Agnosticsherbet
(11,619 posts)It was part of the job, liking or disliking was irrelevant.
I do not shoot recreationally. I don't own a firearm and never will own a firearm.
When I retired, I left them with no regrets. (While in the military, I never found shooting relaxing.
I find reading, photography, hiking, long conversations, and sex relaxing.
flor-de-jasmim
(2,259 posts)pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)Only half kidding.
In_The_Wind
(72,300 posts)
Sam_Fields
(305 posts)I don't have them in our home because you are a target for thieves. And if someone breaks into your home while you are a sleep the chance that you will have enough facilities together to shoot them is very small. I'm for outlawing all ammunition magazine clips guns being owned or sold. A single shot bolt action rifle, a five shell shotgun and a six shooter revolver is fine. It is the magazine feed guns that allow the massacres to happen.
I'm also not against concealed carry permits for qualified people. I live in Oregon and in rural areas you are on your own.
UCmeNdc
(9,654 posts)Army vet
All types.....
Bensonhurst_braciole
(13 posts)If not, the only gun I've ever shot had the word "PEZ" embossed on it.
merrily
(45,251 posts)
I do want to see what it is like, though. I will be going to a shooting range to find out.
DCBob
(24,689 posts)Including banning anything that resembles or functions like an assault weapon.
Mike Nelson
(10,888 posts)...it's good to have the training, but I never liked it as "recreational" shooting. Don't like the noise it makes - goes right in my ears. The bow and arrow is quiet, as far a target shooting goes...
DrDan
(20,411 posts)baldguy
(36,649 posts)I don't need to use these things personally to see the enormously negative effects they inflict on our society.
GeorgeGist
(25,570 posts)
ileus
(15,396 posts)we all look forward to most...
Normally once the sun sets in the summer the kayaks and bikes are put up and the cover is back on the pool, we'll head out to the range to have a little family fun. Both my kids have been shooting since they were 4 and 6, now 11 and 13.
My daughter enjoys the ARs most, while my son loves the pistol aspect. We've discussed maybe letting them shoot in competitions a few times but I don't want our family fun hobby turning into another practice, practice, practice, compete, compete sport. (Like Theater, Football, Softball, Baseball,and Soccer have become)
My son loves to hunt, so once fishing is over hunting starts kicking in come Fall.
rogerashton
(3,960 posts)It was a Beretta submachine gun, somebody's war souvenir. 1950s. He was a neighbor, and when he died his widow gave my dad the gun to get rid of. After we fired it, back in the woods behind the house, he disassembled it and buried the parts in different places, so no one could use it in the future.
Also qualified as expert with the Garand M1 and the .22, firing right-handed, prone and kneeling, with my glasses on, and as marksman with the Garand, left-handed with the glasses off. And did fire a BAR. This was at ROTC camp.
My wife tells people I helped her collect snakes for her college biology class. She doesn't say that I helped her with a revolver, but that's what I did.
And yes, I'm anti-gun. Shooting is fun. So is breaking the neighbors' windows.
1939
(1,683 posts)My grandfather was an avid hunter (ducks, geese, and doves only) and skeet shooter. I learned to shoot with on old .22 single shot rolling block rifle. I lacked the hand-eye coordination to ever be anything good at skeet shooting. I used to go duck hunting with my grandfather, but really hated hunting and only went for him.
In service, I started with the M1 rifle, then the carbine and M1911A1 pistol. Over the years, I moved to the M14 (loved it) and M16 (hated it). I carried a pistol and a M3 grease gun in Vietnam (the very few times I was in a firefight, I had 180 guys with rifles to worry about directing and never fired a shot myself). All of the "firefights" I was in were small probes at our perimeter. During my R&D time, I was involved mostly with the Abrams tank and Bradley system, but did get involved in the development of the M9 pistol and the squad automatic weapon.
I still shoot occasionally on the range, but mostly with a pistol and carbine (Beretta PX4 and CX4). I own an M1 for nostalgia sake, but have never fired it and don't have any ammo for it. I do love going to gun shows and seeing and handling whatever is new so I guess you could say that I am a "gun nut" but I go to the range now just to keep in practice. As noted above, I do not very much like many of the other shooters at the range or some of the people at the gun shows.
I have a CCL and own one .380 pistol, one .40 pistol, one .40 carbine, one 12 gauge shotgun, the afore mentioned M1, and a S&W "Governor" revolver. I have some ammunition for all of them except the M1. I do have a bit of .40 because that is what I use mostly at the range. The others, i only shoot to make sure they function.
aikoaiko
(34,213 posts)
?resize=720%2C465
When the Marine Corps’ Systems Command in Quantico announced in late July it was awarding a five-year, $22.5 million contract to Colt for roughly 12,000 new M45A1 Close Quarter Battle Pistols, speculation immediately erupted that it might actually be the first indication that the tenure of the U.S. military’s current standard service sidearm, the much-detested, 9mm Beretta, might finally be ending.
Quantico, of course, insists this is not the case at all, that the M45A1s are merely destined for MARSOC, Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, whose elite troops use a wide variety of non-standard weapons, including an earlier MEUSOC M45 version of the M1911, in their deployments. Perhaps if the M45A1 were any other weapon, their explanation might be more readily accepted. But since the M45A1 is a development of the M1911 .45-caliber ACP automatic pistol, it’s hard not to attach deeper meaning into it.
Probably nothing in the Pentagon’s long history ever stirred quite as much controversy and anger as its 1985 decision to replace the M1911 with the 9mm M9 Beretta. The M1911 had been in continuous use since before World War I and had reputation as a tough, reliable, hard hitting weapon. In its nearly eighty years in the American military inventory, it had undergone only a few, extremely minor, modifications during the 1920s, stemming from experience gained using it in the trenches.
1939
(1,683 posts)the first meeting I went to on the "personal defense weapon" was a Ft Benning in 1971. I told them that we shouldn't replace the M1911A1 because we had enough of them on hand, it was far more reliable and durable then anything on the street at the time, and that almost everyone armed with the pistol had better things to do in a combat situation then to pull out his pistol and start firing (e.g. machine gunners, mortar gunners, tankers, staff officers, medics, etc.).
They kicked this around until 1985 when they made the decision to go with a 9mm for NATO commonality as we were the only ones using a .45 caliber round.
Among various options we considered were the Ingram pistols (MAV-10 and MAC-11), but they didn't want that because they were rather large and awkward.
Since most of the people armed with a pistol couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, you really could just issue billy clubs.
cali
(114,904 posts)It was in Maine, in a barn set up for target practice. It was a Smith and Wesson 357 Magnum.
I didn't enjoy it. I have never enjoyed shooting. I don't like the noise or the sense of something so deadly and powerful in my grasp.
I'm a woman. The only people I've ever shot with have been macho type guys who were way into it.
beachbum bob
(10,437 posts)never considered having them as nothing more than a hobby. I don't hunt but have many friends that do....and I see no purpose having weapons like AK-47s or AR-15's in the public domain. Their only intended purpose is to kill people....and these kind of weapons are easily converted to full automatic status with minor modifications.....
melm00se
(5,141 posts)Yes, I enjoy it
Yes, I find it relaxing
I shoot multiple disciplines:
Rimfire 2 Gun (aka Ruger Rimfire Challenge/NSSF Rimfire Challenge) - these are a great way to introduce new shooters in the competition world in a very safe, controlled and family friendly environment
"Precision" rifle (rimfire and centerfire - both are very zen like)
Sporting Clays (to me it's like golfing but much louder)
the occasional IPDA club level matches
the occasional Zombie Match
Plus practicing for all of the above
I am thinking about getting into black powder/muzzle loader.
Marengo
(3,477 posts)Quite a bit of work to get that one shot off, but it's quite satisfying hearing that lead pumpkin strike the target. My North Star West fusil is surpringly accurate at a reasonable distance. I've been thinking to give matchlocks a try next.
oneshooter
(8,614 posts)Black powder cartridge rifles. Cast lead and black powder.
Paladin
(32,197 posts)But that was years ago, when I enjoyed guns. The toxic, right-wing extremism of the shooting sports led me to putting away my guns some time back (although I did shoot a rattlesnake on my property a couple of weeks ago).
moriah
(8,312 posts)When I owned a gun I felt more of a responsibility rather than particularly enjoyment in taking it to the range and staying in practice, but I did enjoy becoming better at my accuracy -- like anything, there's some definite "feel good" when you're making improvements to a skill. I really should have started with a .22 instead of the 9mm, or.I wouldn't have had to work so hard to overcome the flinch I developed at first.
I am reasonably accurate with anything 9mm or less if the gun itself is suited to my build and hands -- I can't shoot most Glocks to save my life, but I wear a size 3.5 ring and they usually are designed for men and have double stack magazines. The Aegis was *almost* too big, I could have used a longer slide lock lever (but they only sell those for .45 ACP.1911-styles and modifying a pistol makes it more likely to jam anyway), but it was heavy enough that I could handle its recoil better than most "ladies guns".
I can use a shotgun and rifle if necessary and at least hit the barn door, but again, being small is an issue. When we lived out far enough that as an adult I had to be able to fire either if required to protect children and livestock, we ended up purchasing a used youth-sized shotgun and rifle extremely cheap from a friend whose son had outgrew them. Those I felt comfortable enough with.
My sister is more fond of revolvers for reliability, but she also likes their carry profile since she actually does carry. Revolvers are more forgiving of "printing".
I, however, believe in regulation. Strongly. As well as cool down periods and many other things that make people froth.
Orrex
(66,584 posts)He blew off a dozen shifts in May alone, so he had it coming.
madokie
(51,076 posts)its been 40 some odd years
A pump up or CO2 pellet gun recently.
I don't own a real gun just pellet guns
hueymahl
(2,887 posts)I have more enjoyed skeet shooting than target practice. Feels more like a sport. Don't have a whole lot of experience with either, though.
dembotoz
(16,922 posts)confirmed when my eyes got me a 4f
seems i am a danger to everything but the target.
was actually advised not to go hunting
Tracer
(2,769 posts)I was about 9 years old and was with an extended family's Thanksgiving gathering at my uncle's inn in northern New Hampshire.
I picked up a rifle that was leaning next to a fireplace and aimed it at a small cousin. My mother and aunts were horrified, and immediately took it away with the usual "don't ever point a gun..."
Later that day, my Dad asked me if I'd really like to shoot a gun. Excited at the prospect, I jumped at the chance. Dad and my uncles took me out to the field and set up a tin can target and handed me a double-barreled shotgun.
Ever the wanna-be cowgirl, I hoisted the heavy thing to my shoulder, took aim, pulled the trigger and .....BLAM!!!
That thing kicked me the shoulder so hard that I fell over backwards into the frozen dirt.
My dad and uncles stood over me silently as I picked myself up. Quite a lesson.
I've never wanted to shoot a gun again.
Shrek
(4,384 posts)I'm 52 now.
Mostly shotguns since that's all I hunt with. I have fired rifles and handguns at the shooting range.
Brickbat
(19,339 posts)yellowcanine
(36,705 posts)This is not about shooting sports and it is a diversion to make it so.
Starry Messenger
(32,379 posts)I disliked it--very loud, spent casings hit me. As someone with anxiety, guns hit all of the bingo squares for being unpleasant and jarring.
treestar
(82,383 posts)a friend of ours had several guns and we went out and got to fire them.
I didn't like it so much that I pursued it as a hobby.
The thing I recall was being nervous about a heavy one - it was difficult to fire. Impressed me that it is not so easy as it looks on TV. I stuck after that to a very light rifle.
JanMichael
(25,725 posts)...that doesn't work for me anymore. We have three firearms in our house but no bullets.
I have fired many types of weapons in my life so I am aware of what they are. Thanks for the concern.
Yo_Mama
(8,303 posts)The idea that the next Orlando or San Bernadino will be prevented by gun control makes no sense to me. I think it would make the problem worse. It hasn't even worked in Europe.
I also think that this message turns off the millions of rural people who have a very real USE for their guns, and not a lot of resources. It's the ultimate harassment/slander to them. They know perfectly well that taking their guns away won't make anyone safer.
Tierra_y_Libertad
(50,414 posts)And, I considered the bi-annual rifle qualification courses a pain in the ass.
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)Firing guns is one of the only times you will see someone calling an explosion ending in a projectile being fired at high velocity as "relaxing".
Go watch a pyrotechnics show if explosions are necessary to relax you.
Few call it relaxing. It simply isn't. An explosion within a foot of your face is not relaxing. Gun humpers find it to be energizing, a rush, and gives a sense of power to their otherwise feelings of weakness. That is not relaxing.
Relaxing is rubbish.
L. Coyote
(51,134 posts)My training was for shooting people. As a kid, we hunted food, learned to hit a running rabbit at 200 yards with a .22 caliber long rifle.
HuckleB
(35,773 posts)It's a public health issue. No one has to have fired a gun to understand that
Doc_Technical
(3,731 posts)This was so long ago that the M-16 didn't have a
forward assist.
About 35 years ago I went with some friends one time to shoot .22 pistols
and rifle.
Haven't fired a weapon since.
lame54
(39,157 posts)is how fun they are to fire
that's why they are always being fired - and not always at shooting range targets
DemocratSinceBirth
(101,608 posts)mainer
(12,487 posts)Shooting the Glock made me appreciate how inaccurate handguns are. So when I see some guy with a handgun in a Hollywood movie hit a moving target at a distance, I just laugh.
I didn't like the experience. First, the noise (yes I wore ear protectors.) Which keeps it from being relaxing for me. And second, I was acutely aware that I could kill someone with just a second's inattention, and I didn't like that feeling.
Now archery, THAT is a relaxing experience. Very zen, and actually good for your upper body muscles.
bonemachine
(757 posts)Various rifles, a shotgun and a handgun or two.
I have never owned a firearm, and see no reason to do so. I'm a vegetarian, so I don't hunt. I'm not particularly attached to any of my shit in a way that I'd be willing to shoot someone to keep it. ...and I'm fairly certain that in pretty much any situation where my life might be in danger that introducing a(nother) firearm to the situation would probably make it worse, not better.
artyteacher
(598 posts)Just the other day. Scared the poop out of me. But she loves it
Watch out for armed lesbians! Ha.
GOLGO 13
(1,681 posts)Lots of fun, did competition for several years. Own about 13 pistols and half a dozen long-rifles. None of you, nor any government will take them away from me.
Please feel free to bloviate about it as much as you see fit.
Response to GOLGO 13 (Reply #178)
Bradical79 This message was self-deleted by its author.
Motley13
(3,867 posts)Many years ago, a 33, a 45, & some kind of rifle, but I do not own a gun nor do I want to.
We were shooting at cans.
Act_of_Reparation
(9,116 posts)Yes, I have fired a weapon. Yes, I enjoyed it.
And I still favor strict gun control, because I don't put my hobbies above public safety.
xocet
(4,329 posts)Pheasant, quail, etc. and targets....
Other hunters can be careless and dangerous.
I have not hunted or trapped in 30 years.
There is no real need for weapons beyond what I have listed in my opinion - they are more for killing people than for obtaining food. Deer don't have compounds that need to be assaulted in order to get venison.
Also, I don't need to hunt - there is a grocery store a mile away.
I understand that shooting can be fun, but the downside of efficient killing machines is that troubled people take them out and use them for that purpose.
I would rather not have fun at the expense of a bunch of dead children or adults - not that you do that, but that is my framing.
geomon666
(7,518 posts)Had one in my hands before. My dad's Smith & Wesson 357, had it pressed against my head, fully loaded and cocked, but no, I didn't fire it.
I don't think I would've found it relaxing if I had.
Bradical79
(4,490 posts)I just don't find my personal enjoyment all that relevant to the issue.
Bucky
(55,334 posts)And no one has the right to. Yes, that's a metaphor
bluedigger
(17,382 posts)It was pretty exciting for an 11 year old to get to do something so "adult". Did that for three more summers or so, but had no guns in our home. I never found it "relaxing", except in the sense of the afterglow from the adrenaline of handling and shooting dangerous weapons. Much like I was soon to discover after I first masturbated. My uncle wanted to give me a hunting rifle when I was 16, but my father said no.
My uncle was a big collector of the octagonal barrel Winchesters. He had over 150 of them, as well as other various oddities (a Spanish blunderbuss?). He woke up one morning to find his well secured and alarmed arms room in the attached barn cleaned out, while he, his wife, and their German Shepherd were asleep. None of the guns ever surfaced that I know of, so we assumed it was a contract job by organized crime for another collector. My uncle was really crushed at losing his life's work collecting those guns. It didn't help that they left his wife's colored glass collection.
In Army basic training, I had a Vietnam era M-16, made by Frigidaire. It was a real piece of shit training weapon, and misfired every third round, so I got a lot of practice clearing it, and always had "two in and one out" during marksmanship training. Then, when we qualified, I shot Expert and won the high score, thereby befuddling my drill sergeants, who had to give me a big plastic trophy when we graduated. (That trophy was such a pain in the ass to drag through the Atlanta airport along with my duffel bag when I went home on leave. 
)
In the army, I spent most of my time telling artillery crews (105 and 155mm) where to shoot safely during live fire training (all peacetime), and then in the Guard spent time as a mortar section leader with 60mm mortars, and range spotted some for our snipers. I also got to train with the Alpini in Italy for a month and familiarize with their Beretta assault rifle, which everyone liked better than the M-16.
After I got off active duty, I got my hunting licence, after attending an state mandated NRA Safe Hunter course. I went out with a friend, borrowing a single shot rifle and shotgun, for deer and birds. Never shot at any game, and really just liked getting out in the Maine woods.
Inherited one antique long gun, which I sold. Owned no guns for decades, until I rented a place for a couple years in the French Quarter in New Orleans, on an extended work assignment after Katrina. A woman was murdered by a 13 year old on the sidewalk around the block from me while I was cooking dinner. With an unsecured second floor balcony off the main bedroom over the sidewalk, home invasion was an existential threat. I picked up a .380 pistol to keep in the house. I test fired the gun, and put it in a safe by the bed.
I sold that gun to a neighbor (retired AF) after I moved to Colorado. Don't need one. My neighbors do, though. We are surrounded by hay fields, and the only ways to control the prairie dogs are shooting, or gas. I was just out walking the dog across the fields this morning, after the first cut last week. They gassed this spring for the first time, and I saw dozens of heads popping up out of burrows, so I expect to hear a lot of gunfire when their hired man comes back from vacation in a few days. My dog hates gunfire. No more walks, until the grass grows too high to see prairie dogs again.
Guns are a tool. A tool for the military, LEO's, homeowners, and working people of all kinds. It's no coincidence that the rise of the AR-15 platform's popularity, and the NRA's conversion from an ethical sponsor of gun safety to a lobbying branch for gun manufacturers, were together.
AR-15's are good for two things - high volume of fire, and high profits. They are lousy for home defense or hunting, but great for dominating a firefight. They took rifles from being a handmade item of wood and metal requiring skilled craftsmen, to a mass produced bunch of cheap plastic parts any yahoo could throw together for his own custom gun. And boy could they sell them! It was about the same time that the NRA became an advocate of absolute 2A rights, that the movies Rambo and Scarface came out. There was Al Pacino with his M203 (why can't we have those?) And Sly Stallone, eventually upgrading to his M60 machine gun ( made in Maine! - seems reasonable to me) winning their wars of oppression against authority, or something, all sexy as hell. The movies created a generation of wannabe's that missed Vietnam, but got to relive it through Platoon, The Deer Hunter, and Apocalypse Now. Right along side the introduction of the extremely profitable civilianized AR-15 platform to the general public.
And there was the NRA, the respected gun safety group, to legitimize and normalize their use and ownership to the American public. And here we are today, awash in guns in America, with every publicized mass shooting creating an infinite feedback loop of demand for more guns, and more and more guns in inappropriate hands.
I don't know what to do about all the guns out there today. That horse has pretty well left the barn. But I would support some regulations prohibiting the civilian sale of any new long guns that have external magazines larger than five rounds, or shells for shotguns. They aren't needed for work, hunting, or self defense, and target sports are irrelevant - any gun can be used for that.
I'm open minded about other ideas for gun control, short of bans. We need to do something, and we need should start by making these AR platforms less profitable for manufacturers and retailers. Nothing in the 2A says all guns have to be cheap and profitable.
Elwood P Dowd
(11,453 posts)Have also inherited a shotgun along with S&W 38 revolver that I clean and shoot once in a blue moon to make sure they work.
LWolf
(46,179 posts)My first ex-husband took me along on a target practice expedition. I was 20 years old. I didn't want to go. He insisted.
His 3 male friends, plus he and I, drove out to the desert in a van. When we got there, they started drinking. I suggested that was a bad idea. They told the ex to shut the little woman up. They set up bottle and can targets and proceeded to blast my eardrums out and create a swath of broken bottles and cans across the desert. I asked how they were going to get it all cleaned up. They asked me if I were some kind of tree-hugger.
Finally, they insisted I take my turn. We argued about it, and they asked the ex if he were so pussy-whipped that his woman wouldn't do what he said. The ex started getting angry. At me, for messing with his status. So I did. They put it in my hands; some sort of long gun. They showed me how to hold it, point it, and pull the trigger. I did. It knocked me on my ass. I refused a second try.
The next day I had a bruise the size of a grapefruit.
That was the one and only time. I lived in places that had guns in the house; not mine. I experienced a couple of other bad things related to those guns. I sure as hell never felt safe around them.
Eleanors38
(18,318 posts)I spend some time at the range sighting in the rifle, and always feel good about putting 3 rounds into an inch at 100 yards with a .270 Remington. It gives me confidence thst I can take a deer at reasonable ranges when I hunt.
A local barista wants to try her hand at shooting, and I gave her advice on ranges, gun rentals and gun clubs. She is lookng forward to it -- probably with someone younger and better-looking! 
Good post, Kang.
vkkv
(3,384 posts)The occasional gopher with my pellet rifle.. more humane than impaling them with the normal traps..
I am no longer afraid of firearms. That was the worst.. being AFRAID of them as I was raised to be as a kid.
My CZ Varmint in 17 HM is particularly accurate and is my favorite rifle. Hanging golf balls at 125 yards.. no problem.
Of course, if I lived in the city or crowded coast as I used to, owning rifles would not make sense. Here in the mountains, it does.
I still hate handguns.
vkkv
(3,384 posts)drray23
(8,568 posts)if you just want to enjoy clay pigeon or trap shooting from time to time, it is hard to find a club where membership would not automatically enroll you in the NRA. Many clubs require it. Thats why I do not belong to any. I don't want to start receiving the NRA propaganda.
haele
(15,017 posts)Shore patrol, classified space security patrol, boarding party support...Expert on the old Navy Colt .45s and the shotgun. Not so great on rifles.
Other than that, never needed a gun - even when I was living in one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in a major California city - and was a minority, to boot.
I don't like the noise (even with muffs), the smell (cordite makes me sneeze) or the mess I've experienced when other people have shot a firearm in "anger" or "defense" - including the time I found myself drawn into the middle of an armed "tiff" between the housemates next-door (bullet came within 5 inches of my head in the back yard, knocking off some stucco).
Also, there's a mentally unstable family member living with us as well as children, and we've had occasion to lock up the large kitchen knives with that member in the past when she was off her meds - no reason to have.
I prefer my old 55 lb. recurve bow and a dozen and a half arrows if I feel the need to target shoot, myself. I find there's much more skill and strength required, and major zen component going on with the setting, draw, and release - and the ability to focus, to concentrate. And it's quiet, even at an archery range.
What I don't see is why people go to great lengths to pretend that a firearm that is loaded - or for that matter, any armament, including my bow and it's associated arrows - has a purpose for anything other than killing - either food or a human being and requires constant familiarization and training that is linked to the reason one would have that killing tool - including understanding what happens whenever you pull the trigger or otherwise loose the projectile.
I find it intellectually dishonest when people who don't take the time to train, who aren't actively aware of what it takes to safely handle a firearm, casually talk about the feeling of "protection" they get from having a gun around as it's a magic wand - if the bad guys will just run away and leave them alone once that magic wand is in their possession. You all know the type of firearm owner, and most responsible firearm owners will privately admit those people are threats to the general public also.
Even though criminals may be cowards, everyone that will have access to that gun not only needs to have safe handling and storage of the weapon drilled into them, they must be willing and able to pull the trigger and end a life whenever that gun is loaded and drawn.
Personally, the risk of a firearm in the house that can be stolen and used in a crime - or worse, can be misused by children or the emotionally unstable, escalate a situation and/or be used against one is the reason I wouldn't have one around my house. Balancing those risks against the risk I might need to use one for "protection" (even living in an area rife with home invasions) - well, the need for armed protection is much lighter than the risk of the firearm being mis-used.
As for target shooting - ultimately that's practice to be able to use a killing tool more efficiently by honing one's personal skills and attributes. Hopefully, when target shooting, the person also learns confidence, fearlessness and consideration of the environment that surrounds the target, because the brain is the best weapon - the best tool - in every conflict.
I understand that even when I practice my archery.
Haele
(Edit only to clarify a my droning on and on about my personal opinion on firearm use and the culture that surround it)
wysi
(1,514 posts)I have used them and fired them all and had an FID card by the time I was 15 years old. These facts notwithstanding, I am fully in favor of repealing the Second Amendment.
obamanut2012
(29,125 posts)I own several, and I hold a CCW, and if we could do tomorrow what Australia did, I would gladly hand mine over to be melted down.
oneshooter
(8,614 posts)Do it now. If you truly believe that it is the right thing to do, then why do you wait for the government to tell you to do it?
OldHippieChick
(2,434 posts)never will
bhikkhu
(10,789 posts)When I was young I had typical anger issues and a certain level of emotional instability. I never trusted myself that much, and having a gun always seemed like the short path to doing something irrevocably stupid or harmful. Not having a gun meant not having to worry about things like that.
I could go buy a gun now, but what would I do with it - shoot somebody breaking into my house? Probably then I'd find out he was just a kid like me going through a bad time, and I'd feel horrible the rest of my life. I'm happy to not have the option of shooting anybody.
chillfactor
(7,694 posts)and never will.....
left-of-center2012
(34,195 posts)Most men, women, and kids hunted. I was taught to shoot and hunters' safety by my older brothers and my dad. Also our Boy Scout troop went about six times to a shooting range to earn our badge for gun safety.
I never heard of anyone in our area shooting another person, or accidentally shooting themselves.
I'm not anti-gun, but I am pro gun safety and sensible gun regulations.
NNadir
(37,182 posts)Of course, when I was a kid, Lyndon Johnson was President.
JennyMominFL
(224 posts)I was in the Marines , so yes. It's for that reason that I don't believe that weapons, on the level of the military, should be in the hands of civilians. I had less access to weapons in the Military than as a civilian. I was never in combat, so obviously that is different. But after boot camp, we got our weapons from the armory, went to the rifle range and then returned those weapons to the armory.
Bigmack
(8,020 posts)... on FB and other sites.
Usually by someone asking snidely "Have you ever even shot a gun."
I've answered...
"I've had a gun since the age of 10. I still have 7. I have fired every weapon in my Marine Weapons Platoon for familiarization, but the weapon I carried was an M-60 machine gun. I fired many thousands of rounds from the M-60... at targets and at people.
If you are so fucking driven to fire military-grade weapons, your local Marine recruiter's number is --- --- ----. Call them. Maybe they can fit you in.
Firearms are not fashion accessories or statements of courage and resolve."
doc03
(38,773 posts)just lost interest in killing wildlife several years ago. I support the 2nd Amendment but don't think military type weapons
or large capacity magazines should be owned by the general public. I also think every single gun sale should require a
background check.
NYFlip
(338 posts)tabasco
(22,974 posts)Yep. Shot quite a few in my day.
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)For recreation though, I prefer archery.
I also support strict gun controls. The only people who are going to shoot up a school or nightclub or church with a deer rifle are the dipshits who think the AR-15 is a deer rifle.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)I'll take a high capacity cookie clip with 30 rounds of oatmeal raisin.
Darb
(2,807 posts)Loud noises almost always calm my nerves to the point of just falling off to sleep. 
Good grief.
Kang Colby
(1,941 posts)I wear both inner ear and earmuff style hearing protection. What makes it relaxing is the amount of focus required to achieve the levels of accuracy I strive for.
The Straight Story
(48,121 posts)I am not anti-gun, I am anti some people being able to get their hands on guns.
SMC22307
(8,090 posts)West Virginia, shooting at cans (or something) in someone's yard. See? I was so bored I can't even remember what we were shooting at. Zero appeal.
Recursion
(56,582 posts)I don't personally care very much about assault weapons, though I realize that puts me in the minority here. OTOH that also means I don't particularly care if they're banned, either, I just wouldn't be willing to take a political hit for it.
calimary
(88,831 posts)I found it disturbing. Serious shit. One does not screw around. Helped reinforce my wishes to clamp down on the damn things.
Lance Bass esquire
(671 posts)Double barrel Belgian shot gun from late 1800s.
45 caliber Prussian pistol. Circa ww1
Walther P38 German Luger with Nazi markings.
German K98 mauser circa ww2.
Those were all passed down to me from great grandfathers....never shoot them..just collectibles.
I do ping cans on the back 40 with a 1998 Savage 22 squirrel rifle from time to time tho.
PatrickforO
(15,328 posts)good shot with a rifle.
But I've never owned a gun. I had BB and pellet guns when I was a kid and I knocked out a guy's car window. It just shattered and the next morning I saw him knocking out the shattered glass and putting plastic in the window. I felt bad.
Then, somehow I got rid of those 'guns' and never 'graduated' to a real gun. I've never felt the need or the desire.
As to gun control, I'm not really for confiscating guns, though it would be good to get the millions of semi-automatic assault type weapons off the streets. But how? It simply isn't feasible to even try.
We do need universal background checks, though, and no loopholes for gun shows and internet gun purchases. That's bullshit. Either you HAVE reasonable gun control or you don't. I expect that's what most Americans believe.
Funny how a lobby like the NRA, and the weapon manufacturers it represents, has become so effective at quashing any real effort by the overwhelming majority around gun control. Well...not funny exactly. I have another word in mind...
eleny
(46,176 posts)
ladyVet
(1,587 posts)When I was a kid, my father was a cast member at a Western-themed amusement park, and had a Colt 45 replica pistol. For safety, he took the oldest kids out and let us shoot blanks (which was all he actually had, never live rounds). We were taught proper safety, and to never assume a gun was not loaded, and to only point it at someone if we meant to shoot them. Guns were not toys!
I shot an M16 in the USAF (and was pretty good at it, though not a marksman like Daddy).
I owned a 22 rifle and shot rabbits with it. We ate them for dinner that night. There's something satisfying knowing I could feed my children if need be.
I've shot black powder guns. Very loud.
I'm a believer in and supporter of the Second Amendment but am not a "gun nut". I also believe in reasonable controls on guns, like not allowing people to have automatic weapons and rounds that can pierce armor, or Kevlar, or allowing huge stockpiles of guns or ammo. Background checks, stringent training, anything that could keep people from owning guns who shouldn't.
It won't solve every issue, but it would help. I'd also like to see training and PSAs during prime time that talk about being responsible. I don't like the average person who might own a gun being vilified because some people -- many of whom have mental health issues -- misuse guns. If your neighbor stabs his wife to death, will you call for the removal of all knives? If a drunk plows into a crowd of children, shall we make cars illegal?
nil desperandum
(654 posts)fired a weapon in the armies of two different nations....both were 7.62 light infantry machine guns...
Also carried the .45 M1911 as a side arm while carrying the M60 way back when....
Still like shooting sports. I don't hunt anymore, I used to before the military, haven't since the military...but still like to plink a target now and again.
Pisces
(6,150 posts)Weapon. I also believe everyone should have a background check, especially at gun shows. I also believe anybody on the terror watch list and the no fly list should be barred from buying a gun
Until they clear their name ( and I don't' care if this means 100,000 thousand Americans on the list by accident have to jump hoops to buy a gun)
Downtown Hound
(12,618 posts)to the range from time to time. A couple of Marlin lever action rifles and a couple of shotguns. I don't own and will NEVER own any semi-automatic rifles (clarified for the "an AR-15 isn't an assault rifle" moron crowd) nor will I ever. Those types of guns should NOT be owned by civilians. I have always supported gun control and taking military style weapons off the street as well as background checks and waiting periods. My beliefs actually put me in line with most gun owners, most of whom do support some type of gun control.
This gun owner gladly says fuck the NRA and those who support it. A domestic terrorist organization if ever there was one.