Could a gun thread be started to gather information about gun ownership?
Gun Ownership to me; I taught myself, as my mother was totally afraid of guns. My grandfather had 3 girls, had guns all over the house, but did no firearm training for any of them. My mom forbid me to even have a bb gun. My GrandPa gave me a 22 rifle but I had to leave it at his house. Finally I broke my mom down and she let me get a bb gun. I bought my own gun magazines and reinstilled a love to hunt in my dad. And then it was on. To me for almost all my life, gun ownership was for hunting, can plinking, and target shooting. It never occurred to me to have a handgun solely for protection. While hunting I'd strap on my Ruger Blackhawk .45, but not for protection from 2 legged creatures.
Start your children, or even yourself, out with a BB Gun, then an Air Rifle, and then a .22 rifle. Read Sporting/Wildllife magazines. Find a safe place to shoot. I hate having to go and shoot at a range. Find a place to hunt. You can start out with small game. Then you can then step up to handguns.
Gun ownership solely for personal protection is a concept that is really foreign to me. Yes, I've carried a concealed weapon, mostly when I walk my dogs, in case of attacking dogs. But I really didn't want to shoot a dog, so I now carry an ASP baton. For house protection, I have my M1Carbine at the ready, with many backups avail.