Do you Have Kids?

I have kids. I love them more than anything in the universe.

• If I didn't love them I'd never let them see a real gun.
• If I didn't love them I'd demonize guns.
• If I didn't love them I'd keep them from being safety trained.
• If I didn't love them I'd make sure they never touched a REAL one.

But I do Love them. So I demystified guns.  I let them handle all kinds of guns. Showed them how to tell a real one from a toy. I taught them the differences in the various types. I taught them lots of rules. More than the classic 4 Rules.

• If you see a gun, STOP! Don’t touch it.
• Leave the area.
• Tell an adult.
• If you see a gun and don’t know whether it’s a real gun or just a toy, treat it like it’s a real gun.
• Tell me. Even if it's days later.

Adapted and expanded from the NRA’s Eddie Eagle materials. Children should be taught rules as soon as they are old enough to talk. Rules should be added as soon as the child understands and can repeat the earlier rules.

--If you hate your kids support gun control.

When Children Visit

I have friends visiting from out of town this weekend and they have small children. They will be here for five nights.

Now that my kids are adults and out of the house I am more relaxed about placement and storage of firearms in the house.

It's easy for me to clear the projects off my bench and collect the few firearms from their usual spots. I don't stash them all over the house so it's easy.

In my house knives are more of a thing. There seems to be pocket knives all over the place. Fixed blade knives, kitchen knives and even swords and axes.

--I will not put away my Zombie Gnome!

Back in 1972

In 1972 I was in the 6th grade.

That was the year we rifle training during gym class. Our school had a 50 yard rifle range with six lanes. There was even an armory in the range where all the rifles were stashed. It was also the Civil Defense Shelter. Remember those?

Every kid in my class had safety training and practical range time.  I think my school may have been one of the last ones in the country to offer this thanks to the hippies of the day.

We would have competitions. Boys and girls were all equal in this class and if I remember correctly the 12 year old girls were far better shots than the boys.

The Vietnam war ended and soon after the gun safety program ended.

--Now a gun shaped Pop-Tart will get a kid suspended.

Guns and Children

The Hole Book by Peter Newell (1908)

"While fooling with a gun, Tom Potts shoots a bullet that seems to be unstoppable. A literal hole on each page traces the bullet’s path as it wreaks havoc across various scenes until it meets its match in a particularly sturdy cake. A native of McDonough County, Illinois, Newell built a reputation in the 1880s and 1890s for his humorous drawings and poems, which appeared in Harper’s Weekly, Harper’s Bazaar, Scribner’s Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, Judge, and other publications. He later wrote and illustrated several popular children’s books, such as Topsys and Turvys (1893), a collection of poems and images which could be viewed upside-down or right-side-up; The Hole Book (1908), featured here; and The Slant Book (1910), which took the shape of a rhomboid and told the story of a baby carriage careening down a hill."

--Ahhh. Children's books just are not the same... 

New Shooters First Gun

 
A young friend of mine celebrated his coming of age by  purchasing Mosin Nagant! 

The Target on the right was his first at 50 yards.

The Target on the left was his first one at 100 yards. He actually shot 5 times but walked the shots in nicely. 

It is good to see another generation of shooter starting out. If the weather is good  we may go shooting next weekend.



--Well done my friend. $200 worth of goodness. Including ammo!

Rubber Band Machine Gun

I use to make rubber band guns in wood shop during middle school.

A lot of people did 40 years ago. It was probably part of the standard curriculum.

Some people never stopped making them. Some became artists while making them!

I swear if you did that these days, in middle school, someone would call SWAT. Helicopter moms would cry. The kid's home would be inspected by Child Protective Services, and the obviously disturbed youth would be forced into counseling.

--My elementary school has a rifle range in the basement under the gym. Sigh...

Repeat This Often

I have kids. I love them more than anything in the universe.

• If I didn't love them I'd never let them see a real gun.
• If I didn't love them I'd demonize guns.
• If I didn't love them I'd keep them from being safety trained.
• If I didn't love them I'd make sure they never touched a REAL one.

But I do Love them. So I demystified guns.  I let them handle all kinds of guns. Showed them how to tell a real one from a toy. I taught them the differences in the various types. I taught them lots of rules. More than the classic 4 Rules.

• If you see a gun, STOP! Don’t touch it.
• Leave the area.
• Tell an adult.
• If you see a gun and don’t know whether it’s a real gun or just a toy, treat it like it’s a real gun.
• Tell me. Even if it's days later.

Adapted and expanded from the NRA’s Eddie Eagle materials. Children should be taught rules as soon as they are old enough to talk. Rules should be added as soon as the child understands and can repeat the earlier rules.

--If you hate your kids support gun control.

Kids and Bad Mothers

A bunch of Moms marched on Washington again to demand that the Government keep their children safe from "Gun Violence".

I swear these women hate their children.

They want to keep their children ignorant so if they even encounter a real gun they will not be able to tell if it's a toy or a real gun and increasing the likelihood of accidents.

They hate their children so much they don't want them to have safety training.

They hate them so much they want them to be unable to defend themselves against villains.

These Moms hate them so much they want them to live under the threat of tyranny in a police state where only the police and military have guns. Did they ever see Schindler's List?

They don't hate guns. They still want them to be a simple 911 phone call away.

They probably don't teach their kids to swim either.

--Wake up. A good mother will make sure their children have firearms training. 

Zombies: Getting it Right

There is so much to love in this photo.

First off, it has a woman that is kick ass. No rescue required. Not only is she competent and aware, she is smart in her pick when it comes to Zombie defense firearms.

She has an AR-15 with a Trijicon ACOG®, good capacity magazines and a pile of spares.

She knows the minivan itself is a weapon.

--I want her on my Zombie Apoc Team!

Demonizing Things

I was born in the late 50's.

Back then where I lived in rural Western NY guns were everywhere and were looked on as tools.

Every kid had them as toys. I must have had 10 cap guns. Eventually it was BB guns. By the time I was 10 I was shooting varmints for my dad with the .410.

Schools didn't freak out if we played Cowboys and Indians or Cops and Robbers. Girls snd Boys.

I could identify every kid I knew by the unique machine gun sound they could make with their mouth.

The political correctness hit.

This week the parents of a def kid named Hunter was told, "Deaf child's sign language name looks too much like gun".

--How can we shake some sense into this culture?

TV: Falling Skies

I got back yesterday from ten days on the road.

Of course the first thing I do is order pizza and start working on my Tivo queue. I had two episodes of the TNT Sci-Fi show Falling Skies.

"FALLING SKIES opens in the chaotic aftermath of an alien attack that has left most of the world completely incapacitated. In the months since the initial invasion, the few survivors have banded together outside major cities to begin the difficult task of fighting back. Each day is a test of survival as citizen soldiers work to protect the people in their care while also engaging in an insurgency against the occupying alien force"

There are so many guns on this show I can't even list them. Everything from M1 Cabines to Barret .50s. AKs, ARs, handguns, rifles and shotguns. Big and small.

I also like how they are depicted. They are depicted tools. Everyone has them; men women and children. There was even a 9 year old kid on guard duty with a an M1 Carbine. No one blinks an eye at the kid. No bleeding heart mom runs out, demanding he be able to hold onto his childhood as long as possible.

--Guns are security tools. It's how we do out part. Here in real life, too!

Kids and Guns

I already told you about the excellent kid shooting event we had last month. (Kids shooting, not being shot!)

It turns out we are not the only ones who are are teaching their children to be safe and to enjoy shooting!

Texas gun range targets parties for kids 8 and older

By Marice Richter, Lewisville Texas

Parents searching for the perfect place and theme for their kids' birthday parties will soon have another option in Texas: a gun range.Eagle Gun Range in Lewisville, Texas, is due to open later this summer and birthday parties will be available to children age 8 and older. Party-goers will get a 30-minute class in gun safety and handling and then will have the opportunity to shoot either a BB gun or a .22 long rifle.

--Teaching kids early is the key.

The Kid Shoot

That's Kids Shooting, not shooting kids.

Nancy over at Excel at Nothing hosted a kid focus shooting event this weekend.

Her arcane powers were in full effect by creating the best weather for a cookout I have ever seen in my whole long life.

There were ten kids and ten adults. The kids were very well behaved. (and none were mine!)

The food was awesome. I am still full at this writing. The big winners, that will be made at the The Millers real soon, were the Seven Layer Jello, Bacon Wrapped Onions and the Pumpkin Crunch. I am so full!


We had some great BB and Pellet guns for the kids. Lots of very safe One-on-One instruction for the very well behaved kids.

My wife really enjoyed the clay pidgin targets too!

Nancy has a great yard with a swing set. Nice social time in the shade while the kids ate hot dogs and cup cakes. Andy even brought a moon bounce! The whole thing make me want to get a classic Red Rider for myself!

--And nobody got an eye shot out!

The Kid Shoot

Here is the deal in Nancy's own words:

"Yeah, yeah. As in letting the kids shoot, not shooting the kids. Now that I’ve got the disclaimer out of the way …

We’re still planning on June 2, rain date June 3. Michael W., retired L.E.O., firearms instructor and Cutler to the Stars® will be here, and I’ve had at least one other adult offer to come by and lend a hand. There’s pellet gun fun to be had, a swing set, a sprinkler to run through, and a grill for a post-shoot cookout.

Sweet Daughter’s BFF will be here along with the rest of her family. Our neighbor and his son hope to show up, and Broken Andy plans on coming with his kids. I tentatively mentioned the event to a couple of other local moms and I was surprised at the enthusiastic response. That weekend is already booked for them, but the asked if they could attend the next one, and two moms have stated that *they* want to learn to shoot as well.

So, if you’re interested (with, or without kids), let me know and I’ll get you directions and details.

Oh, and rumor has it there may be a cake. Or something with candles. Lots and lots of candles."

 

--I will be there with two of my pellet guns!

Kids and Guns Again

I read an news report this week regarding a child finding a loaded handgun on a playground.

The difference in this story if that this child had been taught how to react in this situation.

There was a time when swimming pools a main killer of children. How did we solve that? We taught our kids to swim. We taught them how to behave around pools, even if they encounter on unsupervised.

If you want our children to be safe. Teach them to be safe. Teach them to use firearms safely. Start early.

Demand that our schools teach them correctly. Stop teaching them fear.

My elementary school had a rifle range in the basement and we took safety and target shooting classes in phys ed! It made us ALL safer.

--We need more of these stories.

Family Fun

I believe that one of the reasons the tide has turned on attitudes toward guns is that shooters are including their kids in shooting sports.

Safety training, fun shoots, hunting and other shooting sports are all coming back.

It's like swimming. Pools are dangerous. They use to be a leading killer of children. What did we do? We taught our kids how to be safe around pools and taught them to swim. It turned out it's fun too.

I am the Great Uncle of the kids in this pic.

--I need to visit them soon!!

Kids and Shooting

I am taking my excellent daughter shooting again this weekend.

She is a tiny little thing and might try a bigger gun this weekend. It is all up to her.

.22LR hand gun and rifles are great for introducing kids to gun safety and the fun of shooting. When I was in elementary school we had a semester of rifle range for gym. Girls and boys. There was a four lane, twenty five yard range in the school basement. It was also the bomb shelter.

I was looking around for classes for kids. The local NRA has quite a few programs for kids and parents.

There is also Appleseed.

--Let me know if you are aware of more!

Kids and Shooting

These kids are my niece and nephew at the range. They are enjoying an afternoon of shooting .22LR rifles.

I harp all the time about getting kids to the range early and often. They need to know the 4 Rules in their bones.

We teach out kids how to swim and how to be safe around swimming pools!

I challenge you to find a kid that you love and teach tem about gun safety. Then take them to the range! You will be amazed at how much fun you will have!

--And then they can be heroes when the Zombies come...

SHOOT ME NOW!

The world has completely changed since I was a kid. Back in the 1960's guns were everywhere in my world. They were in every house that I played in as a little kid. And it was the safest time and place of my life. We even had a rifle range in the basement of my elementary school! We had shooting in gym class!

Firearm use depictions when I was a kid didn't result in blood in the streets.

Go figure.

In fact one of my favorite exemplars of gun safety was called, "Shoot Me Now!".

--I miss the old school Loony Toons and Johnny Quest.