Take a Kid to the Range – Pass on the Heritage

This isn’t a rant so much as a plea. We have to introduce more people to the joys of shooting. One of the things that drove me into firearm training was the joy I received from watching someone who was hesitant and maybe a little scared of guns blossom into a gun enthusiast. It’s a great feeling to vicariously experience the feeling of strength a person has when they learn they can control such a powerful tool.

In our country certain mindsets are dying, the joy of self-reliance, independence, and strength of character are being replaced by the cult of personality, conformity, and dependence through apathy. I do not believe firearms ownership to be the single solution to these problems, but I do believe firearm ownership is a strong indicator that we are making progress at destroying the symptoms. You see, the vast majority of firearm owner’s I know are dedicated to the idea that they are responsible for their actions; you cannot go to a self-defense forum or training seminar without having that concept drilled into your brain.

Gun usage is an all or nothing proposition, you are safe, or you are not, either you hit the target or you did not. It is about absolutes. In an age of moral relativism, introducing our youngsters to the idea that there is a fundamental right way of doing things, and that in some instances your intent, or your apology does not take back the consequences for failing to do what is right.

What is even better is that firearms lend themselves to teaching those essential lessons in a way that does not alienate the child. Learning self-discipline is hard, but taking a kid shooting is an easy way of teaching self-control and helping a child master those concepts while building a strong relationship.

As Herb Parsons said “Hunt with your kid and not for them”

Lastly, not only is shooting one building block of raising a strong child, it builds the next generation of shooters keeping the sport alive.

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More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws, Third Edition (Studies in Law and Economics) (Paperback)

By (author): John R. Lott Jr.

On its initial publication in 1998, John R. Lott’s More Guns, Less Crime drew both lavish praise and heated criticism. More than a decade later, it continues to play a key role in ongoing arguments over gun-control laws: despite all the attacks by gun-control advocates, no one has ever been able to refute Lott’s simple, startling conclusion that more guns mean less crime. Relying on the most rigorously comprehensive data analysis ever conducted on crime statistics and right-to-carry laws, the book directly challenges common perceptions about the relationship of guns, crime, and violence. For this third edition, Lott draws on an additional ten years of data—including provocative analysis of the effects of gun bans in Chicago and Washington, D.C—that brings the book fully up to date and further bolsters its central contention.