It’s unknown if demonstrating responsible handling actually keeps kids safe.
Parent who think their kids know gun safety, no longer bother to keep their kids safe from guns.
The percentage of parents who think education is a proper replacement for proper storage is too high.
One of my son’s friend’s family literally has guns lying around the house. On a table, leaning on the wall, on a shelf. He stopped being allowed to hang out with that friend.
“my perfect flawless child would NEVER do anything bad with the guns he has free access to!!”
I’m just glad I don’t have to teach my kids gun saftety, as they will most likely only see them on a screen.
I would suggest doing so anyway. If they come across a firearm by happenstance then they at least won’t panic and will know what to do to be safe.
My grandfather taught me about gun safety for as far back as I can remember. He didn’t keep loaded guns around where we could get them but that wouldn’t have mattered because the number one rule was don’t touch them without permission and I never saw any of us kids break it. He also drilled into us not to treat them like toys. They were never gotten out for fun. Only to hunt or practice with. Which is not the attitude I see in many other gun owners.
All the gun owners I know talk the biggest talk about safety. Then the moment they get to show it off, they wave their guns around like school children and pointing it at random things and fetishizing it.
Mine is locked up and secured. And if I take it out, I’m using it.
That’s my experience as well. When I got old enough that I started going shooting with people outside my family I was frequently shocked with how little regard a lot of them showed for safety. They usually had the basics down but their whole attitude made me very uncomfortable.
Kids are kids though and consequences often don’t stick in the face of possible adventure. We don’t actually fully develop our risk assessment until the age of 25. That’s why both sides are important. Teach but also lock them up.
When I was growing up in the 80s and 90s my Grandfather who served in WW2 kept guns in several closets and under two beds at least, and I also knew where the ammo was located. I knew to never mess with them but times sure have changed.
Nowadays I lock mine up responsibly and never loaded. I’ve not started giving my kids lessons though, since they’re not even 10 yet. We’ve talked about safety though. I think that education is super important.
I’ve thought about one of those hidey wall shelves but am a bit scared to have anything quick access that they could stumble upon.
That’s for the best to educate them. It’s totally possible one of their friends has unsecured firearms in their house. Better to know it’s something serious and to leave them alone.
I grew up with rifles that were locked in the garage. And I was a stupid kid who figured out how to look down the barrel and point them at the neighbors’ fence. They were “hidden” in an area where I could mess with them for a few hours without my family knowing.
I was given the whole talk but I never took it seriously until years later when I got on the range and did some actual hunting and cried my ass off killing an animal.
Knowing how stupid I was, I assume the worse with my family.
Today, I keep a pistol in a secure case in the house. But it’s in my office near all the other critical things where I can see it/my kids can’t access it without lots of barriers. It also means that it’s kinda useless for quick access and would take a few minutes to get. I’m okay with that.
The lesson he’s trying to teach, is that there is no ‘right’ lock, only ‘better’ locks. Layer your security and have an honest assessment of threats and replaceability. Locks really only:
- Keep opportunist thieves honest
- Raise the skill threshold needed to bypass, and
- Take longer to bypass, risking detection for the attacker
#1 Can be achieved by the most bottom tier vendor-garbage stacked zinc/brass body lock #2 & 3 Is where most lock ratings come from, but nothing is perfect.
This monstrosity is what the military uses on secure ammo dumps, vehicle storage, etc and that thing still gets other dudes with guns protecting it. If the Army left it completely unguarded, things like thermite, oxy-acetylene, or grinding would not have any trouble getting past.
Inversely, your mid-to-good bicycle cable lock outside the corner store only really works because of the risk of exposure as people leave and enter the store. Bolt cutters might be a two-minute job all said and done, but there’s significant risk of discovery mid attempt.
How many children are watching Lockpickinglawyer AND have lockpicking tools AND have a steady enough hand to crack the locks that Lockpickinglawyer does? Going to guess that is near zero. The dude has also easily picked every common door lock but I’m willing to bet you still lock your doors.
Risk compensation is a theory which suggests that people typically adjust their behavior in response to perceived levels of risk, becoming more careful where they sense greater risk and less careful if they feel more protected.[2] Although usually small in comparison to the fundamental benefits of safety interventions, it may result in a lower net benefit than expected or even higher risks.[3][n 1]
Link to source study:
Parental Engagement With Children Around Firearms and Unsecure Storage
