I have guns but I'm not a "gun lover"

I have guns but I’m not a “gun lover”

My first gun was given to me when I was in kindergarten. It was a shiny new revolver cap pistol and I loved it. All the kids in my neighborhood dressed in cowboy hats and had their cap pistols, holsters, and cowboy shirts. We exchanged the latest cowboy comic books and I suppose I was at that time, a gun lover.

When in sixth grade, Santa brought me a Red Ryder BB gun. Wow, what a Christmas that was. Although warned by parents that we were not to shoot our BB guns at anyone, we would actually chose up sides and have BB gun “wars” out in the woods. What a great time, and besides the occasional sting of a BB on the leg or arm, nobody was seriously hurt.

Later on, I was given a 22 caliber single shot bolt action Remngton rifle from Sears. I used it for hunting squirrels and I still have that rifle and use it once in a while when I get the urge to plink at a few cans in the back yard.

In 1965, I bought my first hand gun. A Smith and Wesson service revolver. I bought it so I would at least have something on hand for protection at home.

My favorite gun is a single shot 4/10 shot gun. I use it to whack the occasional raccoon that discovers my garden or sits in my peach trees for his dinner.

My Dad used to get magazines from the NRA which used to be really interesting. I was given a couple of their magazines a few weeks ago. After leafing through them, I went to the NRA web site and discovered that this organization has changed ……. and not for the better. It seems to be purely a political organization.

Today, since the carnage in Connecticut where 20 children and 7 adults were murdered in an elementary school, I once again went to the NRA web site. Not a thing was mentioned about this massacre.

Today, I can’t call myself a “gun lover” although I do take reasonable care of my guns. I’m not afraid one bit of the government taking my guns away but at the same time believe something has to be done and I encourage my legislators to study the problem we have in this country and do something about it. 

It could be that nothing can be done to totally eliminate gun violence, but certainly we could do something about taking care of the mentally ill and making sure that background checks are given to every sale of a gun.