Bridge the gap--weapons of war--weapons of peace

[2tuf4u]

I am not a soldier- I am honored, however,to have family members and friends who have served this country honorably and unselfishly. To them I am eternally thankful. How then do we pass the dual purpose of weaponry ( gun ownership)to the next generation of children/ grandchildren who have never known of war/hunting/target shooting, etc ? Please feel free to share your thoughts ----this is the crux of passing the gun ownership banner to the next generation. Hunting spaces are dwindling and we must instill a sense of civic/historic responsibility to the 2nd /3rd generation.

 

[Carlisle]

Buy a 22 and take them shooting. Start with safety and the basics and have a blast, literally

 

[roggom]

Its all about removing the stigma associated with firearms as instruments of war, but rather focus on the sporting use. Even in your introduction you inadvertently grouped war, hunting, and target.

Children must first and foremost have respect for the firearm and fully understand the hazards of their misuse.

A properly trained mentor will instill safety at every occasion and will not waver.

The child can then enjoy the quality time spent with their mentor, be it their father, mother, grandparents etc. Days to the range plinking or a hunting trip, all memorable. The Mentor must always consider the age of the child and plan events with this in mind. You dont want to "toughen them up" with a x54 rifle, as their desire for shooting will be short. Take time, be patient and take breaks.

As they grow they will understand that shooting and firearms are part of their lives. The media and other influences will attempt to appeal to the negative stigma, but the child will have hands on knowledge and good memories to properly formulate their own opinion.

 

[George Az]

I don't think they will care. But, it is not only the shooting sports, it is a variety of all kinds of non structured sports. BMX, skateboarding, bicycling, motorcycling - racing and plain old fun dirt biking, hotrodding, drag racing, trap and skeet, I can go on...... Money, location, area, stigmas. Parents drive little johnny to school until he can drive himself. Nobody turns a wrench for themselves. The cost of hunting is $$$$, it is to a point where many folks in my area do archery only due to cost.

I am not going into politics. Why build a car when all you have to do is get the money to go buy a cool one? And if you can't have the cool one, not why work for it, Why bother?

Go to any book store, look at the magazines - where are the gun rags? hot rod mags? How much are they? People who look stuff up on the internet, while it works and it works well, you have to put something in their hands to motivate them, they have to WANT to do something. If one looks at the figures, maybe they are smart - why even try. Stay at home, hang out with your bros, watch tv, light up another bowl......

If I had all the money I spent on cars & trucks, guns, girls, skateboards, surf boards, fishing equipment and knives, I'd probably be rich.

There is a famous quote, supposedly on a tombstone, "I spent all my money on booze, girls and cars...the rest I just wasted." Life is about living, we are robbing our children of a childhood. The freedom to play in a non structured, self developed fun time. Being outside, without the constant Mommy present. Evel Kneivel RULES!

 

[Diablo]

It's OK to have some fun, even better if something useful can be learned while doing it, but I don't get the part about wasting money/time on the unnecessary, and we set a poor example for children if we condone it.

IMO, we need to start early and teach our children what they need to survive, how to shoot/hunt/fish, how to ride, how to drive, how to cook, how to make/tend a garden, canning/preserving food, how to work, trade skills, how to avoid waste, and how to take care of their money/possessions.

Each person must also choose early in life to do the right things (i.e., obey the law), or not. How we conduct ourselves (the example we set) can make an important difference.

Am not against the structured "sports" but buying tickets to support overpaid players in baseball/basketball/football/hockey/race drivers/riders/actors/actresses/etc/etc. is nearly as useless as playing video games.

As for war, it will happen again, and again, and again, armed conflict is as old as mankind and as recent as today.

Conflict does not always occur in foreign lands.

The tools of conflict are not limited to firearms or the martial arts.

 

[epaultmbt]

Inspire them to serve in the military (combat arms). If one applies themselves it's as competitive as any career in the civilian world. Many have done very well monetarily while doing a hell of a lot of good for America and liberty in general. I for one would be proud if my children chose that path. I wish more of us reached out to the younger generation and instilled American values. Once they had that and the fortitude to stand up for what's right they would realize the only true way to do defend our ideals is through a mastery of arms.

 

[pmclaine]

I bought a Red Ryder. I planted it in my sons 7 year old arms. I will water appropriately with safety, discipline and the marksmanship basics. I expect it will grow into a full understanding/respect/enjoyment of making small shit fly through the air in a controlled manner.

 

[pmclaine]

Inspire them to serve in the military (combat arms). .

I served. Not sure if I would let my kid serve a regime that will leave him/her hanging in the wind. Im sure he could trust his peers, as I did, but can he trust his high command?

 

[bobtodrick]

Pretty much what everyone else has said.
In 2007 I bought my (then) six year old a Red Ryder, after watching A Christmas Story (a fantastic movie to get a child interested in shooting IMO).
Spent a couple weeks going over gun safety before he was actually allowed to load it up and shoot. There were a couple if mis-steps (accidentally sweeping the room with it, for example) that led to the gun going away for a week...but he learned pretty quickly.
A year later his year younger brother received his.
A couple of years later the got received pellet guns (a step that I would probably not bother with in hindsight) and when they each turned ten they received their Marlin XT-22's which thrilled them both to death (bad pun probably).
We've added a number of other .22's to the stable...a Mossberg 715t AR and a GSG 1911. This past Christmas Santa brought the family a 12g O/U.
They love shooting and we go nearly every weekend if the weather is decent. At the range I get regular comments on how well they listen and how safety conscious they are...they've actually pointed out to some adults with poor safety skills that they are doing something unsafe.
Children are sponges that love to soak up new experiences. They also love to emulate the grownups who are close to them.
As (mis)quote Kevin Costner...'if you put a gun in their hands, they will come'.

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Weapons of war and weapons of peace are all firearms.

Until legislators got a bug up their collective ass about curtailing civilian firearms ownership, they were all designed and built to do one thing; hit what they are aimed at. Sometimes that's an inanimate target, sometimes it's a game or nuisance animal, and sometimes it's humans with evil on their minds misusing their own firearms to all our disgrace and serious harm.

Those of us who are Veterans mainly feel embarrassed when non-Veterans attempt to put us on a pedestal, so if you really appreciate our feelings, stop that stuff right now.

Get a basic 22LR, learn how to hit with consistency yourself, then teach the kids to do the same.

Forget the sacred trust stuff and take on the task as a sport that sometimes has legitimate patriotic applications; no more, no less.

Greg

 

[Darkside-Six]

I will teach my children just the same as my father taught me from a very young age. Guns are tools, not weapons, but they are to be respected. My son will be 8 in another month and will be getting a .22 just as I did when I was 7. He already has airsoft rifles and understands as well as fallows the 4 most important rules in gun safety. He already knows how to fully field strip an AR15 and the names of the nomenclature.

All I am doing is properly educating him about firearms the right way, before some rapper on TV or the media does.