When you hear gentle music in the background of a TV news package about a shooting death it’s a sure sign that the producer is pro-civilian disarmament. It’s only a matter of time before the announcer says something along the lines of “the bereaved parents are looking to pass Nicholas’ Bill in New York State.” You know; some gun control bill that would have saved the young boy or girl’s life. No mention’s made of the legislation’s downside, or the fact that the new law violates the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. Ah, but this time, on Fox & Friends, Tucker Carlson was there to put the report in a less flattering light . . .
“The point of that package was, guns are scary, gun owners are a threat to you and your children,” Carlson told this couch mates.
Carlson points out that more children drown in bathtubs than in accidental shootings, and asked why Fox didn’t focus on tub death.
“I’d like to see a package on ‘Do you have a bathtub at home? Because I need to know that before I send my child over to your house. A little perspective might be helpful.”
And so it was.
While I have no problem with people asking the first question – “Are there guns in your home?”, I have a big problem when they don’t ask the follow-up question – “Are they secured?” I have no problem with a person having guns in their home (hell, I do). Where I have the problem is when they are not secured (mine all are). One of my kids used to play at a friend’s house. When we found out that the father kept his loaded .357 in his nightstand drawer all the time (even when he was not at home), no more playing at that house.
As we’ve always said here at TTAG – the gun should be on your hip or in your safe, lockbox, etc.
Because most non-gun owning ninnies don’t ask question #2, I don’t usually reply truthfully to #1.
Except that if your kid has been taught properly not to touch things that don’t belong to him, how I keep my guns is a non-issue. I could have a live AT4 sitting on my wall and it would do absolutely nothing because the kid knows better than to touch it.
You sound just like the parent of the last kid to disregard that rule without them knowing. ‘I don’t understand, we taught him better..’
Another kid in the ground, and a bunch more parents who are ready to play Russian Roulette with theirs.
Evolution in action. When I was a kid, grandparents and great uncles had all sorts of loaded guns stashed around the house. I could shoot the guns if they supervised me. I was trusted to be responsible around grand parents and relatives with the guns.
Do you keep drain cleaner under the kitchen sink? Is it properly secured?
To Hannibal: Who was that child, what city and state? Or is this just a fantasy to cause fear in the undereducated?
I would have assumed that *your* kids would have been taught to leave guns or anything else which does not belong to them alone. When I was a kid, the only guns in the house were mine, and here 50 years later the many guns I now have are secured by me standing in front of them and nothing else. My kids have gone through 4 decades of loaded guns everywhere without any problems. Keeping secrets and hiding forbidden fruit causes problems, not guns. They reliably do only what they are told.
This is what responsible gun owners may do, but it is clear that many do not, just as with this kid’s friend, who decided to handle his father’s gun without permission and without training Further, there is the issue of kids from nongun owning families coming into your home who may snoop and find your unsecured firearms.
If you let any kids “snoop around” your house unsupervised then you have deeper problems than gun storage.
^^ This.
It’s not about “keeping secrets or hiding forbidden fruit,” it’s about keeping guns secure from curious minds and little fingers.
No different than securing matches or drain cleaner.
I recall having this debate here before. Regardless, it is and always has been about the people. I had shotguns, rifles, and ammo for both in my room, under my full control, by the time I was 12 or 13, about the age of the boys in this tragic story. I was also left with ready access to knives, electrical outlets, household chemicals, gas stoves, power tools, medications, and all other manner of implements with which I could easily harm myself. I am not stupid, and my parents and grandparents made sure I was not ignorant, so no issues.
If someone’s 12 year old kid would pick up a gun and point it at someone, much less point it at someone and pull the trigger, safe firearm storage is the absolute least of their issues. I’m all for knowing people before you trust them with your child, but whether their home defense weapon is locked up at all times isn’t high on my list of concerns.
Here is an idea. Why not make safe purchases tax deductible. You know to make it an incentive for people to purchase them. We don’t need more laws. Common sense used to be rule of thumb. Now it seems that the government needs to do everything for us, and tell us how to be, and what to do.
Perhaps sales tax deductible…I wouldn’t be filing it on the tax returns.
When purchasing a gun safe in Washington State, you don’t have to pay sales tax.
MA, too. No sales tax on gun safes.
Is it important? Make safes FREE! Also installation, and some free money for anyone who installs one, whether or not that person owns any guns.
Who can get stupider than that? I dare you to try!
And it comes fully stocked with guns!
/tah dah!
I cant resist a good dare:
Make the inclusion of a new safe mandatory with *each* firearm purchase, just like trigger locks. This would have the additional benefit of making all firearms ridiculously expensive and drive more evil gun makers out of business. They could even offer an exception to additional safes if you registered subsequent purchases (by serial number) in their “National Gun Safe Database”. Naturally, it would be “for the children”.
How about, “If you have guns, are they secured so the children can’t get their hands on them?”
Glad to see Tucker Carlson injecting some common sense into the usual “guns-bad, gun owners-bad” BS.
Ok to ask the question. My small childrens’ friends know I pack but they also know I am responsible so there is no need to ask if they are secured. Besides, my kids took Eddie eagle classes and know the deal
Glad how Tucker’s story ended, mostly like what that guy’s take is on things so glad he’s not kool-aiding on the dark side.
Tie this story with the TTAG on the worried Jews in NY and the gist of the riot story in MO and we got ourselves a bunch of tightly packed NY, NY whiners if the SHTF.
Is it ok for your toddler to go over their neighbor-friends’ houses if there are guns in the home? The answer is wholly different if there are armed thugs (or rogue cops, Chinese invaders, zombies, etc.) in yours.
Wow, good job Tucker Carlson!
+1
If my son or daughter was going on a “sleepover” at a friend’s house, I would ask the friend’s parents if they had a gun in their home. If they said no, I would not let my child stay there. Why would I let my child be undefended?
I would ask, “Do you have guns in your house?”. If they said “yes”, I’d make sure my child had his .45 with him to defend himself.
Ralph, that is excellent!
Use to trust Fox News….gave up that a long time ago. The only video allowed in my house for the last dozen years comes across the internet. ABC, CNN, Fox, NBC, CBS the whole lot of them attempt to manipulate you for their own political purposes. They are no less evil than the political class that cheerfully pass laws that only apply to us peasants.
You need to check out ReasonTV:
http://reason.com/reasontv
Fox has over the last few years transformed itself from a conservative oriented station to one of the pack. It is no different than CNN or MSNBC in my eyes. Leftist hosts, leftist views. I don’t watch them much anymore. Tucker Carlson is actually one of the handful of folks that show up on the channel worth watching. Thank you Tucker for a bit of sanity.
Fox News is most definitely right-wing, but they have leftists on in order to maintain balance. They are far more right-wing than CNN or MSNBC.
Fox is generally right wing, but its owner is definitely anti-gun.
You mean far more balanced.
Yeah, they still do these ridiculous features that try to manipulate using emotions. I haven’t seen very much emotional manipulation in their breaking news reports though. Still 100 million times better than the competition.
I wasn’t brought up around guns but had a healthy understanding of what one is and what they were capable of doing by age 8.
Todays parents to me are a bunch of ninnies’ worrying about things, with no perspective bias at all.
Dammed intewebs fault.
If it happened in Idaho we didn’t ever here about it in NY when I was a kid.
Today
Its all over the place in 30 minutes..
Yah for Carlson more kids are killed in home accidents around common objects then ever will be by a gun.
Ban swimming pools……………………………
When I was 8 or 9, circa 1955, a school friend whose house I was visiting claimed he had his dad’s WW2 trophy German submachine gun under his bed. Note I said “claimed”, since I did not look. No one died. If your kids are all that curious, they should be taught.
Actually, when I’ve asked a question like that, it’s never been “do you have guns,” it’s been “are your guns safe from the kids?” And it’s asked right along with all the other kinds of kid-safe questions. As far as I’m concerned, guns are normal. It’s amusing to see someone who’s hoplophobic react to that question and it’s led to some quite pleasant conversations where the person does have guns.
That’s a good way of putting it, actually. You come across as pro-gun, but with an eye towards safety.
Unfortunately, not all children are taught to respect others’ property, so we must be vigilant. If there are children in the home, mine are either locked away or on my person in my direct control.
Agree with previous posts regarding this. I found myself yelling at the TV watching Fox News drink the kool aid. No mention of the NRA Eddie Eagle program at all. This was right up there with the flagrant slanted previous story from Nightline. Or 60 minutes done 15 years ago.
The slant is so obvious it’s sickening. Glad Tucker lost the former bow tie and put his .02 cents in the reality.
Safe storage is an admirable goal. No law required for those of us with a modicum of intelligence.
No accidents proves safe storage, actual physical pieces notwithstanding.
Yeah Tucker! I don’t like liberals (wasn’t he always the liberal on CNN’s Crossfire?) very much (ok…at all) but, that was great. Oh and here’s a point….don’t most good parents already know if their friends parents are into guns or not? When my son has a sleep over (with us) it almost always involves a trip to the range and usually the other boy’s father will come along with us. It’s also just as important to know which ones don’t have the guns. I don’t want my boy discussing guns with anti-gunners who could potentially make trouble for him at school. I fear them more than parents with guns. My son knows exactly how to handle himself if a gun is presented in a foreign environment.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrorxilPMFo&list=PLD1853F4C7D89F157
Teach your kids gun safety. You should probably secure guns that you don’t expect to defend your home with in a safe, but no mechanical lock will stop the curiosity of a child.
Parents of children who have never been to our home before usually already know that there are guns in the home because mine is on my side in the open when I meet them. I wouldn’t be offended if parents asked me if there were though. I do also respect the decision of those who would prefer not to answer the question. I have never had a parent decide to not allow their child over to our home. New kids used to get the brief safety speech about not touching any gun they might encounter on the farm. Even here in rural Ohio, I’m surprised at how many of the children visiting who were not even taught the most basic of firearm safety. I have had parents ask me to teach basic firearm safety to their child and re-enforce the lessons over the years. Now, many of those children are 21 years old and over. They ask me about good training courses and what sidearm would be ideal for them as a first EDC. Our 22LR Ruger pistol has been available to any of them to qualify for their CHL. Some have even gotten their parents to carry. I’m looking forward to the day when their grandchildren ask to borrow the pistol for qualifications. 🙂
One of the news/opinion sites I frequent is Carlson’s Daily Caller in part because of their Guns and Gear section. No original content, but I’ve come across some interesting articles there. So it’s no surprise that he gets it. Jim Treacher’s column is pretty good too.
Most of the people at Fox may lean conservative, but they’re all New Yorkers and don’t have a clue about firearms.
I’ve never been asked, but if I am, I guess I’ll give the answer I’d like to hear myself: “Oh, sure, they’re secure and my kids know how important it is to take firearm safety seriously.” Or maybe just “Of course. I don’t blame you for wanting to know your kids are safe here. By the way, does your child have any medical conditions I should know about, like asthma or allergies?”
If a parent seems uncomfortable but open to reason, I might say, “Hey, a lot of people feel uncomfortable around firearms because they’ve only seen them in the movies and on the news. But what I’ve always found is that once somebody understands how a gun actually works, they feel a lot safer. Want to take a look at one?”
Bottom line: Many people have been trained by the media/movies/antis to fear gun owners as much as guns. So I consider it my responsibility to be a good ambassador for gun owners. Once someone realizes that they’ve been fed a bunch of lies about “gun nuts,” they’re likely to be much more open to the possibility that guns themselves aren’t evil, either.
The part of my brain that thinks of great comebacks about 10 minutes too late just issued this one for parents who ask about unsecured guns at my home when their child is coming for a visit:
“Of course not. But what about you? Are your guns secure from your kids? I only ask because your kid could be bringing one of your guns into my house.”
Thank you Tucker for saying what needs to be said! I’m so sick and tired of anti’s making gun owners look like we are irresponsible monsters that people need to stay away from. Hey media here’s a idea, why don’t you guys talk about how gun owners take measures so things like this don’t happen!
I’m so sick and tired of anti’s making gun owners look like we are irresponsible monsters that people need to stay away from.
The shaming and ostracizing are part of their plan. In their PowerPoints, they call it “social enforcement.” They’re quite proud of it, along with “He was a responsible gun owner right up until he wasn’t.”
Three hundred million guns in this country – one is in at least 40% of american homes, but in a dozen years of public education we can’t set aside even one hour of classroom time for what to do if you find a gun, how to clear the chamber on a glock, remington 870, etc..
Pitiful.
For a variety of reasons, I think that number is WILDLY conservative. I believe if there were any way to find out (which I am glad there is not!) the number of operable modern (smokeless cartridge) firearms in the U.S. would be over a billion. 20 years ago I saw an extended treatise estimating 800 million, and how many have been sold since?
There is no excuse that can justify having an unsecured firearm in your home when children are present. It is both an education item and a responsibility item. We were all kids, and we all used to get curious.. maybe even brazen when being pressured by peers.
What is wrong with asking a fellow parent if they have firearms (good for them) and if they are secured/safe from children. It’s a simple question, and between firearms owners shouldn’t be an issue.. because responsible firearm owners secure their firearms from children. Educate your kids on what they can do, responsible handling, and lock them up… I’m not saying have 7 padlocks between you and the gun, but seriously a biometric quick access nightstand safe is around $100… if you can afford the gun you an afford to properly store it in a safe manner.
A visiting child may not be as firearm educated as your own kid.
I do not believe this should be a law, or forced upon the public in any way (Darwinism)… but that said, the penalty for an accidental shooting of a child should be more severe
*Flame suit on *
We the PotG need to study and promote gun storage the same way we do the first 4+ rules of gun safety. Do we need (to say nothing of want) laws to define and enforce muzzle discipline, trigger discipline, etc? We have figured these things out for ourselves and our community organizations (NRA etc.) have publicized them as standards that we enforce on ourselves and one-another.
– – – I was raised (in the 50’s) with no formal training, no formal standards, no instruction and no rules for the disciplines or storage. I didn’t need anyone to tell me not to load the shotguns I played with in my father’s store (while customers came and went. No one was alarmed.) Nobody had a gun accident. That was then in a different culture. This is now in a culture where most children – especially guests from other homes – don’t understand what we learned without training.
– – – When my children were in the house guns were always locked or disassembled. When (rarely) children are in the house now, same thing. I make no assumptions about any children.
– – – We the PotG have a public perception issue to be concerned with. We need to do everything we can – within our own community – to bring accidents with children as near to zero as is conceivable. If we do that then we won’t have government tell us how to do it. If we don’t do that then we will continue to have a bloody flag waived by the Antis no matter what the ratio is of child deaths from guns vs. bathtubs.
– – – Incidentally, we also need to be cognizant of the public perception issue about gun thefts. I don’t care if you have insurance on your gun collection. I don’t care if your gun collection has little monetary value. I DO care if our community’s storage habits constitute the major source-of-supply for the black-market. If media accounts were constantly reporting that a gun used in a crime was found to have been stolen we would have the same problem with calls for government to prescribe gun-storage practices. Whether out of concern for child safety or theft, any gun-storage laws will be followed by gun-safe registration and gun-safe inspection laws (see the UK).
– – – Relatively speaking, I don’t think we have a safety issue that justifies onerous rules or great expense. Practically-speaking, we CAN always do a little bit better and it’s our duty to think about best-practices, discuss them, have the NRA standardize them (as they have for the other rules our community has embraced) and then VOLUNTARILY maintain these standards. If we WON”T do what we CAN do, then we take our chances with public-opinion.
Wow, where are all the fox fanboys now? How’s that crow taste?
Rock on Tucker!
Funny how the other two host seemed uncomfortable with Tucker’s opinion. It was almost like they were simply reading the news and not thinking. Tucker was thinking and giving facts the other two hosts could not refute.
Guaranteed the producer of the piece is anti-gun ownership and is a person that lives by emotion and disregards facts that interfere with those emotions.