I live in the western United States in the country. My wife and I own firearms for hunting and as protection against wild animals that enter my land. I have a number of dogs and horses and I don't want to lose any of them. Occasionally bears will visit my property, which is alright because they just eat the bird feeders. The cougars and coyotes are another story. I wouldn't hesistate to waste one of them and dump their carcass in the woods to protect one of my own animals. It happens. As for home protection against human intruders, I hope I would never have to shoot someone, but I would to defend myself and family.
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Name : Bryant, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 32, City : eastern, State : WA Country : United States, Occupation : Power Plant Operator, Education level : Technical School, Social class : Middle class, As you can imagine, this is a delicate topic. I strongly believe that being armed is far more secure than being unarmed, but that refers to me personally. I was well trained by the armed forces, I practice at least once a week, often twice a week with the gun I carry daily. Having served in combat, I have already passed the hard part of having to kill a man. The first one is VERY hard, but having crossed that line I now can do it again if needed. Fortunately, that has not been necessary as a civilian but the presence of my .45 has resolved conflicts on a couple of occasions. Although the law here in WA requires that my firearm be concealed I make only the minimum effort to do so. I can't and don't carry openly but in risk situations I try to make sure that those around me know that I have it. My coat may fall open, I'll 'pat' it with my right hand as if checking that it's still there, things like that. Flip side, if you are not really comfortable with firearms. If you are not fast, or worse, not accurate. If you are tentative and unwilling to use the firearm when needed. Don't carry one. It will probably cause more trouble than it will solve. My .02 worth.
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Name : Curly, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 52, City : Spokane, State : WA Country : United States, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, I grew up with guns and love target shooting, but even though I have been attacked and nearly killed I refuse to have a gun in my house because it's more likely that a member of my family will be hurt. I also do not want to have to feel the guilt of having shot a human being even if it was in self defense. My understanding is that even cops and military have a hard time dealing with that.
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Name : Ericka, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Disability : Bipolar, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : non-practicing, Age : 36, City : San Diego, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : computer specialist, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, Yes; while living in an upstairs appartment in my home town, I woke up to someone pounding on my front door, and yelling something about 'come out and get your @** kicked', etc. - at 2 A.M.! I took a pistol (details on request - I own several), went downstairs, and tried to find out 'who' and 'why' (through the closed door), and got louder raving and pounding. When he paused to catch his breath, I loudly and deliberately inserted the magazine, 'racked' the slide, and told him to leave - there was a mutter, a second voice said 'let's go', and the sound of footsteps walking away. I have always believed that a person's safety and security are their own responsibility, but that ANY use of force is, at best, a severe moral and legal decision - one that can only be made at the time and place - and one that you, personally, have to be prepared to make - and suffer any consequences of that decision. I would like to discuss/debate this further, at anyone's option.
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Name : Jeff, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Diest, Age : 46, City : Saybrook, State : IL Country : United States, Occupation : craftsman, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, It's rare that someone will take your gun out of your hand. It happens more to police officers, because they have to get in close contact with suspects in order to arrest them. For civilian using a gun for defense, the civilian aint gonna arrest the criminal so it's less likely for the civilian's gun to be taken away by the criminal
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Name : P.W, Gender : M, Race : Mexican, Puerto Rican, German, Portuguese, Age : 24, City : Honolulu, State : HI Country : United States, I have lived in Texas most of my life. I realize that Texans have a reputation, especially with those who know nothing about us, for being armed to the teeth and ready for a shootout at the drop of a hat. That's sad. Most Texans I know are very kind, fair people. That's unless of course you try to rob, rape, or kill us. Most people don't realize that it was very much against the law for anyone other than a cop to carry a handgun unless on his/her own property. It wasn't until January 1996 that our concealed carry law went into effect. What that means is that a person desiring a concealed carry license must undergo a complete F.B.I. and State Police background check. The applicant must be squeaky clean, pass a two day course on Texas law regarding use of a firearm, and a test on the firing range to demonstrate proficiency with a pistol/revolver. Since our concealed carry law went into effect our crimes against persons statistics have dropped amazingly. It seems that the bad guys hesitate to try to rob or mug a citizen who might just be able to take care of the situation. Yes, it seems as though an armed society is a polite society after all. One last point. When asked why I carry a pistol I answer this way. I've legally carried a gun for nearly 10 years now. Thankfully I have never had to draw it from it's holster but it feels really good just knowing it's there. I have also been driving a car for over 30 years. I wear my seat belt every place I drive. Am I looking to have a wreck or assault someone with my car? Am I showing paranoia or insecurity by wearing my seatbelt? No way! I demonstrating common sense by reducing my chances if being injured or killed by some mean or irresponsible jerk. I hope I'll never have to depend on my gun or my seatbelt to protect my life yet they are there just in case.
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Name : Bill, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Disability : Paralyzed, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 57, City : Dallas, State : TX Country : United States, Occupation : retired disc jockey, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, If you plan on using a firearm for defense, you have to have more than just gun safety to use it, as I just recently learned. Firearms are a very contrevercial subject, and I believe every person has the right to use one, even if not permitted by law. It is a human right. However, if you plan on using one, you need to take a class on using firearms specifically for defense. If you do anything out of sequence in an emergency, you could end up spending alot of time in jail no matter how justified you were and possibly end up making the situation worse, like you mentioned. everyone has the right to a firearm, but don't even think about touching one until you've had proper training in handling one.
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Name : Katy-N, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Pentecostal, Age : 18, City : Hudson, State : WI Country : United States, Occupation : student, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, I have several pistols that I shoot in competition and also carry concealed in public.(not all at once!) I have licences from several states, and can legally carry concealed in over 30 states. Carrying a gun for self-defense is a serious responsibility. It requires training and knowledge of the law. A gun can only legally be used in an immediate, otherwise unavoidable, danger to life or limb. They can and do get used to 'turn the tables' on criminal attackers every day. I haven't had to use mine in defense, and I hope I never have to, but it is a good thing to have if all else fails.
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Name : Michael20835, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Baptist, Age : 40, City : Stone Mountain, State : GA Country : United States, Occupation : Video Editor, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, The original point of the second amendment was so that people could repeat the American Revolution if the new government became tyrannical. Having a gun in your house for defense is secondary. People saying that the only purpose of guns is to kill people is not true. That is the only automatic weapons. Rifles are usually used for hunting (which happens a lot in here). Handguns are used for self defense, more from moose and occasionally bears than people. Arming everyone is using the mutually assured destruction like with nuclear weapons. If you could take away ALL the guns than, excluding wild animal attacks, we would be safer. But you can't take them all away, and the few that are left the more powerful they are because no one can challenge them. Next time you watch a bank robb
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Name : DanielPfalmer, Gender : Male, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 22, City : Fairbanks, State : AK Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 
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