Why do you own a gun?

If you own a gun (or guns), please let us know why.

I do not own a gun.  When I was growing up we had a couple of rifles for target practice (shooting cans and whatnot).

Some of my older friends own one, but only for protection.

I own firearms and I'm not "confessing" to anything. Simply by using that word you are insinuating that gun owners should be ashamed or embarrassed about their guns and I assure you that nothing could be farther from the truth.

Edited by TeleStrat - June 18 2016 at 04:26

TeleStrat wrote: I own firearms and I'm not "confessing" to anything. Simply by using that word you are insinuating that gun owners should be ashamed or embarrassed about their guns and I assure you that nothing could be farther from the truth. I am qualified with and experienced with firearms and I own them because I have a right to and I just plain effing want to. Furthermore, I really could not care less about anyone's opinion of me or my guns.

Settle.......

I own a handgun. A pistol. It was actually a gift from my mother's husband. It was his old gun. I learned to shoot with it. The reason? Well I actually think you should be able to have a gun at home. I come from a country where getting a gun legally is nigh impossible and I always considered that an affront to the damn freedom of a person to have a tool for protection at home. Especially consider how atrocious the police there were (are). 

I do not own a gun. I have some high quality kitchen knives which I keep razor sharp.

TeleStrat wrote: I own firearms and I'm not "confessing" to anything. Simply by using that word you are insinuating that gun owners should be ashamed or embarrassed about their guns and I assure you that nothing could be farther from the truth. I am qualified with and experienced with firearms and I own them because I have a right to and I just plain effing want to. I have edited my original post because it is ridiculous to get upset about an insinuating comment. My first firearm purchase was a 9mm semi-automatic pistol with two magazines and it was actually my wife's idea. We had three children and she was specifically concerned about home invasion. She was comfortable with me having a handgun because she knew I served in the Army and had trained with and had experience with firearms. I started going to the shooting range to practice and familiarize myself with the new gun. I enjoyed target shooting and eventually bought a few standard six shot revolvers because they were more accurate and that's what target shooting is all about. A friend was upgrading to a better reloading press and gave me his old set up and I started reloading because it was cheaper than buying ammo at the gun shop. I started experimenting with different powders and bullet types to increase the accuracy and manage the recoil. So target shooting for accuracy became a hobby instead of just a way to keep in practice and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I taught all three of my children to shoot when they were young teenagers and my daughter enjoyed it as much as my two boys did. I own twenty-one firearms (and that's not a confession). They are mostly standard revolvers but I have a few rifles and one shotgun. They are securely stored in a large gun safe that actually exceeds the state and federal requirements regarding gun safety. I'm very serious about my firearms and strongly support legitimate gun control.

I own a shotgun. To hunt. And then eat what I kill. I suppose it might also come in handy if there is an intruder breaking into my house. But I won't eat them after I've blown their heads off. Humans are too full of preservatives.

I have a replica of an 18th century pistol, and have collected swords and daggers. The swords and daggers are not for defence, I just find them beautiful and have liked to practice with blunt swords.

I used to have an air rifle as I would practice shooting with that a lot, and enjoyed target practice while in the naval reserve. An acquaintance of mine from high school was shot and killed by the police in his sister's home when he heard a commotion, shouting and screaming, in the house and ran inside with his pellet gun which he had been using for target practice. They came because they suspected pot use, and did find some roaches.

If I lived an a farm or in the wilderness I would definitely want a rifle or shotgun. I have a friend who hunts and eats what he kills, and I'm very cool with that (mostly vegetarian myself, but I never say no to his meat).

Despite our more stringent laws on firearms, gun violence is on the rise here (not from people with permits usually). A lot of guns do find their way over the border.

I own them because my father gave them to me.