When I was just a boy my father, an avid hunter, gave me a 410. Along with that gift was a detailed afternoon session with my father on gun safety, how to handle ones self in the field (crossing fences, making sure you knew who was on the other side of the corn field, etc.) and these words that I will never forget…

“Son, don’t point a gun at someone else…..unless you aim to kill them.”

The point that my father was making was that our shotguns and rifles were tools for hunting only. They occupied the same space as fishing rods and animal traps. Used properly by the family for gathering food (we ate what we killed).

Later in the Marine Corps I learned what each weapon in my Platoons inventory could do to a person, how far the round traveled and how the weapon should be managed. These were tools of war and for killing. They were locked in the armory when not used.

In the end my takeaway was that guns are tools, each with a specific use, purpose and lethality. They should be regulated accordingly.