WOMEN and GUNS

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By Kristin Volk and Joseph Weber THE WASHINGTON TIMES

American women are buying guns and taking aim on firing ranges
in growing numbers, according to a recent study and interviews with gun-shop owners.

A 2009 study found 70 percent of shop owners reported more female buyers.

The study, conducted by the National Shooting Sports Foundation
and Southwick Associates, also found 80 percent of the female gun-buyers
who responded said they purchased a gun for self-defense, followed by 35 percent
for target practice and 24 percent for hunting.

Women and shop owners interviewed by The Washington Times
offered similar, narrow-ranging explanations for the increases " largely self-defense
and concerns about the possibility Obama would further restrict gun ownership.

Erika Gonzalez, of suburban Washington, was raised as a Quaker and grew up thinking
guns were unsafe " until a series of life-changing events.

Her grandmother was murdered about 15 years ago in a small town,
then her marriage fell apart and she was on her own.

"I was very anti-gun for a long time … and I guess my thinking evolved on that," said Ms. Gonzalez,
who owns a Glock 9mm and started a shooting club to practice
and share similar interests. "I was probably motivated to buy the gun
because I separated from my husband and was living alone."

Hilary Gotzh, a single 26-year-old, wants to buy a gun this year for protection
and recreational uses, but, like Ms. Gonzalez, thinks ownership is
a private and personal decision.

"It's not a common thing that women sit around tea and talk about their firearms," Ms. Gotzh said.

Jack Donald, a Washington-area gun dealer, said he's noticed a recent increase
in female gun sales, with most women looking for protection.
He also said he witnessed a surge in overall sales after Obama was elected in 2009.

"Our gun sales volume increased dramatically after the election," he said.

Despite such observations, a recent National Opinion Research Center study
shows the demographics of U.S. gun ownership have changed little
during the past 29 years. Women owned roughly 10.5 percent of this
country's guns in 1980, compared to 10.8 percent of the more than 200 million guns in the U.S. in 2008.

[All emfasis was added by David.]

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[+3] - 2PacksAday - 04/02/2010[b]Speaking of which, in movies why do people point their guns at somebody and when they are about to get serious they pull back the slide and load a round.[/b] Dramatic effect. There is a...

Public Service Message:

I don 't recommed that anyone rely on the stopping power of a 9mm automatic.

David

1 Reply

@OmSigDAVID,

Kinda depends on your aim. Razz

1 Reply

@Intrepid,

Intrepid wrote:

Kinda depends on your aim.

If u wanna go for headshots on moving targets, I guess that 's true.

1 Reply

@OmSigDAVID,

Oh. You didn't stipulate that the target was moving. Does that mean that the shootee is fleeing and is to be shot in the back? Or, does it mean that the shootee is moving toward the weapon, thus providing a larger target? Just askin.

1 Reply

Women are often advised against using weapons including guns and knives as it is so easy for a man to turn her weapon against her. As my daughter-in-law said, what do you do if your house is broken into? Tell the burglar to wait while you get your gun. Any protection offered by a gun is a illusory.

3 Replies

@Intrepid,

Intrepid wrote:

Oh. You didn't stipulate that the target was moving.

Sometimes the bad guys r unco-operative & unpredictable.

Intrepid wrote:

Does that mean that the shootee is fleeing and is to be shot in the back?

That woud be a valuable public service,
but might be attended by some legal problems, depending upon
evidentiary circumstances, related, e.g. to disposal of the target after use.

Intrepid wrote:

Or, does it mean that the shootee is moving toward the weapon,
thus providing a larger target? Just askin.

Maybe; I 'd be more inclined to aim for the large intestine.
That might slow him down. Some criminals don 't like to be shot there.

0 Replies

@plainoldme,

I used to travel all over the world and was away from home for months at a time.My wife wanted to know how to handle guns because we live waaaay out in the country and she was more afraid of wild dogs attacking our sheep.
A friend who was a marine gunnery instructor spent time with her to get her accimated to the recoil and the noise (the two things that separate shooters from potential victims). She did really good and only hadda use the guns once. Whe did in several dogs that were attacking our sheep and she got three.

She pracvtices several times a year with two other farm ladies. I see no difference in the sexes and gun handling, its an artificially created divide that is obsessed over by individuals like spendius .
Real women can handle a 12 gage as well as a 45. (PS, mrs F weighs in at about 120 pounds at 5'5")

1 Reply

@farmerman,

a 12 -gauge is not a handgun. At my height and weight, I would think a man could easily disarm me . . . but . . . I have no interest in guns and I find the so-called need for them mystifying.

My students are writing argument essays and one of the topics in their text books has to do with guns being outlawed. I told them they could take the topics as listed or turn them around.

0 Replies

@plainoldme,

plainoldme wrote:

Women are often advised against using weapons including guns and knives
as it is so easy for a man to turn her weapon against her.

By those who favor victim disarmament, yeah.
The idea is to DISABLE him before he gets close enuf to do that.

plainoldme wrote:

As my daughter-in-law said, what do you do if your house is broken into?

Blast him into hell, as fast as she possibly can.

plainoldme wrote:

Tell the burglar to wait while you get your gun.

Tell him anything u want, AFTER u have delivered several rounds of hollowpointed .44 special into his large bowel.
Note that it is always wise to keep emergency equipment reasonably near-at-hand.

plainoldme wrote:

Any protection offered by a gun is a illusory.

Perhaps u 'll be good enuf to explain that to the criminals who FLED
A.S.A.P, after I drew out my stainless steel mirror .44 revolver ?

http://www.proguns.com/images/used-guns/usedguns247-904/278taurus445.jpg

Thay had just shot out my driver 's door window around midnight
on the road, 3 inches in front of my face, and were driving abreast of my car, before I drew it out.

Its better to HAVE a gun and not NEED one
than it is to NEED a gun and NOT have one.

0 Replies

In 1985 I took a job in a city and having raised our children in a rural area we decided not to look for a residence in the surburbs (too much grass and no privacy anyway) and moved into a hundred + year old house in the inner parts of that city.

At my mother in law's insistance my best friend and roommate took a gun course which I also attended.

At the first class the instructor introduced himself as a retired city police officer and that he had walked a beat for over 20 years, until fallen arches, strained backs and other occupational wear and tear sent him to a desk and finally retirement. Then he asked for questions.

A woman sheepishly (pun intended farmerman) asked about his rescomendations for preference of firearms for home protection and if he would prefer a 45 of a 357.

The instructor responded neither, his preference would be a 12 ga with #5 shot because it controls the room with little need for aim or practice once you got used to the noise and recoil, and (I think this is most important) the #5 shot is light enough it wouldn't endanger the innocent in adjacent rooms.

So is I was going to make a recommendation about a gun for self protection I'll stand by this retired cop's recommendation.

BTW as per Harry Dean Stanton, a Repo Man carries two revolvers, the first loaded with blanks to get their heads down, and the second just in case they don't duck.

Rap

1 Reply

@raprap,

I am no fan of the 12 gauge or any other long arm as the primary weapon, but they do seem to gather a lot of recommendations.

1 Reply

@roger,

Rodger

I'm no fan of 'packing' concealed weapons. I would feel better when 'packing' that the weapon, weather it be blade, shot, or explosive, that gawd and everyone knows it's there. That way a potential preventative could be "don't f**k with Bettye, Bettye has a 12 ga, or 45, or hand grenade, or samuri sword, small thermonuclear device.

As for the 12 ga, it was the shotgun and not Mr. Colt or Winchester that won the west. Consequently the 12 ga has the advantage in the 'also a tool' category, that is unless you're Matt Dillon then a Winchester and a Colt are tools.

Rap

2 Replies

@raprap,

raprap wrote:

Rodger

I'm no fan of 'packing' concealed weapons. I would feel better when 'packing' that the weapon, weather it be blade, shot, or explosive, that gawd and everyone knows it's there. That way a potential preventative could be "don't f**k with Bettye, Bettye has a 12 ga, or 45, or hand grenade, or samuri sword, small thermonuclear device.

If u r wearing a suit n tie, how do u propose that a handgun be openly carried?

How about rain & snow ?
Back up guns ?

David

1 Reply

@raprap,

To each his own. I have been a party to one sided discussions on the topic, if such a thing is possible. I have come to the belief the choir doesn't need preaching, and recognize that most others have formed their beliefs in some manner they prefer not to discuss.

1 Reply

@OmSigDAVID,

I would think that 'little black dress' could be sexy with a anklet holster, packing something like a 'lady smith' or a PPK.

Shoot---- in a crowd only a few weapons need to be displayed--the one thing that must be remembered is that 'most people are reasonable and respond to social morays as society accepts responce. The few of those among us that don't carry those traits, wacko's be they are, are still a very small minority contrary to the message of the hysterical media selling stories.

Consequently, the exhibition of a few amongst the many would significantly discourage the few.

As for firearms, I happen to like blackpowder. Rifles, shotguns, revolvers it doesn't matter. The noise and recoil is enhanced by the smoke and smell.

Granted, a blackpowder rifle would be useless for home protection, unless you had 30 or so seconds to load and cap, aim, and cock and fire. However; a loaded cylinder is usually boxed with my Remington (replica) and it takes mearly a moment to ready the weapon. And a 44 caliber ball travels at 1100 fps pretty accurately--that is until the target dissapears in a cloud of smoke.

So a pistole bests a rifle easily in this case---but most whitetail aren't in the room with you.

Rap

1 Reply

The sound of racking a pump action shotgun will make just about anybody turn and go the other direction as quickly as possible....or freeze in their tracks.....nothing else in the world sounds like that.

A few years ago, we had a gas thief roaming our block, he was hitting the lawnmowers...took a few weeks to figure it out, at first I thought I had a bad gas line....could smell the gas, from where he had spilled some....and then I thought I had just dreamed that I had filled the tank back up.

Anyway, one night my daughter happend to see someone walking down the street....my shotgun was at the other end of the house, locked in the gun cabinet....so I just grabbed a single action colt, that I used to keep displayed on top of my computer desk....it's just a show piece and has never been fired, so the action is very loud. When I got outside, I could clearly see he was packin two gas cans and a hose....so I held the pistol up high and cocked it....click-click-click....he froze, then bolted.

He was about 100 yrds down the road, on a quiet night....and I pretty much live in a Norman Rockwell painting....and once I saw his outline, I knew who it was, so there was no danger involved.

But ladies, if you hate guns, but do fear an assult....at least get a recording of a shotgun being racked, and keep it by the bedside....I'll almost bet that somebody has marketed that idea.

0 Replies

@roger,

roger wrote:

To each his own. I have been a party to one sided discussions on the topic, if such a thing is possible.
I have come to the belief the choir doesn't need preaching, and recognize that most others have formed
their beliefs in some manner they prefer not to discuss.

Does that imply that because of futility, we shud not discuss this ?

David

1 Reply

@OmSigDAVID,

No. Go right ahead. If you feel your shotgun is the numero uno, el primo, number one and only best firearm, feel free to imagine whatever situations you wish to justify your opinion. Pretend I made up just as many in favor of handguns.

And then jump all over me for putting words in your mouth before you ever thought of them. I'm reasonably sure you would own one if that were your preference.

1 Reply

@raprap,

raprap wrote:

I would think that 'little black dress' could be sexy with a anklet holster, packing something like a 'lady smith' or a PPK.

Shoot---- in a crowd only a few weapons need to be displayed--the one thing that must be remembered is that 'most people are reasonable and respond to social morays as society accepts responce. The few of those among us that don't carry those traits, wacko's be they are, are still a very small minority contrary to the message of the hysterical media selling stories.

Consequently, the exhibition of a few amongst the many would significantly discourage the few.

I agree with u about a few visible firearms in a social group tending to afford peace n quiet for everyone,
but again, for those guys e.g., professional men or businessmen who customarily dress in suits n ties,
I don 't see how that can conveniently accomodate open carry, either over a jacket or over a coat
during inclement weather, unless u wear a Sam Browne belt.
I can see maybe a Sam Browne belt over a coat,
but it woud be hopelessly awkward over a jacket and interfere
with access to your property (wallet, etc.) carried within the jacket. Do u think that is viable ?

raprap wrote:

As for firearms, I happen to like blackpowder. Rifles, shotguns, revolvers it doesn't matter.
The noise and recoil is enhanced by the smoke and smell.

Any comment about the relative incidence of misfires, compared to primed centerfire cartridges ?

raprap wrote:

Granted, a blackpowder rifle would be useless for home protection,
unless you had 30 or so seconds to load and cap, aim, and cock and fire.
However; a loaded cylinder is usually boxed with my Remington (replica)
and it takes mearly a moment to ready the weapon. And a 44 caliber ball
travels at 1100 fps pretty accurately--that is until the target dissapears in a cloud of smoke.

So a pistole bests a rifle easily in this case---but most whitetail aren't in the room with you.

Rap

SO STIPULATED

David

1 Reply

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