Is Gun Ownership for You?

Bill Bevers, an NRA Certified Instructor, educated all of us on the various aspects of gun ownership and use. The focus of Bill's talk today was safety and practice. Bill teaches a course for the Texas Concealed Handgun License and tries to go to the range at least once a week to practice. He's even helped a friend to overcome her fear of guns by spending time training her on proper gun safety and handling at the shooting range. Bill pointed out that there's a big difference between shooting a gun for target practice and shooting a gun in personal defense.

If you own a gun for personal defense, you need all the training and practice you can get. Why is that? Our bodies react differently when we're in a dangerous situation--rise in blood pressure, tunnel vision, and we start to lose our fine motor skills. A study was conducted of NYPD and LAPD officers who had to discharge their weapons on the job, and only 13% of bullets hit their intended mark. Even after extensive training, that number only rose to 30%. So if you ever find yourself having to use a gun in a personal defense situation, you want to have had as much training and practice as possible to be able to stop the threat.

Bill stressed that owning a gun for personal defense is not something to be taken lightly, and all the practical and legal aspects should be considered first. He has never had to use his gun for personal defense and he sincerely hopes that he never has to.

Here are some important gun safety guidelines to consider:

• Treat all guns as if they are always loaded.
• Never point a gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
• If a gun is fired up in the air, it will still do damage as the bullet comes back down.
• Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
• Always make sure of your target and know what is behind it.
• Be familiar with your equipment.
• Don't rely on mechanical safeties. Your best safety is your brain.

Bill works with the Bullseye Shooters Firearm Instruction and Gun Club, and more information can be found on their website.