Brownells

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Shotgun Myth #1

Does this scenario sound familiar? You’re standing in a gun shop or sporting goods store and you notice a clerk hand a pump action shotgun to someone and declare “just the sound of racking the action will scare most intruders away”. I often wonder how that comment affects the thought process of the hesitant gun owner. My term “hesitant gun owner” is defined as a person that doesn’t have a background in firearms and is shopping for their first self-defense weapon. The hesitant gun owner typically doesn’t have much if any experience with firearms. Maybe crime has skyrocketed in their neighborhood or they know someone who has been assaulted or robbed. Something has caused them to visit this gun shop today and they assume the guy behind the counter knows what he is talking about. Sometimes they do. Sometimes they don’t! While this statement can be a cliché used by the well trained and decisive gun-owner, it can be a stumbling block for the uninformed. It could even get them killed.

Most honest well adjusted citizens don’t want to harm another human being. They just want to be left alone and be able to pursue life, liberty and happiness. So how can this statement cause the hesitant gun owner to get killed? What if they decide not to load their shotgun and just use the “deterrent” of racking the slide to scare away the violent criminal offender? What if that doesn’t work? The odds are it won’t work. With our current revolving door justice system our criminals have become very experienced. The repeat offenders walking the streets today have been pepper sprayed, hit with an expandable baton, tased and some have been shot. Do you really think the sound of racking a shotgun can be relied upon to scare off someone who is threatening you? Is this a helpful thought to put into the mind of the uninformed? The answer is a definite NO!

Gun shop owners should encourage the “hesitant gun owner” to obtain some training from a local or regional trainer. If that is out of the question due to the cost of tuition then frequent practice should be the next suggestion. Buying a shotgun and placing it in the closet is not an effective way to protect life and limb. In order to stay familiar with the shotgun a quarterly trip to the range would be my suggestion. Almost everyone can afford a six or seven dollar box of shells for practice every 3 months.

Next time we will shed some light on the often heard gun shop statement “you don’t even need to aim a shotgun, just point and shoot”. Sadly, nothing could be further from the truth…

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