TAM, \The Annoyed Man wrote:Rules are conceived to be universally applicable to the initiated and the uninitiated alike. To you, a practiced gun owner, being told that a gun should be treated as if it is always loaded, all the time may seem silly......because of course you treat them that way anyway, because of course they ARE loaded. It seems redundant. But to the first time gun owner/first time shooter, it is not obvious.Liberty wrote:A couple of these rules seem outright silly.
My guns are always loaded. An unloaded gun is pretty useless. Like a car out of gas.
I rely on my guns to keep my family and and seek safe. Failure when needed could be disastrous, I also stake my life on my cars mechanical condition.
I'm not sure where these rules come from, but I have some suspicions Mr. Fudd may have had something to do with it. They obviously didn't come from anyone self defense orientated.
I think you misread my post. My remarks about the rules were not about treating ever gun as loaded. But was aimed at what I perceived as outright sillyness of keeping the chamber empty and the bolt open until ready to fire. The guy that came up with that rule is being silly and presenting a good way to get people killed. The type of person that wants us to keep our guns empty is usually a Brady or a person that believes the second amendment is about hunting
I propose that not only is it silly to walk around with an unloaded gun on our hips, but that it is outright dangerous thing to do.
I think you thought I was stating that the rule of treating every gun as if load was silly. No that isn't what I was trying to say. I believe that is a very important rule, and one that should not be ignored. or taken for granted. You are correct that this is one rule that the more experienced might be more likely to disobey than someone who is newer. Again I think it is the sportsman that is more like to get in trouble with this rule. A person that carries 24/7 and keeps a gun near by at all times, should understand that the gun is always loaded. Hunters and sportsman are dealing with supposedly empty guns all the time. For some of us the only time we deal with an unloaded gun is when we are cleaning them or between refills at the range. I don't mean to imply that everyone should keep every gun loaded at all times. This of course would be preposterous.