Gunlocks, Eh?

I was over at Say Uncle and followed a link to a piece that talks about gunlocks. Evidently, this guy is concerned that the gun locks on the market are pieces of crap that don't do anything but comply with the law.

Here's the deal: My counterman at the local evil gun store tells me that he is required by law to give me a gun lock every time he sells a gun. Notice how I said that: He is required by law to give me a gun lock every time he sells a gun.

In other words, the lawmakers have decided that all guns sold in open commerce should have a lock, so they mandate that the retailer give locks away. We all know there is no such thing as a free lock, and that the cost is passed on to the consumer, but the gun store is trying to minimize that impact on the customer, so to comply with the law, they buy a bunch of cheap gun locks and include one with every purchase.

I appreciate them doing that. I have a couple of those locks around here someplace. The grandkids are intrigued with them for maybe ten minutes, until they figure out how to defeat them, then the locks lay on the bench until I throw them away.

A free lock is just that. You get what you pay for. The lawmakers just had to include a feel-good provision in the law, and the retailers complied with it in full and in spirit. They complied with the least cost to themselves and the consumer. It's a win-win provision.

Better that we gun owners keep our guns out of reach of the grandkids and as soon as they are old enough, we teach them how about guns. How to load and unload and how to shoot. We teach them respect for firearms and we teach them that some things are deadly and we teach them that there is no safety but the one that God provided between our ears and that there are Four Rules to gun safety that can never, ever be violated without severe repercussions.

No gun lock currently made will make a gun safe from a motivated 10 year old. That same motivated ten-year-old will listen to instruction when Daddy or Grandaddy takes the time to show how the gun works, how to disassemble it, and how to fire it.

There are always firearms available for use in my house. There is always a minimum of two that are loaded, ready for immediate use. Neither my children, nor my grandchildren have ever had any problem with knowing about loaded guns.

I'll say this one more time, another way. If you have children, it is your responsibility to teach them that some things will hurt them. Things like rattlesnakes and garbage trucks. Things like sex offenders and child predators. You also have a responsibility to keep them safe. Teaching good gun-handling manners is the best way to keep them safe. Do not depend on any device to lessen your responsibility for proper training.

If you don't train your children, in all things, then who do you expect to train them?