I am not a gun owner. Although I will have to become one in the near future due to a coyote problem at my farm in east Texas. I am not afraid of coyotes, so it isn’t an act of fear. But my animals will I’m sure be glad I had one when one of the coyotes are chasing them down. Now of course I don’t need an AR-15 to kill a coyote but I may need onto kill a pack of them.

I know when I buy that gun I will be in no danger of shooting myself or any unintended target. How do I know? Because I know what the weapon is capable of. I know that because I have seen the damage this weapon can do.  I know it, respect it and act accordingly.

I have a grandson and nieces and nephews under the age of responsibility so I would of course have a place to store the gun to keep them out of harm’s way. This again is the way to keep that type of tragedy from happening, so there is no need for fear. It is because of this awareness that no one will be hurt or killed because of a gun I bought regardless of model or capability.

I don’t believe in limiting the guns as much as I believe in licensing owners to be able to keep them. If someone wants to own a low caliber weapon for whatever reason it makes sense to make sure they can handle not only the responsibility, but also that they are proficient in its use and risks.

I think maybe there should be levels of licenses. The lowest level of gun license should cover minimal calibers and the top license only for the highly dangerous one. There should be liability insurance purchased on all levels and qualification covering marksmanship and weapon knowledge and storage.

It makes sense to register the guns to make it possible to trace a gun used in a crime. The owner of the gun should be held responsible for its use. If it is used in a crime and hasn’t been reported it stolen, they should be charged accordingly.

With all power comes responsibility in all areas from guns and weapons to political officials. Too much uncheck power is a danger to all. Disarming people when there is a very real threat of harm be it animal or human.

We are in a dangerous time and the need to be aware and ready is upon us. There is nowhere in our society that anyone is absolutely safe. It makes no sense to lay your safety solely in the hands of strangers’. The rampant corruption in our governments make it a possibility (However slim) a Nazi style takeover is possible. Being aware and ready is the best policy.

Hopefully someday we will have a society that everyone respects each other and believes in fair play and integrity.

But we aren’t there yet.

R.Caruso   ©2016