Kids and guns err knives
A bit back, I gave Katie Granju a bit of a hard time (along with an offer to take her to the range) about her feelings on guns. Specifically, I noted her apprehensiveness with respect to firearms despite her having a real desire to defend her family. She expands on the issue a bit here.
Now, it gets weird. Guns are all, like, icky and stuff. But apparently it’s OK to give kids knives and tell them to stab people who are threatening:
As part of that program, the kids had a discussion with an adult facilitator about how they would react if faced with a dangerous situation. E. apparently responded with his trademark honesty by calmly relating that if someone tried to grab him, he would stab the attacker in the heart with his pocketknife.
The result? I got a phone call from the school, and E. got a trip to the principal’s office. The school assumed that E’s response was evidence of an unhealthy aggressive streak, perhaps stemming from his parents’ messy divorce. In fact, there was no emotional trauma at play here: my son was just repeating the same thing we’ve talked about at home. If some guy ever grabs my child, and my child happens to have his pocketknife on him, of course he should stab the attacker. Or kick him. Or bite him. Or poke his eyes out. Or do whatever he could to hurt the bad guy and get away.
And I do let my children have pocketknives. In fact, both of my sons have enjoyed having a pocketknife since the age I felt they were old enough to handle one safely – about 8 years old.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m all for teaching kids how to defend themselves. But what I can’t understand is why she approves of a knife for her children but is uncomfortable at the thought of guns. Seems to me that, in a defensive situation, one would want the best tool one could have and that would be a gun. And it’s not like guns have magical powers.
I’m all for teaching kids responsible gun handling as well. In fact, I told Junior I was going to build her a pink AR-15. And she reminds me about that at least weekly. And I tell her that’s for when she gets older. But I wouldn’t let her carry one around.
Anyway, my offer to Katie still stands. If she wants to head to the range, range time and ammo are on me.
December 23rd, 2008 at 10:05 am
I don’t see where she said “guns are icky” at all. She just said she doesn’t think she could manipulate one under stress.
Y’know, dude, not everybody is going to want to pack heat, and that’s okay. It’s a free country, right?
December 23rd, 2008 at 10:07 am
I know not everyone is going to pack heat. And said that to her. But I think her general apprehensiveness may have qualified as thinking they’re ‘icky’. Could be wrong, of course.
December 23rd, 2008 at 11:51 am
I think you’re wrong in this. My wife thinks guns are icky, but understands the need for them and why some people want to carry them. It’s not a doublethink.
December 23rd, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Thank God for my wife. She thought the Springfield XD I gave her for our wedding anniversary was “awesome!”
December 23rd, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Some people really do get flustered when stressed. A knife can be used by a novice in a primal fight.
For a novice a gun needs some cognitive thought behind it to work effectivly.
December 23rd, 2008 at 4:56 pm
Good on Uncle for making the range offer, repeatedly. That’s awesome!
December 24th, 2008 at 3:57 am
It’s just some major cognitive dissonance for me to imagine someone who’s seemingly gung ho about hand-to-hand, up close and personal about knife fighting but gets the jitters about guns…
I know my CHL instructors all carried knives as a backup, though, and I should probably emulate that.
I recall seeing a combat shooting drill on my Crimson Trace promo DVD and every time the defensive shooter reacted by scooting backwards and firing, moving away from the threat while firing to stop the threat.
Reduced to a knife, you’ve got no choice but to advance and engage and fight like hell. Just me, but I’d like to try the scoot-n-shoot defense first, before I fall back to pointy-edged plan B.