Minuteman Monthly Issue 17 December 2001 SaveTheGuns.com members and Minuteman Monthly subscribers, Thank you becoming a contributing member of SaveTheGuns.com and if you're just a subscriber, thank you very much for participating and forwarding this newsletter out to your family and friends. Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Consider a SaveTheGuns.com t-shirt or bumper sticker for gifts this Christmas season. http://www.savetheguns.com/buy_my_stuff.htm --------------------------------------- I believe that most people who support gun control measures, do so out of their fear of firearms. Most often, they fear firearms because of their lack of knowledge about when they were invented, how they work and what their limitations are. The best way we can head off the gun control movement of the future is to properly educate today's children about firearms. Since I started as a Certified Firearm Instructor, kids and gun safety has been a focus of mine. The very first seminar that I taught was a room full of 75 children. Today's children are tomorrow's legislators. It would be much easier to teach them properly now, than to convince them that they are wrong later!!! Take a young person shooting this month and show them the truth about guns. The truth is our most convincing weapon!!! --------------------------------------- December's issue concerns kids and shooting. Don't make your firearms a "forbidden fruit" to your children. Children see firearms on television nearly every single day of their lives whether it is Elmer Fudd on Bugs Bunny, an advertisement for a new movie or looking at the 6 O'Clock evening news over dinner. Children have a natural curiosity about guns. This inquisitiveness can lead to a dangerous situation if the child has an irresistible curiosity about guns that has not been quenched early in their lives with concrete knowledge. *********************************** SaveTheGuns.com Quotes of the Month "To preserve liberty it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them..." Richard Henry Lee, Additional Letters From The Federal Farmer, 1788 "...scholarship suggests quite strongly that the right of the people to keep and bear arms meant just that." Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia "We find that the history of the Second Amendment reinforces the plain meaning of its text, namely that it protects individual Americans in their right to keep and bear arms whether or not they are a member of a select militia or performing active military service or training." Emerson VS. United States Decision *********************************** SaveTheGuns.com urges parents to carefully consider proper firearm storage while making sure their children have a sound knowledge of guns, their history, their capabilities, how they work and what ammunition is. In my opinion, firearms should be kept totally inaccessible to children who are not mature enough to handle the information so necessary to keeping them from an accidental discharge. **************************************** Please Consider Membership Membership with SaveTheGuns.com shows others that you are committed to protect the Bill of Rights with specific concentration on making certain that our own government observes the original intention of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution. You don't have to however be a Citizen of the United States to become a member. Fully eighteen percent (18%) of Web traffic at SaveTheGuns.com originates from outside the United States. I really appreciate the feedback and contacts that I have received from all over the world. Non U.S. Citizens are more than welcome here. It has been very interesting to hear foreign perspectives on firearm ownership and how difficult it is to maintain rights to firearm ownership in many other countries. http://www.savetheguns.com/membership.htm http://www.savetheguns.com/contributions.htm **************************************** **************************************** Two Very Useful Web sites: http://www.atf.treas.gov/firearms/statelaws/22edition.htm This is a Web page set up by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearm that lists a compendium of the latest firearm laws of each state. It is the gun owners responsibility to not only fight against restrictive gun control, but be informed of these laws if they pass!!! http://www.gunrightsactivist.com/ This is a Web page by the Conservative Headquarters Group that sends out about one (1) alert per week on what you can do to help Save-The-Guns. Tell them that SaveTheGuns.com sent you!!! *************************************** *************************************** When And What Should My Child Know??? At what point should a child be taught about guns? I get this type of question quite often. The best time to teach a child about guns is not based on a chronological age. Some children are mature enough to learn about firearms very early. Some others may not be ready until early teen years. Each parent has the responsibility of determining the point at which gun knowledge and handling can be taught and absorbed by the child. I was taught how to shoot and shot my first shotgun and handgun by the time I reached third grade. My oldest son shot his first .22 caliber rifle at age 4. Renowned firearm instructor, author, columnist and police officer Massad Ayoob was also taught to shoot at age 4. The parent is always the best judge. Generally when the child can take responsibility for feeding the family pet, or perform other household tasks reliably, while showing an interest in firearms may be the best time to begin. A child and an adult for that matter should always be taught that when they find a firearm outside the home, they should not touch it, but rather bring a police officer to the location of the gun. Even if the adult feels fully comfortable around firearms, the gun found outside the home was quite possibly used in a crime and moving or touching the gun could thwart a criminal prosecution by destroying evidence. Stop, don't touch the gun Leave the area Find and tell an adult or police officer. In general, the child should be taught the three basic gun handling rules. These rules can be found on my "Safety Rules" page: http://www.savetheguns.com/safety_rules.htm Please also check out: http://www.savetheguns.com/for_kids_only.htm These three gun handling rules must be stressed as early an age as deemed appropriate. ****************************************** <<<<< Visit This Site >>>>> If you collect militaria or toy soldiers, or know someone who does, please visit Arquebus Military Miniatures at http://www.arquebus.com/ and tell them that SaveTheGuns.com sent you!!! ****************************************** Junior Rifle Teams Please be aware that most of the local gun clubs in your area offer Junior Shooting teams for young men and women that travel from club to club and compete against each other. These shooting teams offer a great way for children to get exposed to the shooting sports. ********************************************* Since September 11th Since the tragic events of September 11th, tens of thousands of previously anti-gun people have changed their minds about gun ownership as a result of feeling less safe. Many people are finally realizing that our governments cannot protect us at all times. Families that had not considered gun ownership prior to September 11th, are now enrolling in concealed carry courses and are bringing newly purchased firearms into the home at a rate that is unmatched in recent history. I want to do my very best to make certain that this great rise in firearm sales, will not lead to a great rise in accidental deaths. The information on safety rules and the information geared towards children at http://www.SaveTheGuns.com can save many lives in the near future, if more people would visit the following pages and forward this info to new firearm owners. http://www.savetheguns.com/safety_rules.htm http://www.savetheguns.com/for_kids_only.htm http://www.savetheguns.com/firearms_101.htm ********************************************* Please feel free to forward, print, post, quote and use this newsletter on message boards and anywhere else you can think of. You have my permission. Thank you for registering as a Minuteman Monthly Newsletter Recipient. ________________________ If you don't want this newsletter anymore, just send me an E-mail with "Unsubscribe MMM" in the subject line to: info@savetheguns.com Thanks, Marc Owner/Founder www.savetheguns.com