I'm not sure what's in the water here in NW MO... but just this morning there was a 60-yr old man found shot to death in a Pizza Hut parking lot. Not long after that a "younger" man was confronted by police officers near a local elementary school, waving a gun in the air and threatening to shoot himself or anyone that came near him. The man was not directly threatening anyone in the school, but was evidently in close enough proximity for officials to lock the school down. Not sure if the two incidents are related at this point...
What I AM sure of is that my 8yr old niece attends the above mentioned elementary school which, along with the Pizza Hut, is within a mile or two radius of my parent's home. TOO CLOSE! And this is not the slums. I would say our little "upper-middle class" area has normally had one of the lowest crime rates in the city.
Anyhow, I was talking to my dad this morning. He has never been a "gun" guy... and actually never kept a firearm in the house until about a year ago (Ruger 10/22). Not that my family was ever anti-gun, they just never saw the need. I have been encouraging my dad and mom both to consider SD / HD handguns since I began shooting just over two years ago. Although they both have been to the range with me on different occasions, and did enjoy it, they still haven't followed my advice and bought guns of their own. Like I said, I guess they just haven't felt the need.... Until today.
The first thing my dad said to me today was "I think it's time I bought a gun" followed by "how soon can I get signed up for a CCW class". I literally almost fell over in my chair. I just replied with "well it's about time!" and told him first things first, we need to get out to the range and narrow the choices down a bit.
I have to admit that, despite what has happened today with the shooting and crazy guy near the school, I am somewhat relieved and excited that my dad has decided it's time to buy a gun of his own. So now the fun begins.
What I AM sure of is that my 8yr old niece attends the above mentioned elementary school which, along with the Pizza Hut, is within a mile or two radius of my parent's home. TOO CLOSE! And this is not the slums. I would say our little "upper-middle class" area has normally had one of the lowest crime rates in the city.
Anyhow, I was talking to my dad this morning. He has never been a "gun" guy... and actually never kept a firearm in the house until about a year ago (Ruger 10/22). Not that my family was ever anti-gun, they just never saw the need. I have been encouraging my dad and mom both to consider SD / HD handguns since I began shooting just over two years ago. Although they both have been to the range with me on different occasions, and did enjoy it, they still haven't followed my advice and bought guns of their own. Like I said, I guess they just haven't felt the need.... Until today.
The first thing my dad said to me today was "I think it's time I bought a gun" followed by "how soon can I get signed up for a CCW class". I literally almost fell over in my chair. I just replied with "well it's about time!" and told him first things first, we need to get out to the range and narrow the choices down a bit.
I have to admit that, despite what has happened today with the shooting and crazy guy near the school, I am somewhat relieved and excited that my dad has decided it's time to buy a gun of his own. So now the fun begins.