Interesting issue from a moral/political/legal standpoint.
I think the idea that you should be able to defend yourself and your family through the use of force is sensible. But I read a hell of a lot more stories about kids finding guns in the house and shooting each other, and fathers going postal on their families, than I read about homeowners successfully defending themselves from intruders through the use of a firearm. In fact, I can't remember the last time I read a story like the latter.
I mean, the right to defend oneself with a firearm makes sense in theory, but I'm not sure it makes any sense in practice. I would bet that having a firearm in the house costs about as many lives as it saves, even where the owner is a "good citizen."
Also, I have to wonder whether most good-natured law abiding citizens would really have it in them to shoot somebody if the situation arose, much less whether they should shoot the person in the circumstances.
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