House broken into yesterday.. home defense help needed

[MikeyC]

Originally Posted by ysr_racer

I grew up around guns. I have guns. I shoot guns. I write for a gun magazine, but I gotta ask, don't you think they would have stolen your gun if you had one?

That being said, take a class. Than take another one

First I want to say, I'm really sorry to hear about this. YSR brings up a good point though. You weren't home when this happened. How would a gun have helped you in this situation? It sounds like you need an alarm system not a gun.

[shilala]

Originally Posted by ysr_racer

I grew up around guns. I have guns. I shoot guns. I write for a gun magazine, but I gotta ask, don't you think they would have stolen your gun if you had one?

That being said, take a class. Than take another one

I don't write for a gun magazine, but ditto on the rest. When I was a kid, all we had to do is ask Dad if we could take the .22 pistol down to the gas well to shoot bottles and we were on our way. That was at maybe 9 and 10 years old and we'd go by ourselves. We were taught to shoot and respect guns as soon as we could hold one, and I taught my daughters the same. At ten years old my daughter could put a whole clip in a six inch group at 30 feet, barking them off in under 3 seconds. At 12 years old she put all the old boys at the shooting range to shame. She's a natural and she has her own handgun.

I've had my house robbed twice, I wasn't home either time. My guns weren't bothered, they were put up.

Take a class and take another class is good advice. Get out to shoot often. Go hunting, if only to spend time with your buds and your gun. They'll teach you how to handle, respect, and fear your weapon.
You really have to spend time with a gun to become confident with it so it's an extension of you. If you jump up in the middle of the night because of a noise and you're a nervous wreck carrying a gun, there's a good chance you'll shoot the cat or the refrigerator or the furnace. You have to develop a confidence and innate relationship with a gun. Period.

I keep a 9mm and a .22 with a pair of clips for each in the safe near our bed. I used to shoot regularly, but in the last year since I've moved I have yet to find a shooting range. I'll find one soon, I have two new kids and a wife to teach.
I'm not a fan of the scatter-gun angle. I feel it's not tactically sound in close quarters and I'd lose advantage in a situation where someone is closing fast. I'd far rather have a handgun.

Lastly, keep your finger off the trigger until you're ready to shoot, and keep the gun pointed at the ground.