My Mom's side of the family, the farm family, always owned guns. I got my first gun, a bolt action .22 (which I still have) when I was 16 and used it for hunting small game and target shooting. That gun taught me a lot. Since I was only 16, I had to take a hunter/gun safety course before I could get my first hunting license. I learned about safety and responsibility when handling firearms.
We will have a few animals on our little place, and so we will attract wild animals. Common in the Adirondacks are bears, foxes, coyotes, skunks, porcupines, and to a lesser extent, lynx, bobcats, and wolves. Yes, wolves. They're supposed to be extinct in the Adirondacks, but one was mistakenly shot as a wild dog a few years ago in nearby Edinburgh. I'll need to supplement my .22 rifle and 12 gauge shotgun with something with a bit more punch, like a .223 Ruger Mini-14 or a 30-30.
I really never gave the ownership of guns much thought until recently, with mass murders seemingly in vogue, gun violence at record highs in inner cities, cries for gun control from some, and similar cries about gun confiscation, the 2nd amendment, and government tyranny from others. Guns are headline news.
Being an inquisitive sort, and the kind of person who tries to understand all sides of an issue, I've done a bit of research over the past few years. One conclusion that I've come to is that, in my opinion, the NRA is a sham. It is no longer the worthy gun education group it once was. Nor does it lobby lawmakers on behalf of gun owners, but rather gun manufacturers. The NRA is all about corporate greed.
In advance of our move back to upstate New York to build our little farmstead, I recently looked into joining a rifle club. One requirement of membership is joining the NRA. I will not be joining the rife club.
This is a good video. Please get by the remarks about things like hollow point bullets (these folks obviously aren't hunters), and focus on the organization of the NRA and it's funding, and how it operates by instilling fear, uncertainty, and doubt in both its members and the general public.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7cWv0qmIhjk
We will have a few animals on our little place, and so we will attract wild animals. Common in the Adirondacks are bears, foxes, coyotes, skunks, porcupines, and to a lesser extent, lynx, bobcats, and wolves. Yes, wolves. They're supposed to be extinct in the Adirondacks, but one was mistakenly shot as a wild dog a few years ago in nearby Edinburgh. I'll need to supplement my .22 rifle and 12 gauge shotgun with something with a bit more punch, like a .223 Ruger Mini-14 or a 30-30.
I really never gave the ownership of guns much thought until recently, with mass murders seemingly in vogue, gun violence at record highs in inner cities, cries for gun control from some, and similar cries about gun confiscation, the 2nd amendment, and government tyranny from others. Guns are headline news.
Being an inquisitive sort, and the kind of person who tries to understand all sides of an issue, I've done a bit of research over the past few years. One conclusion that I've come to is that, in my opinion, the NRA is a sham. It is no longer the worthy gun education group it once was. Nor does it lobby lawmakers on behalf of gun owners, but rather gun manufacturers. The NRA is all about corporate greed.
In advance of our move back to upstate New York to build our little farmstead, I recently looked into joining a rifle club. One requirement of membership is joining the NRA. I will not be joining the rife club.
This is a good video. Please get by the remarks about things like hollow point bullets (these folks obviously aren't hunters), and focus on the organization of the NRA and it's funding, and how it operates by instilling fear, uncertainty, and doubt in both its members and the general public.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7cWv0qmIhjk
"bears, foxes, coyotes, skunks, porcupines, and to a lesser extent, lynx, bobcats, and wolves."
ReplyDelete... "I'll need to supplement my .22 rifle and 12 gauge shotgun with something with a bit more punch, like a .223 Ruger Mini-14 or a 30-30."
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Wouldn't a 22 dispatch a rabid skunk, fox or raccoon? Not sure why else you'd need to shoot any of these. If a bear becomes a nuisance a game warden should be called and it could be relocated. Your dogs should keep you free of marauding critters, I'd think.
The lynx was extirpated from the Adirondacks and reintroduced in more recent years... you'd have some splainin' to do if you shot one.
My concern is more for my dogs if a pack of coyotes paid a visit. My in-laws, who live next door, have lost dozens of cats to coyotes. I would, of course, fire the shotgun in the air to frighten them off, but if they attacked my dogs, I'd definitely shoot to kill. Hopefully it won't be a problem.
DeleteIf by chance you do have a nuisance bear, Dept. of Enviormental Conservation will issue you some non-lethal loads for your 12 guage shotgun (they use same rounds in campsites with bear issues). Also a Ruger Mini-14 falls under the assault rifle ban,
ReplyDeleteHi Doc,
DeleteThe Ruger Mini 14 Ranch Rifle would pass NY's SAFE Act since it doesn't have any of the physical characteristics of an assault weapon, such as a pistol grip or folding stock- http://www.ruger.com/products/mini14RanchRifle/specSheets/5801.html#zipSearch
Good tip on the non-lethal loads for bear. They are a nuisance up there, usually just getting into garbage. If you lock up the garbage, they'll rip through a wooden door to get to it.