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I've read Mr. Ruth's article at least three times, and I continue to be astounded at the stullifying stupidity of it.

Americans, collectively, used to know better- or if they didn't, had the grace to keep their mouths shut and not advertise it.

Every year in our area, somebody falls into the water, drowns, and the first thing friends & relatives tell the reporters is "ole so & so was so scared of the water, he never learned how to swim..."

We are surrounded by water here- ocean, lakes, ponds, rivers, borrow pits-- I cannot recall ever, not knowing how to swim-- my parents, rather than trying to make "the water safe around me," by scaring me about it, chose to "make me safe around the water"-- by teaching me to swim at such an early age, I can't remember doing it.

It was the same thing with guns-- when I was too little to handle them, they were locked away-- but as soon as I could pick one up- around age six- my Dad showed me what a .22 long rifle could do to a grapefruit, gave me my own little single-shot .22, and taught me how to shoot.

My point being that rather than trying to "make guns safe around me"-- whether by scaring me, loading them with "safety" devices ( like any machine, it is the operator who sets the level of "safety"-- they are all dangerous ) or hiding them, they chose to make me safe around firearms by proper training.

Knowing how to shoot is like knowing how to drive-- if you are ever in a situation where this knowledge could save your life, it's too late to start learning-- you need to know how beforehand.

If you never need the knowledge, fine- it's there in reserve.