I believe that parents have the obligation/duty to teach their kids that guns aren't to be used to play and to teach their kids how to use guns, gun safety. They should be kept where younger kids can't get them until they've been taught not to use guns to play and taught gun safety.
If kids are taught right like they were when our grandmas and grandpas were growing up, if they were taught gun safety and morals, we wouldn't be having this problem of kids accidently shooting people because they don't know not to play with a gun or because they think people have to shoot/kill someone to solve an argument.
You're right and I've always agreed that older kids are responsible for their own mistakes if they violate the rules about guns but in my previous statements, which I didn't articulate clearly, I was thinking about those twits who have a loaded gun laying on the bedroom dresser or out in the open, no lock or safety on and they don't teach their kids gun safety nor that guns aren't to be used to play, nor keep an eye/ear out for the kids and what they might be up to because they are watching tv, drinking beer, etc. Then someone gets shot and they wonder why.
I've never had much problem with my kids not minding me, though. They knew where we kept our guns, they knew the rules and that they were off limits to them and their friends. Hmmm or there'd be "Hell to Pay". ;)
My son goes hunting regularly with his friends and he has never had any problems. We have several guns in our gun rack in our bedroom and have never had problems.
Still if those twits don't supervise their young kids, don't teach morals, don't teach gun safety, don't make their kids live by house rules, if they don't have house rules, then they are responsible for what happens, depending on the degree of their negligence.
If you've noticed, when they show pictures of the palestinian kids, arab kids, muslim kids, Afghani kids, they have kids that look as young as 4 or 5 that are holding those russian assault rifles, even pointing them towards the cameramen and reporters and I've not heard of anyone being shot yet. I bet most of that is because the kids have been taught about guns, how to handle them, although, I'm sure there are accidents, too, they must be relatively uncommon.
I'm very pro gun but I do believe in my personal responsibility to teach my kids right from wrong and to have rules of conduct that they must follow until they are adult enough to make decisions and be responsible.
SR
I was just pointing out the way the question was asked.
Owning dangerous items carries with it an implicit responsibility to handle/store/maintain them in a safe manner.