Ritual de lo Habitual. (guest editorial)

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This months editorial is a guest article copied with permission from Tamara K. Contact information and credits follow the piece.

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Some years back, when we were deer hunting out on Byron's old family land, it was observed that MattG used his turn signals so habitually that he was signaling turns on rutted sandy single-tracks, on private property, with not another moving vehicle for over a mile in any given direction. We all agreed, however, that it was a good habit to have.

I was reminded of this when people commented on the video from our little Blackwater field trip last summer; a lot of folks described Todd Jarrett's gun-handling as borderline OCD, with his chamber checks every time he juiced up the gun, and they said it as though it was a bad thing.

When I juice up the gun administratively, I check the chamber. When I pick up a pistol that has been out of my control or observation, such as when I get dressed in the morning, I check the chamber. Now, does that mean that I think that gremlins have sneaked in and unloaded my heater overnight? No it means I check because I always check (http://shangrilatowers.blogspot.com/2010/01/guns-administrative-gun-handling-for.html); this is the purpose behind things like safety checklists for everything from pistols to Piper Cubs to pebble-bed nuclear reactors, you are removing the question of "Do I or don't I?" from the loop. You do. Period.

This is tied in to another thing I often read on the internet "You carry a gun to the (grocery store/restaurant/nice neighborhood/sewing circle/whatever) (http://www.foggybottomline.com/?p=340)?" No, I don't. As Kathy Jackson phrased it so well, I don't carry a gun "to" anyplace (http://www.corneredcat.com/Social/carryto.aspx); I just carry a gun. I put the gun on in the morning with no more emotional freighting or special foresight than my shoes. In fact, probably less, because I may wear different shoes, but I always carry the same gun.

When I put my shoes on, I did not run though a complex internal calculus of "Well, there's a 'No shirt, No shoes, No service' sign at the bank, and I think I have to wear them at the grocery store, too. On the other hand, it's warm out, and I could put those errands off and not wear shoes today..." I just put my shoes on. It's the default state, just like putting the pistol in the holster on my belt. As I go through the day, I don't constantly think about my shoes, and whether I might "need" them at my next stop. Ditto, the gun.

What makes this hard for some people to understand is that, to them, a gun is an object of heavy totemic significance. They have not been exposed to firearms except via the entertainment industry or the six o'clock news, where they are constantly being used to deal death and mayhem, whereas I've been around them more or less constantly for my entire adult life and they've mostly just sat there. An object that to many people contains heavy emotional freighting is about as significant or shocking to me as an ashtray or a steak knife (to name a couple of other frequently-used murder weapons,) and I think this is the source of the massive disconnect between viewpoints. What to do about it? You got me, there; I haven't a clue.


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Visit a View From The Porch (http://booksbikesboomsticks.blogspot.com/) with Tamara K. Many thanks for letting us reprint your article.

[HiPowered]

I love the last paragraph of this article. It's something that a lot of us in the shooting community don't get - the emotional significance attached to firearms by some people. It's easy for us to lose our perspective sometimes, and that can often lead to misinterpreting the actions or reactions of "non-gun" people.

Definitely something to remember when working with someone who is new to the sport.

[Fang]

The last paragraph was what resonated with me the most, too. People I've talked to have characterized owning guns as a political statement, supposedly because they see guns as a symbol--and therefore owning one is inherently symbolic. Maybe this has something to do with the oft-cited miraculous transformation from slightly anti-gun to gun-lover after an introductory range trip that deflates the myth and replaces symbol with reality.

[HiPowered]

I'll buy that. It certainly makes sense to me.

I love the steak knife comparison. It raises a good point about sensitization and desensitization - if you've only ever seen guns associated with violence (or the threat of violence), then seeing a gun in real life or even talking about one is likely to arouse the same feelings as seeing its violent use. Different people feel differently about the violent use of guns, so their reactions may be different. But if your experience with guns is limited to violent circumstances (even in media), your emotional response is likely to follow suit. You've become sensitized.

I grew up around guns, I shot guns as a kid, and I've shot guns consistently since the age of 12 or so. My nonviolent experiences with guns outweigh my violent ones. I'm not nearly as sensitized. When I see or handle a gun, even a new one in a new situation, I'm not overwhelmed with emotion like a sensitized person could be. My reactions are determined by my current mental state and emotions.

These are definitely important things to think about, not just when introducing new shooters to guns, but even in conversations about guns. There is likely to be an emotional response to firearms, even to just the thought of them.

Of course, the cure for sensitization is desensitization. Which means more safe, fun trips to the range with new shooters. :)

[Clinotus]

I'll buy that. It certainly makes sense to me.

I love the steak knife comparison. It raises a good point about sensitization and desensitization - if you've only ever seen guns associated with violence (or the threat of violence), then seeing a gun in real life or even talking about one is likely to arouse the same feelings as seeing its violent use. Different people feel differently about the violent use of guns, so their reactions may be different. But if your experience with guns is limited to violent circumstances (even in media), your emotional response is likely to follow suit. You've become sensitized.

I grew up around guns, I shot guns as a kid, and I've shot guns consistently since the age of 12 or so. My nonviolent experiences with guns outweigh my violent ones. I'm not nearly as sensitized. When I see or handle a gun, even a new one in a new situation, I'm not overwhelmed with emotion like a sensitized person could be. My reactions are determined by my current mental state and emotions.

These are definitely important things to think about, not just when introducing new shooters to guns, but even in conversations about guns. There is likely to be an emotional response to firearms, even to just the thought of them.

Of course, the cure for sensitization is desensitization. Which means more safe, fun trips to the range with new shooters. :)

Very good points. I have a few family members and friends in the same vein of being absolutely terrified of firearms to the point that you can not reason with them due to their perception from the media and tales from tales from people who knew people.

Best example I have of it is an cousin of mine who would freak out about firearms in the house. More so my house since I've got children running around. On the opposite side of the spectrum we have my youngest, who steps over a rifle I'm building, or asks me to move it out of the way if she wants something out of reach of it.