Yes. Better your ears than your ass, but you only get one set of eardrums. Hearing damage is cumulative and IRREVERSIBLE. Hope all those Lynrd Skynrd concerts were worth it! Hearing aids are better these days than they've ever been before, but I'd still rather have my natural hearing when I'm an old geezer. As for our friend who has constant tinnitus: man, I feel for you bro. That sucks. I've got a friend who's got that.
Best bet for home defense is to get the tactical ears that someone has already mentioned. They give you an extra security boost by being able to amplify noise below 85 db, but cut off harmful noise. You can get these things for about $120 if you look around.
But for the range, get a REAL set of ears like the Peltor Ultimate (I think this is the name). They're the best on the market (highest noise reduction rating). Like some other folks here, I double-up - wear the Peltors plus foamies for double protection.
Every set of ears will list its noise reduction rating (NRR). Remember that every 3 db increase DOUBLES the loudness (or in the case of NRR, halves the loudness), so a set of ears with a NRR of 29 is eight times better than one with a NRR of 20 (two times two times two = eight).
Every catalog in existence sells the Peltors.