Mindfullness of where your guns are

Don't do purse carry... please.

Czero:
Here is a case where a Detroit woman shot and killed 1 of 4 home invaders, but because she had a gun in her purse, and left her purse downstairs, she inadvertantly armed the intruders
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One time, in band camp... One of my friends was leaving my apartment after having dinner with me and a bunch of friends. She had her purse snatched while on my side walk out front as she was leaving. She chased the snatcher; I chased her; 2 other punks who were hiding in the bushes chased me. She caught him. We ended up in a 5 up street fight. She got into a tugging match over the purse. It exploded all over the street. 90 secs later after a broken bottle, a swinging belt, a lot of people watching and my crippled Nigerian roommate coming to the rescue waving his crutches, and some distant sirens, the thugs left.
She told me later that her dad gave her a pistol to carry in her purse... If that had been in there when that purse dumped all over the street, I don't think that even the younger, faster me would have ever beaten 3 punks to it.

If it's not on you; it's not in your control. my 2c.
 
As to guns scattered all over the house.

It's quite comforting to know when my grandkids bring their buddies to Grandpa's house, that try as they may, they can't get into my gun safe.

Young children do have a tendency to get into and find things they shouldn't.

It's a great fear of mind that some child would be injured because he found one of my guns I thought was hidden.

As to home invasions: It seems that one will never know what he/she is doing or where he is when some bandit kicks in the door. Are you setting on the couch watching TV, are you in the kitchen making a sandwich, are you setting at the desk doing taxes????

Just how many guns do you need to scatter about the house to be prepared????

I think one, that being in my pocket. If I'm in the shower my pants are hanging on a peg next to the towels, if I'm napping, my pants are on the bedpost.

As to "If I have to carry around the house I'd move";

That's living in dream land. Where are you going to move where there isn't any home invasions?????

I'm an old dude, lots of old people scattered across the country. Old dudes (including me) seem to have meds so they can get older. Dopers know old people have meds, dopers kick in doors to find meds.

My daughter lives in a gated community. She's not old, but she's listed as a doctor. Granted she's a chiropractor and chiropractors don't normally keep meds but dopers don't know that, Dopers assume Doctors have meds.

I live in a rural area, pretty safe, doubt anyone is going to kick in my door, but there is still times I'm glad I carry constantly, I've whacked rattlers under my steps, I've whacked coyotes trying to eat my chickens, I've shot dogs chasing my horses.

We do have an honor farm not too far from here. Sometimes they get "walk a ways". If one comes to my house, they are going to find all my guns in a gun safe that I doubt they are smart enough to get into.

Still my biggest fear is some child finding one of my guns and getting hurt.

No sir, no guns scattered about my place. If nothing else, it makes me feel better, that alone is well worth the price of the safe.
 
My housegun and my ccw are normally in the same room, side by side. Anything else in stored in the safe. Every doorway into my home has a glass and bar outter door and hardwood inner door. I feel confident that is someone is trying to get in and they will get it, I have time enough to get the housegun and plant myself for defense.

I am not one of these people who have guns in the cabinets, under the sink in each bathroom and hidden in light fixtures. If ninjas suddenly appear, I gu ess I am doomed. :D

I dont really follow the idea that a safe is not a safe... A safe is a safe, no matter if someone can eventually get into it or not. Its all about time, and good security is built upon layers. Good exterior doors and frames, alarm, dogs, nosey neighbors, good lighting and lights on timers, cameras and signage, car in the driveway and alert occupants. Its all about making the next house look easier than yours. That may sound rude but thats how it is.
 
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Why not just keep one on you? It will automatically be wherever you are, and not be wherever you are not.
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It's been my philosophy for a great many years. EDC is on me at all times, except when it's on the nightstand while I sleep. It's so comfortable I could forget it's there, though I choose to always remember it as comforting. And BTW:

If I was paranoid enough to carry a gun at home, I'd move!
When I have to carry at home, that's when I check out for good.
Carrying is a PITA, I'm certainly not doing it at home.
How can you relax with a gun strapped to you?
Where do you live, Beirut? Yada, yada, et al

Don't bother, I've heard them all before and they'd be just as silly now as then.
 
With two small toddlers in the house, the safest place for a defensive firearm to be is on my hip at all times. Nothing silly about it...
 
ScotchMan
Never understood the point of stashing guns around the house. Why not just keep one on you? It will automatically be wherever you are, and not be wherever you are not.
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I too am a firm believer in keeping one on you, but my wife only wears her's when she's doing yard work or out and about. We have ones stashed for that reason. Heck, it wasn't until recently that she started wearing one when doing yard work. Got to thank the coyotes for that! :)
 
Just like some people like myself think that carrying a gun around your own home is silly...
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I remember a story by Ayoob about the home invasion murders of the husband and wife Dartmouth professors. He pointed out that he knew cops who never carried at home either---until they learned, thru their investigations, how fast someone could get inside your home and be in your face. Leaving you no time to get your gun if it was some place else.

Whether carrying at home is your choice or not, doing so itsn't silly.
 
Whenever I read people saying carrying at home is silly, I always chuckle. These are the same people who believe that carrying in public is necessary. Let's look at that.

When you carry in public, it's because you realize there is a very small chance that you might need it. You don't expect to need it, and you hope you won't, but you acknowledge there is a possibility, and that the stakes are high enough to justify it.

Unless it is 100% (not 99.anything, but 100%) certain that you won't need it at home, how is that any different? It is still extremely unlikely. Is it so much less likely to need it at home than when you are at Olive Garden?

It reminds me of the people who criticize those who choose to carry a backup gun. If you carry one for the .00001% chance you'll need it, what's wrong with carrying two for the .00000000000001% chance you'll need it AND your first one will fail? These are all statistically unlikely events, so guarding against one but not the other because "what are the chances" strikes me as a little hypocritical.
 
Just like some people like myself think that carrying a gun around your own home is silly...
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:rolleyes: Hope that you always CAN think that, because unfortunately, if you change your mind it will probably be because of something terrible.

Unless it is 100% (not 99.anything, but 100%) certain that you won't need it at home, how is that any different? It is still extremely unlikely. Is it so much less likely to need it at home than when you are at Olive Garden?
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I'd be willing to bet that home invasions are far more numerous than Olive Garden incidents that require you pulling your gun.
 
Gun safes are a good idea and can be had very cheap. We have enough kids and guests at our house that no gun is left out--at night I stick the key in the gun safe and crack it open--decent access for 2 loaded dedicated HD guns. these cheappy gunsafes also make a good place to store cameras, important papers, etc.

The far bedroom also has a gun safe--with a loaded gun and a big knife in it, too.
 
I usually pocket carry around the house, but my HD handgun is stored in a handgun safe attached to my bed. Sometimes I am working on a project and have a handgun out, usually in the garage. I am never comfortable leaving it there for the same reason that she should not leave her purse in the kitchen. Looks like her bedroom is probably upstairs and she retrieved her HD gun from that area and shot the first intruder coming up the stairs. My thought is if I ended up needing my gun at home, more than likely I too will be in the bedroom. I think that if I had several guns around the house they would have to be secured, but quickly accessible. When guest, especially with children come over, I want the peace of mind knowing that the guns aren't accessible to anyone and I don't have to pick up beforehand. I would hate to miss one and end up in a child's hand or in this case a bad guy.
 
No kids in my house and my wife knows how to use all my handguns ... I carry an NAA Pug all the time, but like the idea of having a 1911 within two steps of my sofa, and a j-frame in my commode and a 1911 in my nightstand ... if we're having company, they all get locked up ... the living room 1911 is well hidden but easy to access ... carrying something larger than the Pug all day while I'm home is not comfortable for me, hence the easily grabbed weapons in the house ....
 
I have never liked the idea of stashing guns around the house but to each his own. I like knowing that kids and other nosy people have no opportunity to find guns in my house unless they are competent safe crackers or pick pockets.

The only exception that I would make is if I had an extremely unusual and secure hiding place for a gun but I don't know what that could be. The usual hiding places get checked by burglars and we all know what these are: mattresses, couch cushions, tops of china cabinets, desk drawers, book cases, cookie jars (a la Rockford Files), glove compartments and under seats of cars etc. I still think the best place to hide a gun is on your person.
 
On stashing guns around the house: It's your house, your rules ..... but they are also your guns, thus your responsibility. If a kid or pet finds one and something bad happens, you'll have to live with that.

On me or locked up. Either/Or. ..... actually, I can't carry them all, so even if I'm armed, there's still a passel of 'em locked up.

As for you nightstand folks ....... IIRC, I read somewhere about a home invader years ago, who's MO was to creep in quietly, arm himself with the homeowners nightstand/sock drawer gun, and wake them with a polite "Good Evening." ........

Pistol safes with biometric latches are very fast ..... four digit combinations only slightly slower........
 
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