A very, very difficult way to learn that all guns should always be secured.
I'm 51, two kids. Now 13 and 15. Both grew up here in my house and surrounded by guns.
As far as the quote.... how do you define "secured?" And are we talking "all guns" or just those that have ammo available?
My carry gun is kept in the Wilderness Safepacker. The way I always carry it. When I'm home and take it off, I put it in the same semi-high place where it has always lived. Not under lock and key but not anywhere near "toddler height." Certainly my teenagers know about it and could pick it up at any time. I also keep two 12 gauge shotguns "at hand." One is a double barrel with hammers. So that one has to be cocked and then the tang safety released to fire. Kept high and out of casual sight. The FN SLP is kept in a case by the bed, loaded tube, empty chamber. Then there are three military type rifles that are kept unloaded but with the mags sitting next to them in a closet. Yes, I also have one of those small safes that you index with your hand to open for three loaded handguns. And I have two large safes.
That's it for loaded guns out here on my 90 acres. But if you walked into my living room or dining room at any given time and really opened your eyes, you would see guns here, there, and everywhere. I have a large bookcase that is built into one wall. There are probably ten handguns on top of various books up there. There are guns on the coffee table sometimes. Guns on the printer. I have three open rifle racks so that's 11 rifles right there. I love guns and always have. And I keep some "loose" around me so that I can enjoy them all day long. Always have. Even when the children were tiny. I don't agree that unloaded guns needed to be locked up.
My younger sister has observed that I never had any problem with my children and guns despite the fact that my house is full of them. When she had a child of her own, they decided to get a home defense shotgun and she called me for advice on how to "kid proof" things. She asked me what my strategy was. I told her the problem was.... my situation is rare and she wasn't going to be able to match it unless she became a gun collector.
I told her my theory was that kids like to get into things that are forbidden. Things they are told to never touch. On the other hand, at my house, I go for the "bore them to death" approach. I talk about guns all the time. I drill them on firearms safety. I take them shooting on our property. We have a standing rule that any gun can be shot at any time. If you see a gun in my safe or on the wall or in the bookshelf, you don't need to be sneaky about it. Ask me, I'll hand it to you and tell you everything about it. I'll show you how to take it apart. We'll round up 100 rounds and take it out in the pasture right now and shoot it. Take all the mystery and forbidden part out of it. It's the way children used to be raised around guns. And it has worked for me. I've seen my children shove various handguns off to one side so that they can sit at a table to eat lunch. Without any curiosity or "forbidden fruit" looks in their eyes.
(These guns weren't loaded and there is never ammo anywhere around any guns except for the ones that are ALWAYS loaded. Keeps you from being confused and making a mistake. Despite that, I check each one when I pick it up. And if I tell one of my children to go get me one specifically, I watch them to make sure they check it before they cross the room. Even though they roll their eyes and look bored!)
I realize most people don't have enough guns to really bore the children but it works for me!
So no, I don't agree that "all guns should always be secured."
Oh, I know what some will say. What about their friends? We almost never have any kid friends out to the house. We live five miles outside of town so nobody is going to just walk here or even ride a bike. If we end up with an overnight guest, I embarrass my kids but they know the rules. They bring the kid to me. And they get questioned about their gun experience. What they've shot and how they like it. Then I offer right then and there to take them outside into the pasture and let them shoot something. Quell that curiosity right now. No need to secretly touch that old Mosin on the wall, I'll take you out and let you shoot an AK or FAL right now.
If I ever had a kid fail my questions... that would be a problem. But this is a rural county and it hasn't happened yet.
And we have 15 Belgian Malinois in the yard and house just to keep an eye on things. Or 30 eyes. We don't have intruder problems.
Gregg
Two early teens and two very young ones. Looks like all toys will be in the safes except my CCW pieces, a 9mm and a .38 snub BUG.