wrote:
On Fri, 23 Feb 2018 13:04:02 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/23/2018 12:21 PM, wrote:
On Fri, 23 Feb 2018 03:24:19 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/22/2018 10:48 PM, wrote:
On Thu, 22 Feb 2018 16:11:18 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/22/2018 3:45 PM, wrote:
On Thu, 22 Feb 2018 14:21:01 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/22/2018 12:13 PM, wrote:
On Thu, 22 Feb 2018 07:25:20 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

Here's a weird one. In Massachusetts, one of the most liberal states, a
15 year old can legally purchase and own a long gun with his/her
parent's permission.


If the parents are OK with it, can't a kid have any gun they want at
any age? Who is going to stop them?
I had my first shotgun at 14-15 when I started to hunt but I had a .22
for years before that. I suppose technically it was my dad's, handed
down from my grandfather but I had free access to it and they sold
ammo at the 7-11.


Fortunately, most parents I know personally have more smarts and a sense
of responsibility to allow their kids at any minor age to own guns.


That is Acela corridor thinking again and big city thinking at that.
In the early 60s hunting was a thing most of my friends did before
they could drive and this was just outside of DC in PG county.
Like I said, the 7-11 sold shotgun shells and .22s
I am sure that sounds strange today but you could walk in the woods
all the way from the DC line behind Eastover shopping center and
Forest Heights to the river, down past where National Harbor is now
and never see a thing but woods. That was 4 or 5 square miles
contiguous with the woods behind my house before they built the
interstate. Typically we did not really do much hunting east of 210
but there were some good quail and rabbit fields before you got there,
pretty much where the right of way for I-495 is now. West of 210 there
was just about anything you could expect to find in Maryland.
The strange thing is there is still a pretty big undeveloped parcel
down there right now.



There are plenty people who hunt in Massachusetts and the areas we've
lived in are probably more heavily wooded than your experience in
Maryland. The last house I lived in with my parents as a kid was
surrounded by tens of thousands of acres of woods and undeveloped land.

I still don't know of any parent I know who would allow a minor child to
have his/her very own gun. BB guns, yes. Firearms ... no.



===

I grew up in a semi-rural area of upstate NY and many of my friends
had their own 22s and/or shot guns. Not one was ever injured or
involved in any gun related incident.


Did your friends have AR-15s and have a Rambo mindset?


Now you have changed the subject then haven't you?
You went from "no minor should ever have anything but a BB gun" to
assuming we want our kid to have an AR. That being said, I am sure out
west where it is relatively safe to shoot one, there are teenagers
with ARs. They would usually start with a .22rf and demonstrate that
they are safe and knowledgable first but there are plenty of people
out in flyover country who understand a gun is a tool.



How have I changed the subject? My point was that you really can't
compare what was common 50 years ago to today. AR-15s had not been
invented that I know of and I don't think a teenager could run down
to the local gun store back then and buy a rifle designed for the
military back then.

I guess you never went to Ye Olde Hunter in Alexandria. They
specialized in old military rifles. Granted most were bolt action
because that was what most militaries had but you could also buy an M1
carbine with 20 and 30 round magazines if you had the money or any
number of SA pistols, pretty cheap. I was 19 when I bought my 34
Barretta for $40 and I walked out the door with it. Same with a .38
super 1911.


AR was around. 50 years ago. Basic we used M1 carbine in Air Force.
Probably first time I fired M16 was yearly qualifying in about 1967. We
were not allowed autofire.

On Sat, 24 Feb 2018 17:50:26 -0000 (UTC), Bill
wrote:

wrote:

I guess you never went to Ye Olde Hunter in Alexandria. They
specialized in old military rifles. Granted most were bolt action
because that was what most militaries had but you could also buy an M1
carbine with 20 and 30 round magazines if you had the money or any
number of SA pistols, pretty cheap. I was 19 when I bought my 34
Barretta for $40 and I walked out the door with it. Same with a .38
super 1911.


AR was around. 50 years ago. Basic we used M1 carbine in Air Force.
Probably first time I fired M16 was yearly qualifying in about 1967. We
were not allowed autofire.

I never saw an M16 until the absolute last day I was in the CG. I was
at Yorktown processing out and went to see my old chief who was
"gunner" there. He asked if I wanted to go to the range with him and I
did. We shot some .45 for old times sake (he taught me to shoot) then
he asked if I wanted to try an M16. I fired about 10 in semi and did
the rest in bursts. I am not even sure if this was the A1 or A2 that
only fires 3 at a time but short bursts was how I learned to shoot
anyway ... on a M2.

We had M1s on the ship. I hear they got M14s later but I never saw
one. On the reserve cruises we were not gunners mates like the FTs on
active duty. It was pretty much just a boat ride.