I'm anti-gun, I'll just state that right off the bat. And I'm not a fan of little kids playing with guns, even toy guns (even water guns). Although I am realistic ... I know kids make "guns" from their hands even if they aren't necessarily exposed to that sort of thing.
my SIL is aware of my feelings and yet she bought my DS a wooden pop gun for his birthday this summer. I immediately confiscated it and put it away, but didn't make too big a deal out of it. At another child's birthday party, DS was given a water gun as a party favor. Again, I took it and threw it out.
So ... am I being unreasonable? Will you let your kid(s) (and I mean little kids, he's only 2. I realize by the time he's 9 I may not have this kind of control anymore) play with toy guns?
Re: what do you think of toy guns?
um ... pro gun?
lol!
Ditto.
guns are tools, not toys.
I also take squirt guns away from my DD. No need. I caused someone bodily injury with a squirt gun when I was young. He needed 4 stiches. We were having a squirt gun war. I ran out of ammo. So I threw the gun at him.
I just laughed so hard, I peed a little.
Nice move!! I probably would've done the same!
Actually some of the biggest gun-totin' families I know are VERY anti-toy guns b/c they don't want their kids getting the idea that they're simply toys. They want their kids to know to "respect" firearms and understand exactly what they're capable of and know that they are NOT toys.
I am anti-real and toy gun. IMO you are not unreasonable. IMO it's VERY reasonable to not let your kid play with them but at the same time don't make a big deal about it. This is what I plan on doing.
I myself am a gun-toting, card carrying member of the NRA. I have my concealed carriers permit, and I think that gun control laws only keep guns out of the hands of honest, law-abiding people.
With that being said, no, I don't believe you are being unreasonable. Regardless of how I feel, I would NEVER give a toy gun to your child if I knew you were anti-gun.
Now, a light saber... I might have to bend the rules there
DH and I both are pro-gun. I have no problem with toy guns so long as there is a conversation regarding the use of guns and the dangers of any weapon. As PPs have said, guns are not toys.
Personally, I wouldnt feel comfortable completely shielding my kids from guns simply because Id worry about the interest it would cause. That and I know that with all of the video games and violent shows/movies, they would be introduced to them in a way I wouldnt like.
You can try your best to keep toy guns from your children - fine that's your right to do so. But I guarantee that a little boy, no matter how hard you try for this not to happen, will use his fingers to imitate a gun. Also, the more you try to keep them from knowing of things the more their curiosity will be peeked down the road - which in turn could be more dangerous than allowing them to play with a plastic toy gun.
AMEN SISTAH!!!
We let our son play with them and he loves them. He is going to grow up huinting with his father at a young age, so why not teach him proper use at a young age?
Let me just say that he is too young to teach at this point: