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Guns and Children
Two different parents and two different sons
I don’t have children of my own but I have friends with children that I’ve gotten to know well.
Recently, I saw two different responses to the desire of sons to play with toy guns.
Just to be clear — both sets of parents are wonderful. They set healthy limits for their children while also giving lots of encouragement and affection. The children are healthy and happy.
One set of parents is quite liberal. The other is more politically moderate. We live in Texas.
A few weeks ago, when I was out with my liberal friend and her son, we were visiting a popular toy store in the Austin area, Terra Toys. My friend’s son was mesmerized by the toy guns. He really wanted to get one.
His mother had given him $20 that he could use to buy whatever he wanted. At least, that is what she originally told him.
Things changed, though, when he picked out a toy gun in a beautifully tooled holster.
“Pick something else,” she said.
He’d already spent over 20 minutes looking at different items. He really wanted the gun. But his mother insisted. He looked disappointed, but picked out another toy.
