I got a single shot 410 for my 11th birthday. That was before GCA68. Dad bought it at a gas station, no paperwork. Just as easy as buying a cup of coffee. Back then you could order guns through the mail. Those were definetly the good old days.
I got my first .22 when I was 10 by selling greeting cards door-to-door. When I had sold the required quantity (and remitted the money) my Dad just had to sign a note stating he knew I was ordering a rifle. My .22 Marlin came in the return mail.
Two years later I bought a WWII surplus M1 Garand for deer hunting at a local hardware store for $30, which included 4 stripper clips of ball ammo -- they had three or four barrels full of rifles to choose from (again, parental acknowledgement was required). I still have that Garand -- and the .22.
Those were the days when most people owned guns. Kids were brought up with self discipline and acceptance of personal responsibility. We didn't have any mass shootings and very few irresponsible instances of vandalism with guns.
They only thing that has changed besides essentially the cosmetics of civilian owned guns is the way kids are brought up.
Man...musta been nice to be able to order guns from a catalog without filling out more paper than the catalog itself contained.
ReplyDelete...I think I might have one of those!
ReplyDeleteI got a single shot 410 for my 11th birthday. That was before GCA68. Dad bought it at a gas station, no paperwork. Just as easy as buying a cup of coffee. Back then you could order guns through the mail. Those were definetly the good old days.
ReplyDeleteI got my first .22 when I was 10 by selling greeting cards door-to-door. When I had sold the required quantity (and remitted the money) my Dad just had to sign a note stating he knew I was ordering a rifle. My .22 Marlin came in the return mail.
ReplyDeleteTwo years later I bought a WWII surplus M1 Garand for deer hunting at a local hardware store for $30, which included 4 stripper clips of ball ammo -- they had three or four barrels full of rifles to choose from (again, parental acknowledgement was required). I still have that Garand -- and the .22.
Those were the days when most people owned guns. Kids were brought up with self discipline and acceptance of personal responsibility. We didn't have any mass shootings and very few irresponsible instances of vandalism with guns.
They only thing that has changed besides essentially the cosmetics of civilian owned guns is the way kids are brought up.