I think this is something a lot of us have dealt with at some point, in one way or another. 
One thing I'd add that might be contrary to a lot of what you may be hearing here is to leave politics out of it. One reason many 'liberals' shy away from guns is indeed a cultural thing- and yes, sometimes it seems like if you get involved in shooting you run the chance of being surrounded by right-wing conservative Christians.
But ya know, there are actually people who are fond of firearms related activities, who enjoy guns, who also don't like our current administration, who tend to choose environmental issues over development, who believe in global warming and the need for population control, who vote pro-choice, who are all different skin colors, ages, and genders.
I think places like this sometimes encourage this whole 'us versus them' mentality that does more harm than good. It's not a package deal- if she wants, she can decide to try firearms without having to vote Republican, drive a truck, or listen to Country music. It's not all stereotypes here- or shouldn't be, anyway.
That said, it's also worth getting some more specifics on what she objects to. If it's the safety issue for having kids or strangers around the house, fine, that's valid- get a safe. I also got a Steyr M40 as my first handgun; the wife was reassured some by the multiple safeties and the built in lock (all of which are optional, by the way).
One of the reasons my wife hasn't gone shooting with me yet is our small child, and lack of a babysitter. That's fine, I'll wait. She also has had some problems with post-partum depression, and didn't want easy access to any effective suicide tools. Again, that's fine; everything is kept locked in ways she can't get at it very easily.
Granted, I'm still trying to talk her into the shotgun my dad's trying to sell me...
One thing I'd add that might be contrary to a lot of what you may be hearing here is to leave politics out of it. One reason many 'liberals' shy away from guns is indeed a cultural thing- and yes, sometimes it seems like if you get involved in shooting you run the chance of being surrounded by right-wing conservative Christians.
But ya know, there are actually people who are fond of firearms related activities, who enjoy guns, who also don't like our current administration, who tend to choose environmental issues over development, who believe in global warming and the need for population control, who vote pro-choice, who are all different skin colors, ages, and genders.
I think places like this sometimes encourage this whole 'us versus them' mentality that does more harm than good. It's not a package deal- if she wants, she can decide to try firearms without having to vote Republican, drive a truck, or listen to Country music. It's not all stereotypes here- or shouldn't be, anyway.
That said, it's also worth getting some more specifics on what she objects to. If it's the safety issue for having kids or strangers around the house, fine, that's valid- get a safe. I also got a Steyr M40 as my first handgun; the wife was reassured some by the multiple safeties and the built in lock (all of which are optional, by the way).
One of the reasons my wife hasn't gone shooting with me yet is our small child, and lack of a babysitter. That's fine, I'll wait. She also has had some problems with post-partum depression, and didn't want easy access to any effective suicide tools. Again, that's fine; everything is kept locked in ways she can't get at it very easily.
Granted, I'm still trying to talk her into the shotgun my dad's trying to sell me...
It makes about as much sense.
