People may get mad at this but here it goes...If you say you only own a gun to defend yourself and your family and if somebody gets killed in the process you will feel bad then you may need to take a minute and think about it again...If you own a firearms to protect yourself or someone else that means that you bought it to shoot another person, if you shoot another person you had better mean to kill them and not be bothered by the concept of killing them prior to pulling the trigger. If you point a firearm at someone you better not do it unless you are ready to kill them, thats what the weapon is designed to do. In law enforcement we are taught to "shoot to stop". The only reason for this wording is so it will hold up in court and against public scrutiny of the people who want the bad guy stopped but don't want to put themselves in harms way to do it or live with the fact that they took a life themselves. Make no mistake, when law enforcement shoots center mass, we are shooting there to kill the person because if one goes by the law, once it is legal to use deadly force against another person in self defense it is implied that the threat against them by the aggressor is serious enough that it may result in them being seriously injured or killed. My point is that anyone who says that they own a gun for protection but not to kill anyone is either unable to actually pull the trigger and take a life when necessary, and it is at times necessary, or they are just too afraid of being labeled a social outcast or something for sounding, as they might call it "blood thirsty" or "psycho". Every time I went to interview for various jobs in law enforcement in the past I was asked the same question, "If you had to could you use deadly force and take a life." If you hesitate for a mere second before you answer, if you answer "no", if you answer "I would hate to, but I would if I had to", anything other than "absolutely" then you are not getting the job, because nobody wants you as backup if you won't kill to defend yourself and others. Firearms classes for the public, just like for law enforcement don't train people to shoot somebody in the leg, they train to hit vital areas center mass and in the head. If you carry a firearm be ready to use it and use it effectively, if not leave it in the drawer at home or sell it and let somebody else carry it who will use it without moral quams about taking a life when necessary. If you think you can't live with taking a life then ask yourself if you can live with the idea of you or another innocent person being dead. Bad guys make the choice, the law is there for a reason, if it is wrong to kill a bad guy then why would we have state sponsored execution at the state and federal level for crimes? Why do we have laws that spell out exactly when and where law enforcement and private citizens can use deadly force against a criminal? All food for thought. And this isn't directed at any particular person, just a thought that rattles around in my mind from time to time. Call me crazy or blood thirsty if you want, but I obey the law, I'm sworn to uphold it, and I'd give my life to make sure that each citizen of this country is safe. I stand on that wall bother literally and figuratively, I am The Thin Blue Line. If I end up taking a life it will be in defense of the public.