Between the booth girls, calendars, advertisements, and the average chick in an action movie, a lot of us guys have an image that pops into our heads when we hear “girls” and “guns” in the same context. Guilty as charged. When I go into my “man cave” it’s a gun room, totally devoid of anything feminine other than a 9mm 1911. Because of my background in male-only military units and a male-dominated industry, I think of the Hot Shots calendar or Kate Beckinsale in Underworld. Gun culture is a predominately male endeavor. Guys, that’s something we need to strive to change. I’m sure a lucky few have a wife or girlfriend who wants to go blaze away. For the rest of us, here’s a few good reasons to get your better half out behind a gun:

1. PROTECTION: I’m pretty comfortable with a gun. I’m pretty comfortable with the idea of taking someone’s life in legitimate self defense. I generally feel pretty good about my abilities to defend those I care about as well. However, I can’t always be around, and I bet a lot of the SSD readers can’t either. I’m gone 50% or more of the time personally. A couple of nights ago, my girlfriend had a shady looking/sounding person start beating on the door. At 3:45AM. In the country, in a really sweet house in the middle of a very large nursery. Most of us knuckle draggers would be thanking God that our prayers were answered while we try to decide what blaster to grab. My much better half was not as amused. Home alone with two kids and two dogs who were absolutely going bonkers, she was freaked out. Luckily, she did the right thing and consolidated the family in the back bedroom, got out the Glock 19 and Surefire light I gave her, called 911, and waited for someone to come through the door. Fortunately, that didn’t happen. 60 minutes later when the Deputy arrived to a call of someone beating down a door and screaming to let them in (3 miles from the station…ponder that for a minute), he said they found a dazed person walking down the road claiming their car had broken down. Think about that response time. An HOUR to get to a call of someone breaking into a house while acting deranged. Had they busted through a window with the intent to harm, the cavalry was a long time out. Whether it’s your wife, girlfriend, daughter, mother, neighbor, friend, cousin…if you have the ability to help them defend themselves in the world we live in today, why wouldn’t you?

2. WOMEN VOTE: There’s no doubt that we’re in a politically tumultuous time in America. I personally feel that if the current administration gets re-elected, gun rights will be on the agenda for them as they continue their assault on the Constitution. Women have voted more than men by 3-5% in every election since 1980 according to Rutger’s University’s Center for American Women and Politics. When I vote this year, make no mistake of what I am voting for. I am not voting for a political party. I am not voting for Romney as a person. I am not voting for taxes, entitlements, big corporations, small business, war, peace or anything else. I’ve got my own uber-conservative views on all that stuff. But when I cast the ballot, I am voting for my guns, and my right to buy, own, and sell them. My 2nd Amendment RIGHT to keep them. I believe gun control only punished law-abiding citizens, and I exercise my right to vote to keep that removal of my ability to defend myself and my family at bay. We need all the help we can get with that, and while I don’t have any statistics I’d bet males make up the majority of the staunch 2A advocates. As we try and use the system to protect our way of life against the liberal/socialist agenda every vote counts.

3. QUALITY TIME: We all make concessions in a relationship. I spent a lot of time in malls, shops, wine tastings, cocktail parties and other absolutely miserable crap like that in the past to try and make girls happy. I spent most of that time wishing I was at the range. I spent tens of thousands of dollars on purses, shoes, jackets, little dresses, and jewelry. I swiped the debit card for all of that stuff thinking about how I’d rather give Shooter’s Supply that money. It would have been pretty cool to have been able to do something with the significant other that actually involved anything I cared about. Just imagine for a moment your wife or girlfriend wanting to go shoot instead of whatever else. Imagine not having to hide the new guns you bring home, but having that new Glock or AR welcomed into the household. Pretty cool, huh?

There are a lot of reasons for gun guys to encourage their girls to become gun girls. These three stuck out for me, but no matter your reasons I think getting more women involved in shooting sports and defensive training is a great idea. Northern Red and Stoic Ventures offer female-specific shooting courses that come highly recommended, in addition to your local Concealed Carry class that everyone needs to take. Also, there is an increasing number of women’s shooting organizations popping up around the country, check and see if there is one local to you. Just don’t be mad when your guns start disappearing into her safe.

–www.northernred.com
–www.stoicventures.com