I have a couple of inexpensive “mostly fits” holsters for trips to the range, especially with a new handgun. Everything else is quality and made for the specific firearm.

We used top-flight leather when I was in law enforcement 40-some-odd years ago and it spoiled me. I have even designed holsters, made the pattern and had them made at a saddle shop here in Texas when I couldn’t get what I wanted.

Your comments remind me of that old saw, “A handgun is what you use until you can get to your rifle.”

There’s a lot of truth to that.

I have recommended a lot of different types of guns. I have owned more than a hundred and sent I don’t know how many tens of thousands of rounds downrange or in the field.

But I have never felt I had any business telling a person what gun they might need. Heck, I wouldn’t even tell anyone what kind of drink they might need. That’s a personal decision that only they can make.

Joe Biden famously said a person only needs a double-barreled shotgun. I wonder if Mr. Biden has ever fired a double-barreled shotgun. Load that sucker with heavy buckshot or slugs and it will rock your world.

Obviously, your needs are handled with long guns. I will note that a lot of people don’t have much choice about where they live. Beyond that, it really doesn’t matter where you live; you’re playing the odds and you should stack the deck any way you can.

I agree that owning a firearm means learning to handle that firearm in a safe manner, including proper range etiquette, cleaning and storage. It also means learning to shoot the firearm and becoming proficient with it. It doesn’t matter whether it’s for self-defense, hunting or target shooting.

That’s something that for most of American history was passed down from father to son but I think it is being lost with the decline in hunting and the vilification of guns and gun owners.

That’s too bad. It used to be that we really did have a gun culture. Nowadays it seems we have the guns, but not the culture.