Toy guns,Should they be banned?

Kids will play Cowboys and Indians, Cops and Robbers, etc, no matter if they have toy guns or not. They’ll make a gun with their fingers, or use a stick. I don’t have a problem if the toy is obviously a toy. I don’t think they should be made with realistic colors. A nice fluorescent green or orange springs to mind!

What really bothers me is the firearms market trying to get women into hunting by making “girly” colored weapons, like this, or this.

This shows a disturbing lack of common sense. Haven’t these manufacturers ever been around children?

I do not think toy guns should be banned. I agree that they should be manufactured in silly colors to make them less realistic. I also wouldn’t take issue if they all had slight, but important details wrong.

Of course the color won’t stop someone from spray painting one black, but I would rather see them start strange colors.

The only reason I don’t like toy guns is because they can be mistaken for real guns, and can cause the police to shoot the wielder. Making toy guns in bright colors helps to combat this. If someone chooses to spray paint it black, well they’re just going to have to realize that police will think its a real gun and treat it/the wielder appropriately. Stupid is as stupid does.

Banning something is never the solution. That only creates an underground market for the item and lets politicians pretend the problem doesn’t exist. Plus, remember when you were a kid, things your parents said NO to instantly become more desirable!

Violent video games and children/teens have been studied time and time again, and will continue to be done. I do not believe that violent video games increases people being violent. In fact, in the past decade all types of crime have been decreasing. Some speculate, and I agree with this, that allowing kids and teens to get their anger or frustration out via a video game reduces the occurrences of them being violent in real life. It’s the same thing as porn reducing rape levels – its a safe form of release for the person.

Yes toy guns should be banned. Children don’t need to be playing at shooting/killing each other. There are far more productive ways for kids to play. Guns aren’t for playing; they’re about death.

I also think it’s unreasonable to say that violent video games and play have no effect on children or teenagers. That’s just not possible. It really depends on the individual.

No. Toy guns should not be banned. Maybe painted different colors but not banned. I really don’t even think politicians should discuss this because they are wasting time and money. If someone doesn’t want their kid to play with toy guns then take responsibility for your kids because it is not the governments job to regulate how you parent.

Toy guns should be manufactured to look like a toy…either by color scheme or design/shape.

Banning toy guns altogether isn’t the solution.

Diva, those girlie guns look stupid. I would be embarassed to be near one. LOL.

Kids will still be playing shooting or killing each other even if they only have their own fingers or twigs to act as a gun. Should be ban twigs and fingers next then? No, that’s obviously a dumb solution. Childhood is not about being productive, it’s about learning how life and the world works, and childhood games such as Cops ‘n Robbers let the child learn about chaos and order, consequences for actions, what a bad guy is and does, etc.

While I would never buy a child a toy gun, I don’t think toy guns should be banned. I think that if a parent wants to purchase a toy gun for their child, they should have the right to do so. I do agree that they should come in strange colors so they aren’t as realistic. People have different ways of raising their children and in my perfect world, no one would buy toy weapons for their children and the demand would decrease causing companies who make them to go out of business but this isn’t my perfect world. I don’t believe that banning anything is the answer.

When my son was born, we decided to not buy toy guns and to try to discourage them, as gifts. He went off to preschool and came home, one day and wanted to play in the backyard, so off we went. Before I could say a word, he had a stick in hand, acting like it was a gun. “pow, pow!” I was shocked. Since that day he’s used, sticks, remotes, pencils (he’s 5 now), lint rollers, pieces of chalk, straws and many other items, as a gun. Does he know that REAL guns can be used to kill or hurt people? Absolutely. Should they ban twigs, straws…lint rollers??

Kids are going to play these games. He now has orange guns, a funky looking sword and a police officer set. Am I training a bad person? Molding him into a killer? Nope.

I played cops and robbers, with my sister and cousins. I was the female Indiana Jones…down to the whip…and yes, the gun he used to shoot someone in the first movie. Am I a murderer? Nope.

I may choose to not buy my kids play guns, but kids learn from other kids. Of course it’s ridiculous to ban fingers and sticks, do you think that’s what I suggest as an alternative, really?

I don’t think there’s anything redeeming about guns or playing with them as toys. Is there a parent here who thinks there is a positive purpose to encouraging toy gun play?

If parents don’t stand up for their children, who will?

I am my son’s advocate. I am my older daughter’s advocate. My feeling is they learn these things. Why not take the time to educate them – age appropriate education – and really stress to them that guns are so very dangerous and playing with fake guns – is nothing like a real gun. If they were to ever be near a real gun to run away and tell their parent, NEVER to touch it, EVER! There are many more lessons we have taught both of our children, ages 14 & 5.

I do agree that fake guns, should never be realistic looking. They should only be in fluorescent colors, and maybe exaggerated.

Just because I allow my son to play with a toy gun, does not mean that I don’t stand up for my child. We have no real guns in the house. Never will. I have good reason to hate what guns do to people, as a result of people making horrible choices. My biological father was murdered by a man that shot him in the head. Over the years, I’ve come to realize that it’s not the gun, it was the horrible person that made that decision.

I am standing up for my children, I am a responsible parent. I just have made different decisions than you. Does that make me a bad parent? I don’t think so, just someone that made different choices.

What I mean by standing up for our children, is that if we don’t move to make changes in this country re: guns and toy gun sales to children, who will? Certainly not the toy industry.

Who knows maybe not having toy guns around might help curb violence or the tendency for young people (as they get older) to use violence to solve problems. We won’t know unless we try, right?

It is up to the stores to decide if they want to sell the toy guns. It is not up to the government to decide. My nephew started hunting when he was five or six and he is as non-violent as they come.

@Megan64 – No – I would absolutely hate for the government to get involved in this. I would like to see stores become more responsible about marketing efforts, but as far as government involvement, no. When the government steps into ever single aspect – including banning toy guns – we actually lose more control over our parenting choices. (at least in my opinion)

I’m sorry I got so defensive. I get a little upset if I feel that my parenting is being questioned, as far as making choices for my children and my ability to do the right thing!

Understand that I respect your opinion, I just see it as something that the government has no place in, especially now.

@Megan: Maybe properly parenting our kids will show them not to use violence to solve problems. Not restricting the rights of parents, toy makers, and toy sellers by saying “you can’t do that”. The idea that we might restrict freedom in this nation in any way because “we won’t know unless we try” is… frightening and ridiculous.

Great answer, EmpressPixie. That mindset is a completely dangerous one for freedom and liberty.

So we’re to not do anything to make a change in society’s attitudes? It’s guns people….and children. Not sure how trying to curb their use is ridiculous. Are there other options I’m not seeing?

Megan I appreciate your point, but as a parent, I think it comes down to responsible parenting.

If you choose to not have real or toy guns, that is your choice.

I was raised around real guns. I was taught to respect them and to be safe w/ them.

Interestingly, the only toy gun I remember having as a child was a purple and red squirt gun that looked like a luger.

I am not violent. Guns don’t make people violent.

It’s not guns, it’s toy guns. That’s a huge difference. Curbing the use of toy guns would do nothing to curb the use of regular guns. Not all kids who use toy guns become gun owners, some kids who don’t play with toy guns become mafia members. Banning something does not work, plain and simple. Good and responsible parenting does though.

What about those without good, responsible parents? And it’s true, obviously, that not all kids that play with guns become violent. What about those that do? We have a responsibility to all society’s children, not just our own.

It seems to me that by making gun play “normal” we make guns normal, and therefore violence with guns, normal. It would seem to me that by removing toy guns from the market we might decrease violence in society. And that, to me, seems worth a try.

I wonder how many toy guns are sold in countries where owning a gun is illegal and/or the incidence of gun violence is far lower than ours? Places like England, Canada.

Megan, I don’t think removing guns will curb violence. You would truly need to go through and completely sanitize everything and we just can’t do that – there is always going to be that distasteful side of life. The violence will always be there. If not guns, then knives, if not knives, then fists, rocks…look around you, anything around you – including your hands. Taking on thing away will not solve the violence problem.

Unfortunately, we will never have the answer to the irresponsible parent issue. What you can do is make sure your children, loved ones and children that you have in your life – are educated about these issues.

Say it happens, toy guns are banned – it’s a sweeping ban that includes water guns. Next, someone decides that yo-yos are dangerous. Should we ban them? Stop production? It sounds ridiculous, but this is how it happens. It falls on parents to educate their children in this area. It’s never going to be perfect, but we must do our best.

I understand what you’re saying, but the difference to me is that people don’t go around killing other people with “real” yo-yos, etc. The entire purpose of guns is to kill something. Knives, rocks, hands, (yo-yos) all have other uses.

The “entire purpose of guns” is not to kill something.

Get a grip.

I would bet that there aren’t toy guns commonly sold in lots of countries where kids actually use guns….think of all of the Time magazine photos you have seen of grade school age children holding weapons in foreign countries.

Do you have cable or internet in your home? (No cable in my home, kids too young for computer) A TV? (Kids only watch certain PBS shows and DVDs) Do your kids ever watch the evening news? (Not here) Is it on in the background? (Nope)

Kids can be exposed to images of violence from multiple sources.

Your kids will be exposed to guns. Someone will bring one to school. They will visit a home where there are guns. You might have a family member who secretly owns a gun that you don’t know about….

You will not be able to insulate your kids or mine from violence, violent tendencies or real guns by banning toy guns.

@snoopy What then is the purpose of a gun, if it is not to kill?

and…can you be sure that banning toy guns would not make the world a kinder, more gentler place to raise children? How are you sure?

Sigh.

Megan is that all you got out of that post?

Obviously the primary purpose of a weapon is for its lethal use. However, my point is that many people (including myself) who have fired a weapon have never done so w/ lethal intent toward another human or any animal.
Target shooting is what I had in mind….

I think that a discussion of real guns is probably best for another question…...

YES I’m sure banning toy guns would have NO effect, because something ELSE would quickly take the place of guns! Cannons would come back. Trebuchets. Sharp sticks. Space lasers. Toy swords. WHATEVER. Humans were violent animals and we still are a bit, we just know how to be civil and hold it back.

The purpose of a gun is to be able to defend oneself and one’s property against a threat, such as a robber or a wild animal, while posing little risk to the wielder. Some also choose to hone their skills through the use of clay discs or target shooting, which is legitimate and a great way to get better at wielding it. Another use of guns is to hunt wild animals, whether as food or as sport. The fact that they’ve been glamorized by Hollywood, television, and the mainstream media, such that kids want to play and pretend that they have one, has no relevance on the existence and use of guns.

I think the burden of proof is on YOU to show us that banning toy guns WOULD make the world a nicer place, not on US to disprove your wild theory. In the interests of this discussion however, I bring forth the previous attempt to ban alcohol for “society’s benefit”, the period of time known as Prohibition. Do research into it if you need to, but the basic point was that not only did it completely FAIL at stopping people from drinking, it also largely contributed to funding mobsters and crime. Banning something “for society’s benefit” just does not work when you and I have different definitions of what benefits socierty. Thus we ban nothing, and educate children on what’s right and wrong.

It would be difficult to prove without trying, and it would take a number of years to show any evidence or effect.

I’m not trying to take away anyone’s right to own a real gun. A gun is not a toy, and therefore a toy shouldn’t be made in its likeness.

A sword is not a toy but they make those as well, so by your logic there should be a ban on toy swords, correct?

When there are as many deaths by swords in the U.S. as there are by guns, I’ll come on here and argue in favor of banning those too.

Canada has toy guns too but we don’t have nearly the same mortality rate as America does with regards to gun violence. I don’t think toy guns contribute to gun violence as much as you believe it does.

i don’t think toy guns have much of an effect on little kids, it seems that as the years go by we’re becoming more and more desensitized to death and things of that nature. plus, as long as there is war, there will be children who know about it, and be influenced in some way or another by it. i think that children should be taught about violence, not expected to pretend it doesn’t exist.