Some of the people I had the great fortune of meeting at the LuckyGunner.com Blogger Shoot a coupe of weeks ago was Jennifer, who writes the blog In Jennifer's Head, and her husband Evyl Robot Michael.
Yesterday, Jennifer asked in her blog for her readers to tell us her story - how did we get into the gun world? This prompted over 50 stories of how they started shooting. I even posted a link to my story, my first real blog post 3 months ago.
Many people who posted linked to their own blogs, and their comments sections had people posting how they got started. I didn't count them all but there's a lot.
One of the things that I noticed was a lot of the posts, maybe a third, represented what is becoming know as Gun Culture 2.0. I first heard this phrase used by Michael Bane, and it means those whose entry into shooting deviates from the traditional, established route of gun ownership. Traditionally people were around shooting all their life. Shooting was passed down from parents and grandparents, or perhaps learned in Scouts or 4H. There are also those who took up shooting in the military.
Gun Culture 2.0 are those like me who took up shooting because of a concern for personal protection. I even noted that several people mentioned Hurricane Katrina as a driving force in their decision. It was not a family tradition, and in some cases, people bought their first gun despite a family tradition of anti-gun attitudes.
Welcome to the fold, fellow members of Gun Culture 2.0. I look forward to meeting you!