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Yes, I grew up with guns. For my 16th birthday, in fact, I received a .357 instead of a car. But there was nothing playful about them; they were tools. My parents went through a back-to-the-land phase. Most of our vegetables and fruits came from our own garden.

I grew up hunting with shotguns and rifles, and we had a gun in every corner of the living room. I'm not a gun advocate, but that's the way I grew up.

When kids my age were picking up toy cars, I used to buy toy guns.

You know, I've carried a weapon for 10 years, never shot anybody, never robbed anybody. It has saved my life twice, but I know they're not toys. I practice with firearms, I enjoy shooting, it's a hobby of mine and I have a healthy respect for them.

I was very fascinated by the time when firearms went from being fire sticks to being something people could use to hunt and to survive.

Prior to being mugged I did not feel I had to carry a gun. However, I knew how to shoot a gun very proficiently. As a boy, I used to play cowboys and Indians all the time.

I've learned that guns are exceptionally challenging to use effectively, with a power that must be respected. But mostly what I've learned is that they're a lot of fun, and dangerously appealing to an active imagination.

I grew up in Texas in a family that fished and hunted, so I've shot guns as a kid.

I grew up on a ranch with my father, so he educated us really early on about guns. We used to go target shooting all the time.