I have several guns in my home that are always loaded ready to shoot.
Nice...
I don't know how to take what you said, but in the context I was describing, I have a 12 gauge ready in the event coyotes go after my goats. I have a .22 loaded for skunks, opossums, and raccoons that could kill many egg laying hens that I have. My .177 hunting pellet gun is ready as well.
I use firearms all the time as a tool. I don't use them for "show off" purposes.
In the context of home defense, I really believe strongly in non-resistance, however, when you have children and a wife to defend (perhaps it is a weakness in my faith) I would defend them. This is not the reason for my firearms though.
In context of wars, I would still defend them which would be the case for an intruder.
But for hunting reasons & defending livestock, I don't see an alternative to firearms.
This is not exact but really close to my home to give the general idea of just how much land is around me. We get overflow of critters and coyotes from all over -
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=purdon,+tx&hl=en&ll=31.8761,-96.597633&spn=0.078135,0.110378&geocode=+&hnear=Purdon,+Navarro,+Texas&t=h&z=13I did not mention wild hogs either in my last post. Those things are MONSTERS here in Texas. They'll eat you alive (I am not kidding). There are people who have been gutted by their tusks while on their property. I was once taking some hay down a dirt road on the go-kart (off road), and there was a large hog just standing there in the path grunting at me. It would not move for anything.
SLOWLY, I took out the .22 (mounted on the cart) and pointed at him. 1st shot it screamed and started charging the cart, and I had to shoot it 8 times before it dropped (and I was lucky).
Here are some photos of Texas Boars (WARNING - some graphic hunting photos )
https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&client=ubuntu&hs=PsL&channel=fs&q=large+texas+boar&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_qf.&biw=1024&bih=603&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=iVBRUPP9IMa42wXYnYCQCgThe one I got was about a 1/3 the size of the monster ones photographed. It was around 600 pounds (est based off calf weight for size - and I could not drag it and had to get a truck to do it)
Anyway, I know this strays far from typical gun arguments for home defense, but there are absolute needs for them around here. I would not travel on the acreage without being ready. I've popped poisonous copperhead snakes, rattlesnakes, cotton mouth snakes, water moccasins.... Wild turkeys (that do NOT taste like butterball turkey).
None of the animals are killed to make me a "tough guy" though. I really hate having to do it. It's a tool, nothing more.
My point of explaining all of this is not the intent to "show off" the guns, but to elaborate there is points of gun ownership outside of shooting people.