[Jeff Higgins]

You guys are waaay over thinking this.

I keep a single action (.45 Colt - what else, for those that know me) in the nightstand right next to my bed. Pretty darn simple. In the dark, under pressure, I can work it better than my own dick. Familiarity is key, folks.

Got kids? Whatever clever little scheme you think you have come up with, I assure you, I would have defeated it as a kid. The only real answer to kids and guns is to take the mystery out of it for them. Remove the "forbidden fruit" attraction by exposing them to your guns. Let them know they have free access any time they want, so long as it is with you. Pretty soon the fascination begins to wane, and the guns become just another part of the backdrop at home.

Neighbor kids? If your own are rather blasé about the whole thing, and better yet have seen the damage they can do, there is little chance they will allow some untrained, wild eyed idiot of a friend to even get close to them. This worked for me and my siblings (who grew up with unsecured guns in the house), my parents, my grandparents, and as far back as there were firearms in either side of the family. Worked for my kids, too. It will likely work for theirs as well.