My cartridge guns, and most of the muzzleloaders, are locked up. So is the ammo. I hedge on the muzzleloaders because I have pair of .44 caliber cap and ball revolvers in a box, but there is no powder, ball, or caps with them.

Even if there were -- do you know how LONG it takes to load a cap and ball revolver? Trust me -- you wonder exactly HOW the West was won.

Now that that's said: because of recent home invasions in the neighborhood (and the cops think that they've got the guy), I have been sleeping with an unloaded .38 Special (S&W, 4 inch barrel) and 12 rounds of hand-loaded SJHP ammo in speed loaders in the nightstand. I can load that revolver VERY quickly should I ever need to do so. Now, if the cops have the guy -- and I think that they're right -- the revolver and the ammo will join the other guns in the lockup.

The gun knowledgable will know what sort of rig I've described; for anyone else -- the bullets would mess someone up pretty badly; they definitely would stop a bad guy from doing whatever he's doing.

HOWEVER! I am alone right now, and when my wife is here there are only two adults in the house (and usually the .38 is locked up). She knows guns, even though she doesn't "like" them. Should children come visiting, I stuff ALL firearms in the lockup.

Actually, for REAL home defense (if you must), it's hard to beat a smatcher or bolo knife or a machete. Messy, but it doesn't destroy the walls and furniture.

(The Thompson Submachine Gun, or "Tommy Gun," was introduced into the US Army far too late to be used in WW1, as was intended. So it was marketed as a home defense weapon! True! Spray 50 bullets around your living room and see what it does to your furniture! And then...scroll down and see the ad.