This week’s column is about the responsibilities every person has when they have firearms in their home. If you keep guns of any kind in your house, then you have certain responsibilities on your shoulders whether you like it or not. Today, more than 30 million law-abiding citizen enjoy using sporting rifles, shotguns and handguns for hunting and target shooting. It has also been estimated there are more than 100 million citizens who have firearms in their homes for legitimate reasons, like home protection. Household accidents involving firearms have decreased significantly in the past 30 years, according to the National Safety Council. I would like to see this downward trend continue. However, gun owners need to comply with common sense rules when it comes to having guns in their homes. I said in a past column that I have been around guns all my life, which is very true. Dad kept a .22 rifle loaded for home protection when I was growing up, and I was told never to go near them.