I have yet to meet anyone who thinks gun storage is a terrible idea as a general thing. I’m sure there’s someone out there who does–I mean, there are people who point guns at their junk to make a point, so anything is possible–but the vast majority of people on both sides of the issue favor storage.

It’s just about everything else we disagree on.

Yet there are a lot of people who just don’t think. They buy guns or inherit them, then never really worry about how they’re stored. It’s not that they’re vile or intentionally irresponsible, they just don’t think about it because they’re generally not thinking about their guns all that often.

Out of sight, out of mind, and all that.

In Washington County, Tennessee, though, they’re hoping to raise awareness about gun storage.

Washington County officials are encouraging parents and caretakers of children to check for unsecured guns in the home.

County commissioners voted earlier this week to approve a proclamation recognizing June 21 as “Asking Saves Kids Day” (ASK Day) in Washington County.

“Whereas, June 21, the first day of summer, marks a time when children will be spending much time at home or with friends,” the proclamation, which was brought by the local chapter of Brady United Against Gun Violence, as part of a national campaign to promote safe in-home storage of firearms. “Unfortunately, every day across America, eight children and teens are unintentionally injured or killed due to an unlocked or unsupervised gun in the home, and these tragedies increase as temperatures rise.”

Washington County Mayor Joe Grandy read the proclamation aloud Monday before commissioners approved the measure. Grandy said ASK Day urges all parents and caretakers of children to ask if there are “unlocked guns in the home.”

Brady is conducting a national campaign to raise awareness about the risk of unsecured guns in the home and to mobilize gun owners and non-gun owners to prevent “family fire.” That’s a term the organization has given to a shooting “caused by someone having access to a gun from the home when the individual shouldn’t have it.”

I’d actually be a lot more supportive of this if Brady weren’t involved.

First, understand something, if some random person starts asking me about my gun ownership, they’re not going to get a meaningful discussion on firearms and my beliefs on storage. They’re either going to be told to mind their own f***ing business or I’m going to lie to them and say there aren’t any guns in my home.

I’m not that trusting of random people keeping my gun ownership confidential.

Now, as for this particular idea.

Generally, I’m not a fan of “awareness” campaigns for most things because I figure people are already aware of these things. There are exceptions, though, and gun storage is probably one of those exceptions.

While most people are likely aware of the concept, out of sight is out of mind. They probably think about getting a lock or safe or something when they see the gun, then forget about it later. An awareness campaign might well make people think about it at other times, and that’s good.

Again, though, with Brady involved, there’s reason to believe the advice that’ll be given out won’t be in gun owners’ best interests. After all, they’re really OK with you never being able to access your own guns, no matter what they try to tell you.