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The One (and Only) Kid who can Have a Gun
Ralphie, the Red Ryder, and Me
“A Christmas Story”
Let’s make it clear. I’m a serious gun safety advocate, so no children should have guns as far as I’m concerned.
But. There is that one. That one is Ralphie. Ralphie is alive only on screen, and his firearm is a threat to no one.
“You’ll shoot your eye out!” may be December’s best-known refrain. You can overhear it in millions of households as Christmas nears, and you can be tormented by it for 24 hours on the day itself, should you choose. Ralphie is the pudgy, blond, nine-year old who desires an “official Red Ryder, carbine action, 200-shot, range model air rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time.” (It is imperative that you recite the entire quotation in one breath.) Contrary to his desire, nearly every adult Ralphie esteems tells him, “You’ll shoot your eye out!”
You’ve seen the film at least once, if not a half-dozen times. Adult Ralphie narrates the episodes leading to his best Christmas ever. His friend, Flick, gets…
