>BB guns were where I taught my boys the clear delineation from toys like the Nerf dart guns we still have battles with (they're 18 and 19) and weapons. They understood that line pretty well - never fired a BB at each other.
I saw no reason to teach them not to point toy guns at each other. It's awful boring to play with them when you only have imaginary opponents (a childhood with no other kids to play with taught me that) and dart gun fights are part of a good childhood. The important lesson in my opinion was "weapon vs not-a-weapon". They also didn't have any trouble telling the difference between their foam Nerf swords and the machetes we use on brush and undergrowth, which they were swinging from 10 years old.
I, and many others, see toys as the ideal time to begin teaching important life lessons.
leVieux
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