Play Guns...Yay or Nay?

When I was growing up, I never saw an issue with toy guns.  I had no problem dressing up and playing cowboys with the neighborhood boys, or pretending to be in the army.  I even wanted to join the army when I graduated high school!  I have never had a problem with guns, and as long as the person using them is sane and in good health, the more power to them.

In light of Sandy Hook and other high profile shootings around the nation, I now struggle with my children playing with fake guns.  A part of me says it should not be a big deal, they are children, and they are not aiming to hurt each other, just to catch the bad guys.  Pierce talks about hunting when he gets older so he can provide food for his family, and they often go on "deer hunts" in our back yard.

Yet, I am terrified about the stigmas of society, and have banned all gun play in our house.  The reason being?  I am terrified that my children are going to go to school, pretend they are hunting on the play ground, and be expelled from school.  It is because of this logic that I am so upset with myself; should I not teach my children that guns being used safely for a good purpose is alright?  Or should I play into this super sensitive society and teach my children that guns are bad?  Do I do this to protect them from expulsion if they ever go to a public school?

I feel that I am letting myself down.  I am not being the strong parent that I know I should be.  I am not standing up for the basic rights that our fathers established for us and fought for (with guns) so many years ago.  I feel that I am letting my children down by not letting them play that wonderful game of cops and robbers, and letting them be children.  Hopefully one day the sensitivity will go away.  I truly, 100% believe that guns do not kill people.  It is the person behind the gun with a mental illness that kills a person.  Yet, I still don't have it in me to let my children run around the house and fire off that pretend gun.

What I am trying to get to in this post, is what should I do?  Should I let them be children and have a care free imagination?  Or should I play into society and stop them from being children?  Why is parenting so hard?