Moms Talk: Do You Think Kids Should Play With Toy Weapons?

Today we have an up on the site about Altadena's state Assembly representative pushing for a ban on displaying unloaded handguns in public, a practice that he says serves "no purpose."

Perhaps the practice is not all that different from kids wanting to carry around toy weapons- they obviously hold an attraction for children, one that may make some parents uncomfortable.  But are there merits to having a child play games with a toy weapon?  Can they encourage creative, non-violent play?  Do kids who play with weapons become desensitized to other violence or encouraged to seek out real weapons later in life?

So, parents, how do you feel about your kids playing with toy weapons?  How about other parents' children?  Is it an issue we need to address together in society?

To lead the discussion we turn to our local moms council, with Courtney Scrabeck, Nina Malone, and Deborah Graff of the local MOMS club, as well as local moms Leslie Aitken and Nadine Isenberg, and Laura Monteros.