The Second Amendment, among other things, preserves the right to keep and bear arms so people can defend themselves. It may be from an intruder or from the government, but the right of self-defense is real and unquestionable, even outside of the United States.

But there are a lot of people who pontificate on the issue of guns and the Second Amendment that have absolutely no understanding of self-defense as a concept, nor the practical implications of some things they think should be a good idea.

And, it seems at least one group of them has partnered with the supposedly non-partisan Ad Council to push their terrible advice.

As rates of suicide by firearm skyrocket in the U.S., a new short film allows seven people to share their stories of how proper gun storage saved their lives.

According to Pew Research Center data, 63% of gun owners in America have at least one unlocked firearm within reach of children and other vulnerable residents. Meanwhile, access to a firearm triples the risk of death by suicide.

To raise awareness about the link between gun access and suicide, Ad Council and gun control advocacy group Brady today jointly released a national public service announcement entitled ‘Safe Stories.’

In the documentary-style film, seven people from across the country recount the times they almost lost their lives to self-inflicted gunshots (the leading cause of firearm deaths in America) and how they were saved thanks to guns that were stored properly, which Ad Council describes as locked, unloaded, and away from ammunition.

Now, first, let’s address the idea of safely storing a firearm. I’ve long advocated locking your guns up when not in use, and yes, that barrier may well reduce suicides as people have to pause a moment and rethink what they’re doing.

But what the Ad Council is doing here is basically parroting the Brady position on what constitutes “safe storage” without any concerns regarding self-defense.

Because anyone who remotely understands self-defense knows that having ammo separate from an unloaded, locked-away firearm is a recipe for disaster when you need a gun in the middle of the night.

What’s worse, this line in the sand is likely going to have an adverse impact on people securing their guns. At least some will see this, roll their eyes, and completely ignore the entire thing.

A more rational approach might be to suggest this as the safest level but to reiterate that what’s most important is securing the guns.

To make this worse, though, is the Ad Council supposedly being neutral and pushing this nonsense. Then again, there are a lot of people who don’t think they’re all that neutral, mostly being a mouthpiece for the president.

Finally, let’s also keep in mind that they’re using anecdotes to try and push a position. What we won’t see are testimonials from the people who did everything suggested and still took their own life, nor will we see any from the people who did as advised and were murdered because they couldn’t get their guns quickly enough.

Remember, folks, Brady doesn’t care about your ability to defend yourself. Self-defense is nowhere in their mission statement, so if you die, so be it.

And now the Ad Council agrees.