The "home invasion" scenario, where dangerous strangers break into an occupied home at night is so terrifying that gun rights people frequently use it as a selling point. "Save your family from being raped and killed in the middle of the night! Get a big gun! Defend your home from the bad guys!"
And the pudgy, middle-aged, near-sighted regular schmo (who only knows about home invasions from watching action movies) imagines that they will be the big hero protecting the wife and kids in a shootout with the bandana-wrapped Asian death gang. Just like Bruce, Ahhnold or Clint. Bring it on, baby!
Problem is this: home invasion by armed killers is the absolute unlikeliest kind of crime. It will never happen to you, unless you are an international double agent who recently informed on a mafia don after stealing money from a drug cartel.
In the vast majority of burglaries, the bad guys case the home and generally
wait until the people leave. Criminals mainly want a fast, easy way to get your stuff; they are not looking for messy people trouble, believe it or not. Regular burglary is usually avoided by having good locks, a good fence, a burglar alarm system and/or a noisy dog. Police stats reveal that many, if not most burglaries and thefts occur because people leave their homes unsecured, ie doors or windows are unlocked and valuables are left out in plain view.
[1]In the rare case where the bad guy does want trouble, and is crazy or desperate or ruthless or stupid enough to break into an occupied home, your best bet is still to try to get out and call the cops. That person is irrational, and already more dangerous than you are prepared to be. You pull out a gun and it jams or your first shot does not take him down, you will not get another chance.
The only exception I can think of to the above is the awful domestic violence cases where the crazed ex is stalking, has threatened the person, and breaks in. This is not a stranger invasion of the kind described by the gun promoters. Adding a gun to that scenario increases the likelihood that
someone ends up dead, but sadly, it is not always the bad guy.
[2]