My Mossberg .22LR carbine was handed to me when I was 11 years old. It wasn't long before I bagged a cottontail, killed a rattlesnake then a squirrel in my grandfather's pecan orchard. Before the winter, his orchard was squirrel free and my grandmother cooked a lot of squirrel stew. I have since given that ole Mossberg to my son; but, I have several more .22 rifles from .22 short to rifles that fire all three .22's. I also have a Colt Diamondback .22 and a SW .22 Victory target pistol because the .22 LR will always be the most ubiquitous ammo in my bullet cabinet. The 9mm being next, alongside my .223 and 7.62x39 ammo. They all have one thing in common. They are popular, therefore, plentiful which makes them relatively affordable compared to all the other rifle and pistol calibers out there. The only thing that keeps me from shooting every day is that even plinking .22's gets expensive if you run through 5 or 6 boxes every day. They used to cost pennies. not so nowadays. That said, no other caliber has given me so much shooting experience or fun than the venerable .22. I have many. The smallest is my Beretta 21A Bobcat which is my sometime backup EDC when I am not carrying its bigger brother, the .32 Tomcat. The .22LR is very efficient for most survival needs unless you wanna take elephants and rhinos. No other caliber will you use more IMHO, so HELL, YES!!!! Get one, then GET SOME!!!!