Took my son (5 yrs) shooting for his first time.

by dazed but not confused 206 Replies latest social relationships

• 

  Giordano

  The Cons EOM, I think there was a pause after the first segment but the report continued for another 20 minutes.

  The ABC report continued with the accidental deaths of two young children whose parents thought they had their guns under control and had instructed their children about gun safety. One death occurred on a farm in a barn where a loaded gun was kept. The other happen in a neighborhood when a 5 year old shot and killed his 4 year old friend who lived next door. Young children are naturally curious as well as incapable of truly understanding the deadly consequences of playing with a loaded gun.

  A mother, very ignorant in my opinion, seemed surprised that leaving a loaded hand gun on the dinning room table, so it was ready at all times, was actually picked up and handled by a very young visiting cousin and touched by her daughter while Mom was in another room. And that a loaded assault-like rifle leaning against the kitchen wall had profoundly bothered her young daughter. Mom was clueless with how reckless that was.

  Another women kept her loaded shotgun in the closet and forgot to tell her son that the alarm was on when he went out that night. He set the alarm off and she had the loaded shot gun ready to shoot her intruder until her son called out to his Mom.

  My take away from this discussion and the ABC report is that when a person is motivated by the fear of an outside attack feels empowered by the sanctity of the 2nd amendment they sound very similar to how most of us sounded when we had bought into the dogma of the WTBTS or any other high control group. We had our answers and we closed our minds.

  The gun culture generates as much danger for children because parents don't realize the potential dangers or don't want to see them. Apparently most people don't secure their weapons out of fear they will not be able to arm themselves when needed.
• 

  Viviane

  Yes, I understand. But whether gay or straight, I would tend not to include the words "Boy Scouts" in the context with Mass Spectrometers.

  But again, that's just my opinion.

  You're being ridiculous on purpose. That's not so much an opinion as a deflection.
• 

  Viviane

  My take away from this discussion and the ABC report is that when a person is motivated by the fear of an outside attack feels empowered by the sanctity of the 2nd amendment they sound very similar to how most of us sounded when we had bought into the dogma of the WTBTS or any other high control group. We had our answers and we closed our minds.

  Being stupid has no excuse no matter what the reason.

  The gun culture generates as much danger for children because parents don't realize the potential dangers or don't want to see them. Apparently most people don't secure their weapons out of fear they will not be able to arm themselves when needed.

  What is the gun culture? What percentage of people don't secure their guns? Does "apparently" = "evidently"?
• 

  JeffT

  A basic mistake a lot of parents who own firearms have made in the past though is (Perhaps inadvertently) creating the ultimate "Forbidden fruit."

  Winner winner, chicken dinner!

  We are members at an outdoor range that has skeet shooting, rifle ranges, pistol ranges, archery ranges and fishing. My kids know that we can go shooting anytime they like to fish, shoot or practice archery. They have had hunter safety classes, firearms safety training and, pretty much any day of the week go shooting if they like. Every time they go they are reminded of safety rules, have to practice them and have to clean the guns when they are done.

  Guns are absolutely no mystery to them and there is no fascination with them whatsoever. They are both excellent shots, know safety inside and out and have never attempted to play with a gun unsupervised. There is no mystery there.

  Sounds exactly like my upbringing, and you are right. The key word is in all of this is responsibility. I learned a very long time ago that handling a weapon of any sort was a privlege that carried a weighty responsibility.

  In looking over your photographs I was concerned that there was no protection from other shooters and their children.

  Since this appears to be a public range I assume (big assumption which I would not make if I was actually there, I'd confirm it before using the range) that there is a range warden on site to insure safety.
• 

  villagegirl

  Tristan Underhill, 2, died from an accidental self-inflicted gunshot

  wound after he found his father's gun under a pillow in an unlocked bedroom.

  The lock, though, had failed to catch.

  Tristan found the loaded gun under the pillow on his father’s bed.

  He pointed it at his own forehead and pulled the trigger.

  Hearing the gunshot, Sergeant Underhill sprinted inside to find

  Tristan face down on the bed, the gun beneath him.

  When he called 911, the sergeant was screaming so hysterically

  that the dispatcher initially mistook him for a woman.

  “My 2-year-old just shot himself in the head,” he said breathlessly. “He’s dead.”

  While about 60 percent of the accidental firearm deaths identified

  by The New York Times involved handguns as opposed to long guns,

  that number was much higher — more than 85 percent —

  when the victims were very young, under the age of 6.

  In fact, the average handgun victim was several years younger

  than long gun victims: between 7 and 8, compared with almost 11.
  Over all, the largest number of deaths came at the upper end of the

  age range, with ages 13 and 14 being most common —

  not necessarily surprising, given that parents generally

  allow adolescents greater access to guns.

  But the third-most common age was 3 (tied with 12),

  a particularly vulnerable age, when children are curious

  and old enough to manipulate a firearm but ignorant of the dangers.

  About a quarter of the victims shot themselves, with younger children

  again especially susceptible. More than half of the self-inflicted

  shootings involved children 5 or under; the most common age was 3.

  Her 8-year-old found the gun. He initially tried to cock it and

  pulled the trigger, pointing the gun at the bathroom floor,

  but nothing happened, according to the medical examiner’s report.

  Evidently thinking the gun was empty, he tried again,

  pointing the gun at his brother, Matthew, who was crouched

  on the bathroom counter, having just finished brushing his teeth.

  This time, with a live round in the chamber, the gun went off,

  and Matthew toppled to the floor, shot through the forehead.

  In the summer of 2009, Joshua Skorczewski finally completed the gun safety classes

  , the night he accidentally killed his sister in Minnesota.

  His parents thought that it would be good for him to be schooled on safety,

  that the training would be helpful, “so he would not be afraid of guns,”

  said his mother, Wendy Skorczewski.

  Matthew Dwyer, 5, was shot by his brother with a pistol his mother

  had left out at their home in North Carolina.A few months ago,

  Daron Dwyer took his 14-year-old son shooting for the first time,

  six years after he accidentally killed his brother with the gun

  he found in his parents’ North Carolina bedroom.

  Playing and exploring over the next 15 minutes, one boy after another

  — three-quarters of the 64 children — found the gun.

  Two-thirds handled it, and one-third actually pulled the trigger.

  Just one child went to tell an adult about the gun,

  and he was teased by his peers for it.

  More than 90 percent of the boys said they had had some gun safety instruction.

  Noah was shot by his friend Levi Reed with a gun found in

  Levi's grandfather's house. Levi thought the gun was unloaded.

  Though his grandfather had always admonished him never to handle the weapons,

  Levi, 14, removed the magazine, pointed the gun at his friend and pulled the trigger.

  He did not realize that a round had remained in the chamber.
• 

  Truthseeker677

  Levi sounds like an idiot. When I was about 14 years old some guy pointed an empty gun at me and squessed the trigger. There wasnt enough left of him the next morning to pick up. I beet the living crap out of him. I didn't need guns to beat him eighther I used my fists. I spelt this account wrong on purpose.
• 

  talesin

  This thread is most enjoyable and gave me a few chuckles....

  Ts , please, the 'wilds of Canada'? LMAO! :P
  
  I, too, grew up learnng to shoot and hunt. We were not allowed to shoot until we had learned how to dis-assemble and clean the gun first. I was about 13 when I made my first, and only, "kill". I had been duck-hunting on the ocean, but was not allowed to shoot, as it is very dangerous to shoot when in a 12-foot boat ....

  But, yes, I killed the weasel that was raiding the henhouse. In our family (well it used to be my family, but we all know why it's not anymore), you eat what you kill. So, since it was a weasel (kinda not food, if you catch my drift), I was told I had to skin it. So I did, and kept the white fur for many years.

  That being said, I think that guns are best left for hunting, and the fascination with handguns is just that. A fascination, and love of power. The 'thrill' of shooting that handgun ............ *shivers*
• 

  talesin

  PS. You love nature, so get the hell out of Toronto! YUCK! Come 'Down East', my friend! :P
• 

  Viviane

  More than 90 percent of the boys said they had had some gun safety instruction.

  More than 90% didn't have a firearms accidents, sounds like it's working!

  Math is so hard....
• 

  designs

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nG-nnIqrZ8Q