Be responsible my friends...another child shooting.

[ileus]

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/14/10684036-boy-3-kills-self-with-gun-inside-car

"It's another tragedy in a very short period of time," Benjamin said. "It is incredible in light of the other ones. You would think people would take more care, not less."

"You can't predict what children are going to do," he added. "You need to unload and lock it up if you're not carrying it."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Being responsible doesn't just mean having a firearm on hand if needed. It also means
having it locked up and/or unloaded when not on your person.

You took the first step in being safe when you choose to carry, you need to remain safe when that firearm isn't on your person.

Or am I wrong?

[WheelWalker]

1. "Be responsible". I'll second voice that.

[slackmaster]

2. You're preaching to the choir

[Hoyt]

3. Unfortunately too many gun owners aren't responsible. But, who cares as long as gun culture happy.

They gotta have their guns. All collateral damage is just marked up to stupidity and that makes it all OK because the Second Amendment says something about guns everywhere are good. {Is sarcasm thingy necessary?}

[rl6214]

4. Again another example of you not having a clue what "gun culture" really means.

[friendly_iconoclast]

6. Accuracy is not terribly important to would-be 'social cleansers'.

It's more important to promote FUD to the credulous...

[Hoyt]

12. Hey, that was consensus of gun carriers here -- I'll be glad to use some other derogatory term

if you prefer.

[rl6214]

31. "I'll be glad to use some other derogatory term"

Because that's all you've got.

[montanto]

7. "Gun culture" is inherently a safety oriented culture.

There are a few outliers. How many guns in the U.S.? how many gun owners in the U.S.? how often does this happen in the U.S.? This type of thing is rare enough, and of course we chalk it up to stupidity, because that's exactly what it is. Start a thread asking how many gun owners here on this board have had someone accidentally kill themselves or someone else with one of their guns. Me? Zero in 25+ years of ownership. You might be underwhelmed by the rest of the response.

[Hoyt]

10. So exactly how many accidental shootings are OK with you?

[Atypical Liberal]

17. None. But I won't bear the responsibility for other people's accidents.

So exactly how many accidental shootings are OK with you?

None. All accidents are tragic.

But I'm not going to bear the responsibility, nor be penalized, for other people's accidents.

[pipoman]

19. How many accidental drownings are ok with you?

I have seen no call from you to outlaw private swimming pools even though they kill 5 times more kids and there are 5 times more guns than private swimming pools. You pick and choose with abandon, no?

[Simo 1939_1940]

29. You're in good company, Hoyt. Stephen Colbert pulled the

same nonsense when Steven Pinker was his guest.

On the subject of the decline of violence, Pinker cited some number of annual murders to demonstrate said decline.

Colbert's nasty/dishonest response: "Oh ---- so X number of murders is OK with you?"

I watch Jon Stewart & Stephen Colbert every night, but when it comes to the topic of gun restriction - or any topic (like the Pinker incident) that threatens their views on it - they fall victim to KJS*, like far too many other progressives.


*Knee Jerk Syndrome

[Hoyt]

32. Unless you are at the point of the gun.

[Remmah2]

8. Responsible Parenting.

I'll bet those same parents put their kids in car seats, locked the pool gate, secure their prescription drugs.....

[Hoyt]

9. Probably do use seat belts, etc. But, something happens with guns that make people irresponsible.

[friendly_iconoclast]

11. Ah, another believer in "G-rays".

Your post explains much...

[Hoyt]

13. Actually it's a dangerous stimulant/high some people get when caressing/carrying their beloved guns.

[friendly_iconoclast]

15. I see. It's more like how comic books caused juvenile delinquency back in the '50s

Thanks for the explanation!

[Hoyt]

22. Nope -- More like people and guns don't mix in a modern society.

[Hoyt]

21. Nah, when it comes to guns -- I have a lot more material.

[shadowrider]

14. It's not G-rays

It's when orange ions align themselves in the proper sequence when transversing the innerwebs that causes people to think like that. It affects their brain in ways not yet understood.

[Remmah2]

35. maybe NRAys?

[montanto]

5. Be responsible. Absolutely.

It doesn't have to go down like this. This is another case of a person ignoring one or more of the few simple responsibilities that come along with firearm ownership. This is not a "gun culture" problem, as another poster might have it, but an "idiot with a gun" problem that is so easily addressed by keeping your gear locked up or on your person at all times. 99.9% of "gun culture" knows what the .1% apparently won't bother to remember. Sad.

[Logical]

18. Should be harsh punishment for gun owners who let young kids find guns and hurt themselves.

[iverglas]

20. damn lucky nobody ever saw the kid playing with the gun

before he killed himself.

If they had, they might have made a report to child services ... and child services might have called the police ... and then the poor parent might have found himself arrested ... and the Guns forum at Democratic Underground would have erupted in a fury of righteous indignation!!!

Police believe the boy then got out of a car seat, grabbed the gun and shot himself.

Yup, making sure kids know there are guns around, and where they are, is one truly fine idea.


http://www.democraticunderground.com/117221236

for anybody trying hard not to get it.

Detectives called the shooting a tragic accident, Benjamin said.

The shooting follows the death of the 7-year-old daughter of a police officer in Stanwood, Wash., on Saturday when a sibling found a gun and fired while the parents were out of their car.

And on Feb. 22, an 8-year-old girl was critically wounded in a Bremerton classroom when a gun fired from the backpack of a 9-year-old boy as he put it on a desk.

What a place.

Kids in Washington State seem to be in desperate need of a village to raise them. Their parents and the authorities ("a tragic accident"???) are doing one hell of a bad job of it.

[iverglas]

26. take your own advice

Count to 10 before you post.

According to the hoplophobes ONLY police and the military should have guns cause they're trained and stuff. Are you saying that isn't the case?

You want me to say that your statement is a pile of obnoxious fabricated nonsense? Okay.

[shadowrider]

27. Fabricated implies it was made up

It isn't.

[lastlib]

23. Gun owners are very responsible--

they're responsible for practically ALL of the deaths of innocent victims of gun violence.

[X_Digger]

25. 100% of red cars accidents involved red cars! *gasp*

Have any other tautologies to present for a chuckle?

Back on the planet earth, in the US, there are more than 80,000,000 gun owners having more than 300,000,000 guns.

99.9% / 99.5% of all gun owners / guns are *not* involved in 'gun violence'.

[Simo 1939_1940]

33. Thanks for the belly laugh!!

It's been a rough week.

[Hoyt]

34. Good shot.

[rubiegrae]

30. accountability

It's terrible that this is an addition to a string of tragedies like this one recently. http://tothecenter.com/2012/03/boy-3-kills-himself-with-gun-left-in-car/

There needs to be some higher level of accountability.