Guns don’t kill people

We’ve heard this adage ad infinitum: “Gun’s don’t kill people, people kill people.” And just recently during the Republican debates a paraphrase of this chestnut was repeated once again.

Well this past week in Bremerton, WA, a nine year old boy brought a 45 caliber hand gun to school. No one knew he had the gun…he didn’t show it to anyone or bandy it about or threaten anyone or aim it at anyone…but kept it in his backpack. But when he slammed his backpack on a desk the weapon discharged and the bullet struck an eight year old girl who at last report was in critical condition.

This wasn’t an intentional shooting…but someone could easily have been killed. Although most nine year olds probably grasp that aiming and firing a gun at someone can result in fatal consequences I doubt he could have anticipated this result. I really don’t expect he thought slamming down his backpack would cause a gun to discharge.

Ah yes, it’s just an accident…but one that should never have been allowed to happen. But because handguns are so readily accessible in our country, an eight year old girl is possibly physically and emotionally scarred for life…to say nothing of the emotional issues for the nine year old or his teacher and other classmates. A nine year old who spent the night in jail and appeared in court in an orange jump suit…a nine year old who may be charged with potential felonies.

Whose rights would be violated so egregiously in an effort to keep a loaded handgun out of the hands of a nine year old child?

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10 thoughts on “Guns don’t kill people

  1. Many thanks for this post!! I only wish more people would take on this issue.

    There should be a slamming indictment of the adult(s) who owned the gun, left it unattended, unlocked, and loaded. There should not be any confusion that there was a way to prevent this madness. The way to do that was to force adults to treat deadly weapons in the way they should be handled. Locked, and away from those that have no appreciation for the harm that can occur, or unable to make responsible decisions. Guns should not be used as play-things. There needs to be criminal charges brought against those adults that allow these shootings to take place.

    Common sense has been removed from the gun control debate for so long that many are not even aware of what needs to be done. Had there been opportunity for sensible legislation over the years we would have blocked the manufacture and sale of certain weapons that are designed only for slaughter, curtailed what gun shows can sell, better defined who could buy a weapon, how many could be bought, how they had to be registered, how they had to be stored, and the type and amount of ammo that could be bought.

    Again, I truly applaud your post. (You might be able to tell this is one of my deep concerns.)

  2. Ah Gregory…there you go again… While I am a believer and dedicated instructor working to make not just kids but adults as well safe in the handling of firearms, I am appalled at your continuing rants, slamming indictments, and prevent this madness. If you were half as concerned with educating people as you are for controlling them, you might be part of the solution. Your flaming the fire use of “play things”, “sensible legislation” (Hows that working on drunk driving – which people choose to do and isn’t an accident) , “designed for slaughter”, “who can buy” – the kid obviously didn’t buy the gun, “how many can you buy” (No correlation here at all, “registered – that’s been proven useless- “stored” , “type of ammo”…. You do manage to do one thing as you fan the flames – you make law abiding gun owner all the more determined to protect their rights from the anti-gunners, which in the end helps support the causes for safe handling, etc. that I endorse. Consider if you will, writing a flame like this one, every time there is a drunk driving fatality in the US…Good luck with that making any difference. People don’t react well to nasty little snapping, snarling, ankle biting dogs, and there should be a lesson in that for the anti gun crowd, whose voices are lost in the roar of urban traffic,
    and simply not tolerated deep in the forest.

    ,

    1. “guns don’t kill people, people kill people” actually it is the bullets that kill people that come from people with guns.
      Mandatory auto insurance why not mandatory
      gun insurance.

    2. Drunk driving laws do work. It also takes enforcement and the public saying drinks aren’t funny.
      http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/publications/by_the_numbers/drunk_driving/index.html
      Unfortunately, more men, women, and children will have to die before we as a society say enough. As of June 7th of this year, eleven toddlers, age 6 years and and younger have shoot and killed their playmates. http://www.democraticunderground.com/12623347
      I have to see any moral outrage from the NRA and these honorific tragedies. The NRA has the same mentality of the Catholic Church. Deny. Deny. Deny.

  3. Steve,

    You are too funny… but I’m sure your comment will bring Gregory deep joy. Oh, and regarding the dogs you left out nasty and snapping 🙂

    Actually if you re-read what I wrote, it’s the anti’s whose voices are lost in the roar of urban traffic, and not welcome in the forest. Dogs are mostly tolerated… or sometimes used for bait.

      1. Originally from the same small town in Central Wisconsin that Gregory called home, I now Live in Fairbanks Alaska. Let’s don’t start comparing “Deeper forests”. I miss deer hunting in the Chequamagon National Forest outside Glidden.

        I have to confess, I find your reference to the possibility of my being from Chicago as an insult :-), but in fact…we tolerated a lot of”different folks” down there in the US, who can’t hold a candle to some of the ones here…..

  4. Once again this is not the fault of the gun it is the fault of the gun owner for not properly storing the weapon. Guns are not the problem people are the problem but the left is so determined to take away the rights of gun owners in this country they refuse to be honest regarding this issue

    1. And yet the rabid gun lobby rails against ANY kind of statute that would mandate reasonable levels of security and training for gun owners. Why? Aren’t most of those belonging to that lobby also members of the party of the right? You know, those that want government to rule the lives of women without their consent? Certainly I’m not the only one sensing a cruel dichotomy here.

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