Am I too sensitive . . . or what?

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bedbugbilly

New member
Maybe I'm too sensitive . . . but I have to air a "beef" I have. When I am considering purchasing a pistol, I do as much research as possible. This includes doing internet searches to find videos that either give a review or a critique of the weapon.

I am also a "stickler" when it comes to gun safety as well. Having worked ambulance and rescue, I've seen more than my share of both intentional and accidental shootings. Now, as I am getting older and have shot for around 50 years - I'm either getting more sensitive or a bigger grump? I believe in proper handling of firearms - whether it be handguns or long guns or even cannons (I shot Civil War artillery live fire at one time). I have had gun safety drilled into my head since day one.

One - you always assume that a weapon is loaded.
Two - you never point a gun, loaded or unloaded, at anyone.

So why is it, that when I watch some of these "videos" on different pistols, etc. - the yahoos who are doing them (some, not all) seem to let the gun safety fly out the window? I watched one tonight where the guy was handling a pistol - finger on the trigger - waving it around as he talked about it - THEN - he showed it was unloaded just before he jammed a magazine in and started firing it.

Another video started out with the guy POINTING the pistol at the camera!? I could almost count the lands and grooves! Gun owners and gun folks get a bad enough rap without this kind of garbage being "put out there" - especially when the person in the video is supposed to be knowledgeable about guns.

The other day, I watched a car commercial on TV where the salesmen were dressed up like cowboys firing their pistols off and yes - they were pointing them at the camera! These things are certainly not promoting the safe handling of firearms. So, why do we, as "gun people" - make videos and completely ignore the basic rules of gun safety? Why is it not established the first thing in the video that the weapon is shown to be unloaded and a reminder given about gun safety BEFORE the rest of the review or demonstration is given?

O.K. . . . O.K. . . . I'm an old fart and I've "aired" my beef . . . let it go at that. It just bugs me that the basic rules are not followed at times and those who watch the videos, who are inexperienced or uninformed, could possibly "mimic" the behavior with disasterous results. Thanks for letting me let some steam off! :mad:
 
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orionengnr

New member
Yep, lots of idiots out there.

The "Jackass" influence, and the YouTube phenomenon just brings them out of the woodwork.

The fact that our instant gratification, reality TV society refuses to hold anyone accountable for their actions just compounds the problem.
 
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JRussell

New member
I remember about 20 years ago my brother and I went out to shoot with a guy my brother knew. This guy was way to over the top for me. He had a 14 year old kid along with him whom he handed an AR 15 to....the kid started fanning it across all of us making rat-a-tat-a-tat noises with his mouth as he did, pretending that he was shooting all of us...as if it were a toy. I don't believe he had a round in the chamber, but I think he had a loaded mag in the receiver.

I couldn't believe it...my disapproval became known very quickly, and my brother's acquaintance read the kid the riot act, but what I SHOULD'VE done was leave right then and there. That's what I'd do now.

Shooters sometimes have to admit that there are a small minority among us who qualify as losers.
 
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chewie146

New member
As is the case with every hobby or pass-time. The movie driving seems acceptable, though most people call "bull," but movie shooting is taken as gospel. I think that maybe better education on this for everyone would help point out to the masses that not all of us are losers. There are idiots on youtube that do all kinds of stupid stuff, but the problem is that many aren't educated on firearms enough to tell when something is wrong.
 
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Ringolevio

Moderator
I'm with ya

Well, I'm probably your age or older, and I'm right with ya on this. Any unsafe gunhandling in the media really bugs me, like movie posters, where the hero (even James Bond, who should know better) is posing with finger on the trigger.

I even have mixed feelings nowadays about little kids pointing toy guns, and I've admonished kids for pointing toy guns at me, even though it was a perfectly normal part of my own youth and of all my contemporaries. Whether cap pistols or waterguns or anything that remotely resembled the configuration of a gun (even a broomstick!), we happily pointed them at one another and went "Bang! You're dead!". It was as much a part of growing up as Howdy Doody.

But now I think, if I had kids (which I don't; maybe in my next life...), when they were old enough I'd teach 'em how to handle real guns, but I'm not so sure I'd even let 'em play with toy guns.
 
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Boberama

New member
Any unsafe gunhandling in the media really bugs me, like movie posters, where the hero (even James Bond, who should know better) is posing with finger on the trigger.
Click to expand...

If Bond has his finger on the trigger you can bet he's just about to shoot someone.

Just sayin'.

Paws up. ('')('')
 
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MLeake

New member
I generally agree, with this caveat:

As long as 1) the camera is on a tripod and not being handled by a human; 2) there is a safe backstop behind the camera; and 3) the guy doing the video is willing to accept the loss of the camera should something go wrong, then there is nothing unsafe about pointing the gun at the camera.
 
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Delaware_Dan

New member
Common sense is not too common these days.

That said, you can't tell what saftey measures have been employed before the camera starts rolling.
 
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Eagle0711

New member
Lots of Hollywood types miss use guns in their films, and then advocate that no one should be allowed to own one. Alec Baldwin is one example.
 
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TenRing

New member
The basic problem is that many people are not really serious about gun safety. I learned the basic gun safety rules when I got my Daisy BB rifle at age five. But many people don't get into guns until they are much older and they may end up being their own teacher or else they learn from Youtube. This causes them to adopt the same bad habits as the people they watch, or maybe they learn about guns from TV and movies.

Gun safety needs to be taught in schools in the same way that sex education is taught. Information is not bad but not having information could be really bad if you need it and don't have it. Guns have always been an important part of the American experience whether some people like it or not. If someone is against guns, this is no excuse for not letting their kids be educated about them. It just might save their life.

As MLeake said, pointing a gun at a camera is not necessarily a bad thing as long as nobody is in harm's way. After all, it is just a camera and pointing a gun into the lens is done for effect. When you see it in a video, it does make you think about danger but that doesn't mean it was dangerous when it was filmed.
 
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MLeake

New member
Don Glock, in a way, I agree.

But in a way, you should care. So should the rest of us.

Because 'tards on YouTube may be the primary exposure, after TV and movies, that the antis get to gun-handling.

They can find an awful lot of ammo, from those 'tards on YouTube.
 
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JustThisGuy

New member
"Jackass" star dies in Firey Crash after Night of Partying

[/Quote]Updated, 3:10 p.m. ET: Police say "Jackass" star Ryan Dunn died in a fiery car crash in suburban Philadelphia early Monday morning.

Police say Dunn's car careered off the road, flipped over a guardrail and crashed into the woods before bursting into flames. A passenger was also killed, and speed may have been a factor in the crash, West Goshen Township police said.

The Associated Press reports that the force of impact shattered the vehicle into several twisted and blackened pieces, leaving the Porsche 911 GT3 unrecognizable except for a door that was thrown from the crash and not incinerated. A 100-foot-long tire skid marked where the car left the roadway. Both Dunn and his passenger were severely burned. Police said they were able to identify Dunn through his tattoos and hair, but the identity of his passenger was still unknown.[/Quote]

http://scoop.today.com/_news/2011/06/20/6899223-jackass-star-dies-in-car-accident

Oh yeah, they say "Don't try this at home" knowing full-well that any hormone-charged 17-25 year-old is going to take that as a challenge. Does it matter what people put on TV and in videos? Yes it does IMHO, too many people model their behavior after TV and videos. And then they are outraged when some thoughtful person "corrects" their unsafe behavior at the range.

Yeah, it matters.
 
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HiBC

New member
I have had some whacko clips e-mailed to me,youtube stuff.Seems like I recall a William Tell recreation done with a rifle,and something about a coyote called in very close by the guy with the call,and his buddy,a ways off,using a .338 lapua or 50 BMG on the coyote.The caller got a buzz out of being sprayed by coyote pieces.
Bad PR is important.We do have to be stewards of the 2nd Ammendment.Actually,these jackass stunts with firearms could probably be prosecuted as some form of reckless endangerment with a firearm.
I knew a gentleman who survived some of the worst of WW2 and Korea.He was a Seargent Major.He once said"There is no sense practicing something you can only screw up once"
 
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Don Glock

Moderator
Oh yeah, they say "Don't try this at home" knowing full-well that any hormone-charged 17-25 year-old is going to take that as a challenge. Does it matter what people put on TV and in videos? Yes it does IMHO, too many people model their behavior after TV and videos. And then they are outraged when some thoughtful person "corrects" their unsafe behavior at the range.
Click to expand...


you're right. let's just censor everything to keep 'tards from hurting themselves. we should all pay for their stupidity.
 
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Don Glock

Moderator
They can find an awful lot of ammo, from those 'tards on YouTube.
Click to expand...

if they don't use that for ammo, they'll use something else. it's pointless to start censoring things the anti's can use.
 
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Smaug

New member
Yeah, I think you're too sensitive. On video, one has to assume he safety-checked the gun. There's no reason to get hopped up about it, since it is video. It isn't like he's ACTUALLY pointing the gun at you.

Those people who chime in on youtube videos and start raving about showing them the safety check are just annoying.
 
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Maxem0815

Moderator
AH a informative thread.So correct that no one takes responsibility for their or their children's actions, if a kid accidentally kills someone it isn't the fault of the parent it is the fault of the individual who was shot!

As a Range Safety Officer I tossed a father and son (kid was 7y/o) and told them don't come back. The father was paying no attention to what the kid was doing as he swept the line with a weapon, and then pointed it at a vehicle with people inside. When I told the kid to put the weapon down the father started to yell at me telling me don't yell at my kid he is only 7 who the f$%k you think you are. He then tole me he was going to call the police and have me arrested. Well to this I replied by handing him my cell phone and said please do. That ended the argument there. I then proceeded to tell him he is ultimately responsable for his child and don't come back or I will detain you and have you arrested for criminal trespass.

A side note here our range is on County land in a wildlife area all R.S.O. personal are authorized by the County Sheriff to detain individuals who are to be arrested, an we all open carry as authorized.

Mace
 
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Amin Parker

New member
In South Africa if one is negligent with a gun on a range, the range officer will slap him so hard his hair wont grow on that side of his head again.

If i am on duty you will be briefed properly before you unbag. There are no warnings and no second chances. Sweep your muzzle and you will be sorry.
 
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