And when was the last time anyone was shooting on the range while texting their BFF about that awesome local band that played the craft brew pub last night and how cute the lead singer was OMG???!!!
Driving skills, yeah, that’s apt.
Those darned kids in their horseless carriages are a menace!
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@Burdo accidental deaths are especially horrific because they could have been prevented. Used consistently, the four safety rules can stop accident deaths.
We cannot control the actions of others, we can share information and caution people continually about the firearm safety rules, and people will still make mistakes.
The Second Amendment doesn’t say anything about training - yet more than 96% of USCCA Members believe in training and train themselves. The 3.4% of members who don’t believe they need training/never train are still visiting the USCCA website, other firearm training websites, firearm videos on YouTube, and even taking the occasional class.
By far, the majority of gun owners train consistently. There are thousands of training articles on the USCCA website for free, there are also thousands of training videos on the USCCA’s YouTube channel for free. The onus is on the gun owner to train. Making it mandatory and government regulated only adds cost to training that can be done for free – and is being done by a clear majority of gun owners.
The USCCA Online Community, USCCA blogs, and USCCA YouTube channel are all free. Many people here are more than happy to help “newbies” learn more about their firearms and even go to the range with them (I’ve heard about it happening multiple times already this year).
If a new owner is feeling left out or left behind I would encourage them to check out all of the resources available online and reach out to the Community. They will be welcomed and encouraged.
Drivers skills are actually a good comparison. A good instructor friend of mine reminds me that practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect. You could be driving terrible for years and “luck out” and never have an accident do to defensive drivers around you.
And those darned kids in their horseless carriages are a menace:
My daughter was in a car accident with my granddaughter in the car - the other driver pulled out in front of my daughter’s car. There was nothing she could do to avoid the teenager’s truck.
The teenager pulled out into oncoming traffic in a 45 mph zone because she was too busy texting to pay attention to her driving. My daughter’s car was totaled and she’s lucky because she still has residual pain from that accident five months later and isn’t dead.
I’ve encountered numerous instances of distracted/impaired drivers causing much worse injuries to multiple other people. If those drivers would just follow the safety rules/laws, no one else would get hurt.
IMO, It comes to attention to safety and personal responsibility for our actions.
We have far too little of this these days.
As long as Perfect doesn’t become the enemy of the good.
My wife is a successful triathlete and coach (and highly skilled with a pistol). Many people she coaches fail to become anything good in their pursuits because they sit around waiting for the perfect opportunity for a training session. Her mantra is “get out there and do something on your training days,” even if it means 15 minutes of walk-jogging around the block a couple times during a downpour or dryland stroke drills inside your apartment.
Muscle memory isn’t developed by infrequent trips to the range. Defensive driving skills aren’t mastered in the classroom. People here seem to point out texting teens (i.e. inexperienced drivers) as the menace. That’s exactly the point: inexperience and inattention (a byproduct of inexperience) correlates with accidents. More trips to the range and more trips to the grocery store…or more days spent on the bike, in the pool, or on the jogging track…means more opportunity for success. None of those drives, range days, or training sessions need be perfect by any means. They just need to be.
And remember - every practice can be perfect, if we have any feedback. People tell a lot about practicing at home, dry firing… but do they do this correctly? First train with Instructor, then practice the same at home. Simple way to have perfect practice.
Generally I agree with you on that, @Mr.Plastic. But when discussing the rules of gun safety, I’d say we should be as close to perfect execution of the safety rules as possible every single time we handle a gun. Shoot skills are a different set of skills and training - but should always incorporate safety rules.
Even good application of the safety rules can result in a negligent discharge. Good application of the safety laws for driving can result in a deadly accident.
The point about texting and driving can happen to anyone not just teens. Distractions happen. Changing the radio station, kids crying or fighting in the back seat, a bad day at work weighing on your mind as you drive. It’s not just the inexperience who are inattentive. More trips to the store driving may mean more opportunities for success, but they also mean more opportunities for failure.
When it comes to safety, you must get it right every single time or risk deadly consequences. Sure, if you get it wrong you might be lucky and not have a negligent discharge, but if you get in the “it’s good enough” mentality in one area of slightly unsafe gun handling and then you slip in another area… the results can be deadly.
I’m pretty sure we’re both saying the same thing from different directions - practice as close to perfect as possible, be aware - remove distractions, and don’t take short cuts when it comes to safety.
Great comments. Thanks!
I’d say we are definitely on the same page here!
@Mr.Plastic , I’m not hating on the NRA, but agree with your assessment. I don’t think they’re up to the task. And I don’t think it really fits the USCCA’s mission to control the narrative. They contribute, but that isn’t their raison d’etre. Perhaps GOA?
So sad to hear this. Idk… When I clean my firearms I’m in one room, my ammo is in the other. Absolutely NO bullets on the cleaning table. My condolences to the family for this tragedy. 
Completely avoidable. I’m in a TWAW group and each and everytime we have a meeting we go over the 4 rules you must do if you own a gun. Each and everytime you pick up your gun you go over these rules . It doesn’t matter if you are new to guns or have had them for a long time. Even if your gun is clear, you treat it like it’s loaded. Always! This saves lives!
The Gun Safety Rules Are:
- All guns are always loaded.
- Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
- Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target.
- Be sure of your target and what is beyond it.
@Belinda1 - welcome to the community. Good post. Thanks.
clear the gun before cleaning or leaving the range, unless cpl. i had a fellow officer do the same thing cleaning his gun at home, killed his own child that was sleeping in crib in next room. bullet went through wall and hit the child. he retired long ago, but its still with him.
In the military we are taught there is no such thing as an accidental discharge, only a negligent discharge. Guns don’t fire themselves. Follow the four rules and tragic stories like this one won’t happen. From the comments on this article, it seems everyone (well, the majority) agrees. My 2 cents: all responsible gun owners should evangelize about the 4 rules and gun safety whenever we can.
Welcome to the family @Belinda1 and God bless you.
Welcome to the family @Novaswo and you are in the right place at the right time.
Welcome, @Belinda1! I agree 100% - 4 safety rules all of the time.
I’ve talked with so many people throughout my years in social media for firearms, one story always sticks with me. A well-versed gun person was going to clean their firearm. This particular firearm needed the trigger to be pulled to get the slide completely off. They assumed they had cleared the gun before storage, they put their hand in front of the barrel to push back on the slide, and the pulled the trigger. Yes, they shot themself in the hand. It was a horrific accident that could have been easily prevented - and they weren’t a firearm newbie either.
I use that person’s story in just about every class and private lesson I teach.
Stay safe out there!