Stupid People with Guns

It’s easy to find stuff for this blog.  For example:

Vice President Biden Tactical School Graduate

I got sucked into this conversation at the last gun show.

Him: “We’ve had a lot of break-ins in my neighborhood recently.  My neighbor, who is anti-gun, asked me what he should get for protection at home.  His wife is worried.”

Me:  “What did you recommend?”

Him: “I told my neighbor to get a single shot 12-gauge shotgun.  I told him that would take care of any problem.  I even had a few extra shells to give him so he doesn’t have to buy a box.” 

Me:  “Single shot?”

Him: “Yep, he got one too! His wife feels a lot better.”

Me: “What if there’s two of them?”

Him:  Silence.  He walked away.

Another topic from the law enforcement front which I call –
Brimfield Police to take remedial gun cleaning classes

“Two Brimfield Township police officers have been disciplined after one of their guns ACCIDENTALLY (my emphasis) fired while they cleaned their weapons at Field High School…  No students were harmed…”  ABJ newspaper 18 Jan 2014

 Why is it people always try to clean loaded guns?

It appears the officers used an isolated cinder block room while classes were in session.  Police Chief Oliver says everything is cool because “the department at the time didn’t have a policy covering the cleaning of weapons at school by resource officers…”  That apparently makes it okay.   Officer Dinkelman (no, I’m not making this up) whose .45-caliber semiautomatic pistol discharged, was suspended for three days. 

The chief indicated the two officers were at the range the previous night and had dirty weapons and the gun malfunctioned. 

(I don't know..I once shot 700 rounds in one day without cleaning and not a single malfunction.  I think the malfunction was between the ears.) 

There are just too many questions and comments.  I’m sure you can think of most of them.  Their job was to provide armed security for the school, and these two had left their post and deactivated their weapons.  Some security!  I've got to ask,  “What were they thinking?”

Stupid Human Tricks

Talk about thinking?  I also found an article about another Detroit shooting.  Shootings in Detroit, unfortunately, aren’t even newsworthy unless it is truly a great tragedy.  On the last page of the ABJ front section the news media reports a truly needless shooting.  Two 4-year olds find a loaded small caliber rifle at grandpa’s last Friday under his bed.  The only adult home at the time is a family friend which means it could be anyone.  The 4-year old girl managed to point the rifle at her 4-year old cousin.

 

I could try to joke about interfamily rivalry and enflamed passions erupting, but there really isn’t anything funny about it.  The 4-year old pulled the trigger and her cousin was pronounced dead at the hospital. 

Nothing but tragedy all the way around on this one.  Who would be foolish enough to leave a loaded firearm where children could find it? 

What did grandpa think?  That if there was a home invasion in the middle of the night he would wake up, assess the situation, jump up, roll under his bed ninja-like, retrieve the loaded rifle he keeps there and move to a defensive position in his home?  I guess he did.  Maybe he was keeping it there to shoot marauding squirrels and disrespecting cats. 

I once worked with a fellow who lived in the suburbs and felt stray cats were urinating on his basement windows.  He used to say you can always fire one round from a .22 rifle from inside the house without alarming the neighbors and slowly work away the free-range cat population.  Was grandpa up to the same thing?  Considering the state Detroit is in, you might be able to fire a .308 from inside your house without alarming the neighbors.

I tell my students the only safe place for a loaded gun is on you and under your immediate control.  And frankly, a small caliber rifle (a .22 LR, I suspect) isn’t the best choice for a self-defense weapon.  It may have been the only option grandpa had, but he should have unloaded it when he got up and loaded it at the end of the day.  Haven’t enough children been hurt by thoughtless/stupid adults?