# Stupid Gun news of the day (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 29, 2013, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729 "2013-01-29T19:01:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 24
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/461 "2013-02-14T18:30:45Z")
Oh, **Kable**? About those stray bullets? Any comment to offer? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/462 "2013-02-14T18:35:15Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Oh, **Kable**? About those stray bullets? Any comment to offer? More guns! ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/463 "2013-02-14T18:36:14Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Well, I got one. This is me, sitting in my house. I’ve no gun. This is me not being invaded or bothered. Except for what may be a disgruntled postal worker. She comes here every day, so I got my eye on her. I’m happy that you are safe in your home today. One night I wasn’t but I didn’t catch it on camera. One day this lady wasn’t either. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/s1-Kz3vU5DY/hqdefault.jpg "Okla. Woman Shoots, Kills Intruder 911 Operators Say It's OK to Shoot - ABC News.mp4") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1-Kz3vU5DY) > [@](#): > > No doubt. Victory through anecdote. Gonna comment on the stray bullets hitting the neighbor’s houses, by any chance? The shooter maybe should practice more. Fortunately in neighborhoods there is a lot more houses to hit than people. Would you prefer if the home owner had just let them kill or kidnap him? ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/464 "2013-02-14T18:41:35Z")
> [@Kable](#): > > What statistics are you referring to? > > Why is that funny? [Science!](http://ajl.sagepub.com/content/5/6/502) It’s funny because I pictured you telling [this guy](http://www.inflexwetrust.com/2012/09/28/father-accidentally-kills-his-son-who-he-thought-was-a-burglar/) about how many lumens these new flashlights are putting out. You just needed more lumens, man! Then your kid would be alive. ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/465 "2013-02-14T18:42:42Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Oh, **Kable**? About those stray bullets? Any comment to offer? AR15s are more accurate and easier to aim than handguns. How’s that? ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/466 "2013-02-14T18:44:23Z")
These people just need more lumens too: [http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201\_162-57529715/retired-chicago-cop-fatally-shoots-son-after-mistaking-him-for-burglar/](http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57529715/retired-chicago-cop-fatally-shoots-son-after-mistaking-him-for-burglar/) > **[Not Again! Man Shoots & Kills His Girlfriend, Mistakenly Thought She Was...](https://globalgrind.com/1901316/man-shoots-kills-his-girlfriend-mistakenly-thought-intruder-details/)** > > A noticeable and worrying trend is happening across America. A man from California shot and killed his 34-year-old girlfriend in his home early Monday morning, because he mistakenly thought she was… [http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2012/07/22/ny-police-officer-shoots-and-kills-son-he-thought-was-an-intruder/](http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2012/07/22/ny-police-officer-shoots-and-kills-son-he-thought-was-an-intruder/) ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/467 "2013-02-14T18:46:23Z")
> [@Kable](#): > > Things happen a lot more often then they are caught on film. But I got lots of videos cued up for this thread. I’ll keep em coming. Do you have the one with the DEA firearms instructor who shoots himself in the foot moments after boasting that he’s the only one in the room qualified to carry that type of gun? Can’t get enough of that one. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/468 "2013-02-14T18:48:08Z")
> [@Kable](#): > > I’m happy that you are safe in your home today. One night I wasn’t but I didn’t catch it on camera. One day this lady wasn’t either. > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1-Kz3vU5DY](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1-Kz3vU5DY) > The shooter maybe should practice more. Fortunately in neighborhoods there is a lot more houses to hit than people. Would you prefer if the home owner had just let them kill or kidnap him? Clearly, those are the only two options! Oh, wait! There’s one more! He could have stopped shooting when they began to flee! Forgot that one. So did you, apparently. And yes, there are a lot of houses in neighborhoods. Usually, there is at least one person in them. Sometimes several. Often, they are children. Gosh, sure hope the guy had one of those expanded magazines, so he can keep on firing. Wouldn’t want him to have to stop shooting, just because the perps are a quarter-mile away. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/469 "2013-02-14T18:51:32Z")
[Responsible gun owner shoots self in hand, realizes that he’s safer without the damned thing.](http://5newsonline.com/2013/02/09/student-embarrassed-by-accidental-shooting-promises-to-sell-guns/) ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/470 "2013-02-14T18:51:58Z")
I’d like to see gun ownership regulated via background checks, required education, testing, licensing, registration, insurance and documentation of transfer. All of these ideas are related to the purchaser and not the item. I’d also like to see limits on certain types of rapid fire weapons and on large magazines for rapid fire weapons. For those wanting those unusual types of weapons and/or the larger magazines, I’d like to see all the above requirements, plus extra licensing such as adding a salt-water stamp to a fishing license. Any or all of these are reasonable. I’m not interested in watching Kable’s videos. That’s just argument by anecdote and a weak attempt at emotional appeal. For every video he posts, someone could post a ‘stupid gun mistakes’ or ‘stupid gun owners’ video right off of YouTube. There are plenty of them (and they are incredibly painful to watch- nothing like seeing a 12 year old looking down the barrel to see why his gun won’t shoot), but videos, pro or con, are an absolutely, 100%, ridiculous way to attempt to win an argument. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/471 "2013-02-14T18:53:02Z")
[It’s never too early to teach your kids about gun safety, right?](http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2013/02/12/man-convicted-in-accidental-death-of-son-3.html) > [@](#): > > Dr. Daniel Coury, chief of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, testified that toddlers cannot understand how dangerous guns can be, and it is not appropriate to try to teach gun safety to a toddler beyond the simple admonition, “Don’t touch.” Oh. eta: Yeah, I’m just ripping these from the Ohh Shoot blog. Deal with it. ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/472 "2013-02-14T19:04:26Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > [Science!](http://ajl.sagepub.com/content/5/6/502) I’ll have to read the paper in full and tell you what I think. I know better than to trust the abstract of a review paper. > [@](#): > > It’s funny because I pictured you telling [this guy](http://www.inflexwetrust.com/2012/09/28/father-accidentally-kills-his-son-who-he-thought-was-a-burglar/) about how many lumens these new flashlights are putting out. You just needed more lumens, man! Then your kid would be alive. Might not help in that case, but it’s not often that your kid is masked and lunging at you with an apparent weapon. You don’t think that case is typical of accidental shootings do you? ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/473 "2013-02-14T19:07:19Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > For every video he posts, someone could post a ‘stupid gun mistakes’ or ‘stupid gun owners’ video right off of YouTube. That’s what I’ve been doing to you guys in reverse. Lots of shooters are lax with gun safety. I think gun safety should be taught in public schools along with sex education. ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/474 "2013-02-14T19:10:06Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > [Responsible gun owner shoots self in hand, realizes that he’s safer without the damned thing.](http://5newsonline.com/2013/02/09/student-embarrassed-by-accidental-shooting-promises-to-sell-guns/) He’s responsible? “Williamson said he didn’t touch the gun and did nothing to jar the handgun into firing. He said he has since done research that he said showed the revolver was prone to accidental firings.” That’s what you call bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/475 "2013-02-14T19:15:06Z")
One thing wrt home defense–it seems the gun gives the owner a false sense of security to go wandering around the house. The common stories are that a sudden noise woke him up, he grabbed his gun, and went to investigate. This seems incredibly risky. He’s assuming that he’ll have the advantage, but there’s no reason to believe that. It seems prudent to assume that there are multiple armed intruders who heard him wake up and are now hunkered down waiting for him to approach. The home owner should approach the situation that way. There are less dangerous options than a gun for home defense: -Alarm system with panic button near bed. Prevent intruders from entering in the first place. If you hear a noise, activate the alarm. Very few intruders are going to stick around with an alarm going off. - Get a dog. A dog is always on active alert for intruders. He’ll let you know if someone is trying to get in the house. And he’ll give up his life to save you. If the homeowner wants to protect himself and family, there are ways to do that without introducing a gun and it’s associated dangers to the house. ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/476 "2013-02-14T19:20:19Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > These people just need more lumens too: > > [http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201\_162-57529715/retired-chicago-cop-fatally-shoots-son-after-mistaking-him-for-burglar/](http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57529715/retired-chicago-cop-fatally-shoots-son-after-mistaking-him-for-burglar/) > [Man Shoots And Kills His Girlfriend Mistakenly Thought She Was An Intruder (DETAILS)](http://globalgrind.com/news/man-shoots-kills-his-girlfriend-mistakenly-thought-intruder-details) > [http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2012/07/22/ny-police-officer-shoots-and-kills-son-he-thought-was-an-intruder/](http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2012/07/22/ny-police-officer-shoots-and-kills-son-he-thought-was-an-intruder/) Absolutely! Reading each of your links I have to conclude a weapon mounted flashlight would have prevented all 3 of those accidental shooting. You don’t think so? Have you ever handled a weapon with a Surefire on it? ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/477 "2013-02-14T19:21:53Z")
> [@Kable](#): > > That’s what I’ve been doing to you guys in reverse. Lots of shooters are lax with gun safety. I think gun safety should be taught in public schools along with sex education. I guess it works, it anyone bothers to watch your videos. It’s still a poor way to make and argument. I don’t think gun safety should be taught in school other than, perhaps, an elective for those interested. Not everybody shoots or owns. Most folks have sex, though. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/478 "2013-02-14T19:30:01Z")
> [@Kable](#): > > Absolutely! Reading each of your links I have to conclude a weapon mounted flashlight would have prevented all 3 of those accidental shooting. > > You don’t think so? Have you ever handled a weapon with a Surefire on it? Stupid irresponsible gun owners, not having enough lumens at their disposal. What problem can’t be solved by more guns and more lumens?!? I’ve never gone shooting in the dark, so no, I’ve never used a little flashlight. ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/479 "2013-02-14T19:30:16Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > One thing wrt home defense–it seems the gun gives the owner a false sense of security to go wandering around the house. The common stories are that a sudden noise woke him up, he grabbed his gun, and went to investigate. This seems incredibly risky. He’s assuming that he’ll have the advantage, but there’s no reason to believe that. It seems prudent to assume that there are multiple armed intruders who heard him wake up and are now hunkered down waiting for him to approach. The home owner should approach the situation that way. I would say if there is an intruder, a gun gives you a good degree of genuine security. In my case the intruder was in my bedroom when I first saw him. > [@](#): > > There are less dangerous options than a gun for home defense: > > -Alarm system with panic button near bed. Prevent intruders from entering in the first place. If you hear a noise, activate the alarm. Very few intruders are going to stick around with an alarm going off. > > - Get a dog. A dog is always on active alert for intruders. He’ll let you know if someone is trying to get in the house. And he’ll give up his life to save you. An alarm might help, but if it did not scare the intruder the cops would get there to late. In my case they came pretty fast, about 5 minutes after they were called by my girlfriend. I think a dog would be better and likely would deter intruders. Good guard dogs are not without risk to your neighbors either, plus I work too much to properly take care of one, so a gun fit my situation better. Plus guns are lot of fun to shoot. ---
**Author:** ![Kable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed655f/32.png) [@Kable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kable)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729/480 "2013-02-14T19:32:59Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > Stupid irresponsible gun owners, not having enough lumens at their disposal. What problem can’t be solved by more guns and more lumens?!? Those 3 people would be alive if the shooter had a flashlight on their gun. > [@](#): > > I’ve never gone shooting in the dark, so no, I’ve never used a little flashlight. OK, I figured you didn’t know what you are talking about. Now I’m sure. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729.md?page=23) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-news-of-the-day-part-1/648729.md?page=25)