this post was submitted on 19 Nov 2023
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[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 9 points 11 months ago (2 children)

I don't agree with the thesis of this article. I do not like 4-H taking NRA money and I think 8 is too young, but I have no issue in general with kids participating in shooting sports. Learning to shoot skeet or targets is not going to lead to mass shootings. That is not what is normalizing guns. Also, shooting sports generally use rifles (and not AR-15s) while most mass shootings are done with handguns. As far as I can see, shooting sports are not all that different from archery. I don't think archery is going to lead to killing either.

Shooting sports are one of the more legitimate uses of guns. They are not what is glorifying guns and making a gun culture in America.

[–] ZeroCool@feddit.ch 8 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (3 children)

Shooting sports are one of the more legitimate uses of guns. They are not what is glorifying guns

Gun sports absolutely glorify guns. Are you trolling right now? Jesus christ.

[–] curiousaur@reddthat.com -1 points 11 months ago

No, they don't. It's a sport. It's in the Olympics.

Carrying rifles in cases to the range, putting on your protective gear and learning all the safety procedures, then learning proper stances and target shooting teaches respect for guns.

This is coming from someone who took shooting sports through 4-H starting at like 10, and doesn't own a single gun today. It really is like archery or any other sport. I enjoy archery more and went on to be a 4-H archery instructor for a while.

[–] PetDinosaurs@lemmy.world -2 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

I have absolutely no problem with people using guns in a target shooting type of way.

Or in other responsible types of ways, like properly managed hunting or where there are things like moose and polar and grizzly bears. Guns are tools.

I don't like guns, but I understand. Gun nuts are the problem, as are guns as tools that are only designed to kill humans. I can even understand why people would want to shoot an assault rifle or other weapon of war.

It just needs to be controlled.

The worst part is that I would really like to spend an afternoon blowing shit up. Go to someplace fun. Learn about the process. Then push the pluger.

The problem is that that's actually well controlled. Enough so that I can't really find a good way to experience it outside of a construction project in my past.

[–] TechyDad@lemmy.world 1 points 11 months ago

I've often wondered if weapons like AR-15s should be only allowed to be owned by gun ranges and similar setups. You'd go in, rent an AR-15 for a certain period of time, get a safety lesson on how to use it, and then go to a shooting range where targets have been set up for you to shoot at.

When you're done, you turn the weapon back in and go on your way. The gun range locks it up and is responsible for it. If an employee makes off with the gun and shoots someone, the gun range is liable. If the guns aren't locked up properly and someone breaks in and steals it, the gun range is liable.

There would be regular checks to make sure the gun range was compliant with safety procedures. Kind of like what restaurants go through to make sure that they are storing food properly.

This would allow people to fire weapons like an AR-15 in a safe manner with minimal risk that this gun would be used for a mass shooting.

Of course, given the current Supreme Court makeup, I fully expect that this would be deemed unconstitutional.

[–] Rivalarrival -4 points 11 months ago

I don't think 8 is too young. I think kids need to be exposed to responsible gun use long before they see irresponsible gun use in fiction.

The problem isn't the "glorification" of guns as others have suggested. The problem is normalization of criminal gun use. Responsible gun use should be depicted as the rule, not the rare exception. A kid should not be seeing a gang member or white supremacist murdering a cop on TV before she has been taught the four rules and how to handle a BB gun.