Warning, I’m going to use some foul language in this rant. I tried to write it without cursing, but I guess I’m just a lazy writer, because I can’t get this done without it. Sorry.
A few days ago, a four year old boy in Louisville was rushed to the hospital after he shot himself in the face. Tonight, the news reported that he died from his injuries. There aren’t a lot of details out yet, but we do know that his mother had two other children with her at the time of the tragedy.
Excuse me for a moment while I ask a couple of questions.
Why the fuck do these things keep happening?
What in the fuck is wrong with people?
What is it going to take to get people to understand that you cannot hide a gun from a child? Or that a child will figure out how to work any action, safety, or trigger? Kids are curious, creative, and good at getting into things they’re not supposed to. They will find it, they will play with it, and they have a good chance of hurting themselves or someone else with it. A four year old boy is not going to respond to “Don’t touch it.”, no matter if you, Eddie Eagle, or Jehovah himself tells him not to.*
I am pro-gun. I have guns. I believe that if you wish to have a gun and can legally do so, then you should have a gun. It’s your right. But with that right comes responsibility. First and foremost in any set of responsibilities is “Don’t hurt the children or put them at any risk that can be prevented”.
If your fucking gun is not on your fucking hip, in your fucking pocket, or in your fucking hand, and there are children in your home, ever, then it needs to be locked the fuck up. Not in a damn drawer, not on top of the bloody entertainment center, not in the hallway closet. If you’re not smart enough to understand your responsibility to keep your fucking guns away from little hands, then do the rest of us a favor and sell the fucking things.
Look, I understand that not everyone can afford a $2000 gun safe, or even a $200 dollar pistol safe. But for fuck’s sake, a $20 Stack-On or SentrySafe gun box would have prevented this beautiful young boy from shooting himself in the head and dying after a week in intensive care.
To me, this is a “There, but for the grace of God, go I” kind of story. My little brother put a .41 caliber hole in the side of our house in North Dakota when I was a teenager, and it is only by pure chance that nobody got hurt.
If you have kids in your house, secure your bloody firearms when they’re not attached to your body.
I’m sorry I went off like this, but these damned stories are becoming a regular feature in the news, and I’m tired of having to pray for the souls of children who die because somebody screwed up.
*I’m not saying that you shouldn’t introduce your kids to your guns, and I believe that programs like Eddie Eagle do a lot of good, but not with a child that young. Little kids like that are the reason that most child safety programs have the “Don’t let younger kids touch it” in their message. Also, please don’t take this as me supporting so-called “safe storage” laws. Just because I think something is a good bloody idea doesn’t mean I’m saying there oughta be a law.
DaddyBear’s Den 
mrgarabaldi
/ May 3, 2014Hey DB,
Agreed with all you wrote and to add a caveat, The anti-gunners dance in the blood of this tragedy and use it for their own nefarious ends. We being dumb like this helps the anti-gunners cause. We as a group have morals and scruples, they don’t. I am not trying to bring up politics in a tragedy, but to them it is ALL politics. May the boy find peace in Heaven.
Respectfully
Bob
A.K.A. “MrG”
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oldnfo
/ May 3, 2014Yep, on the money… And Mr. G is also correct… dammit…
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Corey
/ May 3, 2014My mom watches a 2 year old and he won’t even touch a gun case. He sees them and yells ” NO TOUCH” and runs away. But he also hugs my gun safe and tells it goodnight at nap time I asked him why and he said my guns were scared of the dark.
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GunDiva
/ May 3, 2014There really is no excuse. Every new gun I’ve purchased in the last 12 years has come with a cable lock. Yes, they’re a pain in the butt, but they’re FREE and included with the gun. If the gun is not in your immediate control and you have young ‘uns at home, it needs to be locked.
I managed to raise three children in a house with guns and it was done with education (gun safety from the time they could speak) and never letting my gun out of my control. As they got older, and my stalker disappeared, the gun got locked up, but if they had any questions, I made sure to take the time to answer them and teach them how to handle it safely.
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Shrimp
/ May 5, 2014This kind of thing leaves me in a rage. I try to use these experiences as a learning moment for me and my children, mostly because I can’t do anything else about them.
I’ll have to go back over the four rules with my kids again, just because those can’t be reviewed too often. And I’ll go over the Eddie Eagle rules for the youngest two. I already have the guns locked up and inaccessible, with the exception of my daily carry, and that lives on my hip.
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