Back again: same general subject. Feel free to ignore it if it bothers you: feel free to read on if you want to hear a different point of view.
I visited the Everytown for Gun Safety website. I watched their video "What should parents do to keep their kids safe?"
Perhaps you've already seen it? Mom's prepping dinner in the kitchen; the kids are playing "hide and seek;" the young boy is "it" and the young girl hides in a closet....
Imagine my surprise when she rummages around and discovers a pistol someone had thoughtfully left in that very same closet. Golly: didn't see that one coming.
Then, there's the denouement: she's holding the gun and her brother opens the closet door: a message appears saying "Will you stop this?" and a link appears with a 10-second clock that is running.
You click on the link and are transported to a page that says "Join the movement to end gun violence" and asks you to sign up.
But what good is that? If that's the recommended action, Junior's still going to be toast, the girl is going to be a basket case and the family will be traumatized for life. Not to mention the mess and the police investigation, even if no charges are filed.
It might not be as dramatic, but it would be a heck of a lot more useful (especially for Junior) if the screen said: "If you have a gun in your house, it should be unloaded and stored in a locked container inaccessible to small children. Ammunition should be stored in a separate locked container."
There: Junior lives; the girl finds nothing more than a blanket; the game goes on and later everyone enjoys Mom's delicious dinner.
And nobody had to join anything other than the ranks of responsible gun owners.
Safety is a critical component of responsible gun ownership. Needless deaths are just that: Needless.
The number of children aged 15 years and younger killed in gun accidents is quite low: the Center for Disease Control reported 62 such deaths nationwide in 2012. (The big number that folks like to toss around is for "children" up to 18 when deaths related to gang activity and such drive the death rate up dramatically.)
Still, the fact remains that every one of those 62 tragedies was avoidable. Every one.
And every one was caused by adult negligence.
You want to encourage safety? We're all for that. As a matter of fact, the NRA is the nation's leading source of firearms safety training, from "don't touch; get an adult" instruction for small children to hunter safety for adults, there isn't another organization that devotes the resources to gun safety that the NRA does.
What most people see, and get upset about, is the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) which features over-the-top advocacy from Ted Nugent, Wayne LaPierre and a cast of right-wing idols like Ollie North, Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich.
There is a whole 'nuther side to the NRA, the NRA Foundation, which is totally non-political: its officials won't even discuss politics. It's the nation's leading supporter of the shooting sports and firearms education. Among other things, it provides grants to allow schools, libraries and daycare centers to get the youth training materials for free.
Gun manufacturers get on the bandwagon, as well. Every new firearm sold in the U.S. comes with a manual that begins with the basics of safe gun-handling and storage. Many guns even have "read the manual" advisories stamped into their steel.
Gee. Does Everytown for Gun Safety offer any actual safety training? Nope. Does Mayors against Illegal Guns promote safe gun storage? Not actually. Does the Violence Policy Center offer tips on how to check any gun to see if it is loaded and how to safely unload it? Uh-Uh. Does the Brady Center remind you to store ammunition in separate, locked containers? Golly: must have overlooked that.
In short, these groups don't do jack about gun safety.
Would enhanced background checks save Junior? No. An assault weapons ban and limitations on magazine capacity? Well, the Beretta 92FS in the video can take up a a 30-round magazine, but I am pretty sure the one cartridge that some idiot left in the chamber will be all that's needed to destroy a family.
What would keep the kids safe and sound is a parent that knows that every single gun in the world is loaded until you personally verify that it is not and that you never store a loaded (or any other) gun anywhere accessible to children.
Not long ago, a young boy killed a sibling while playing with a rifle his parents had bought for him to learn to shoot. The rifle was left leaning against a wall where the boy could get at it. Of course, the distraught parents didn't know the gun was loaded.
The rifle in question was a .22 caliber Crickett, a small single-shot rifle made as a "learner" gun for children. Since it is a single-shot rifle, there is no magazine or tube to check: all that has to be done is to open the bolt and look. If there is a cartridge loaded, it will eject it, but even if it didn't, it would be easy to see the round in the chamber.
Even if you buy a firearm for a child, you don't leave it where the child can access it without you being present and in charge. A gun safe is best, but a tall shelf and a gun lock will work with younger kids.
The boy's parents weren't charged with anything even though this was a clear case of felony stupid resulting in death of a minor child.
But is any of this on Michael Bloomberg's radar? How about Shannon Watts' agenda?
What could Bloomie do for gun safety if his $50 million was actually devoted to it instead of lobbying? We'll never know.
But you can be part of preventing gun deaths and injuries and, as I said earlier, you don't have to join anything at all.
If you own a gun, of any type, buy a safe or gun lock for it. Learn how to check the gun to see if it's loaded and how to unload it without pulling the trigger and do it religiously. When you are not using the gun, unload it and lock it up. Buy a separate, locking container for ammunition.
The total investment beyond the firearm and ammo should be less than $50.00 and some gun shops will give you a lock for free.
If you follow those rules without fail, you will never have a gun accident.