CaddyUser said:
In our area, we are required to take a firearms safety course... I was impressed with the dad/son/daughter combos that attended the classes.... I was impressed that the parents were actively involved in ensuring that their kids were trained appropriately....
I attended my son's hunter safety course. Not only was it a good refresher for me, it allowed us to chat on the way home. There were a few points that didn't come across to him, and by being there, I was able to explain what the instructors really meant. He was very glad I went with him, and it proved to be a great "male bonding" experience.
I also tried to attend my daughter's first date with a boy. That wasn't received very well at all. :roll: :lol:
Glad things worked out all by themselves, Beetle. Every kid is different. IMHO, video games have corrupted the minds of lots of young lads. They think because you can do something easily with a video controller, the same thing will be easy in real life. Like most everybody on this board that is my age or older, I learned the physics of dangerous things by having them misbehave in my own hands. Teaches you your real limitations at an early age. To be honest, I don't believe age solves the problem. I know plenty of adult men that are real bright, but I'd never let them even borrow a circ saw. They never got exposed to these things at an early age, and they never got mentored by an experienced user. They sure ain't gonna accept it from me at this point in their lives.
Same thing with guns. I grew up around the things, lived through having my dad get shot in a hunting accident as a young teen, owned and shot many guns over the years. About 15 years ago, I got a nice little setter to try my hand at some upland birds. My best fishing buddy got real intrigued and wanted to give it a try. He got all caught up in learning about every aspect of shotgunning, got a few guns, started showing up at the local trap range, etc. One day he showed at my house with his wife and
her brand new Remington 20 ga. autoloader. I set up the clay thrower and my buddy and I busted a few targets each. Then his wife wanted to give it a go. She had never shot a firearm in her life. He handed her the gun with a full mag loaded and told her what to do. She squeezed off one round, they spun around to face me with her finger still on the trigger and the muzzle pointing right at my manhood. :ahhh:
She had a big old grin on her face and said, "Wow!" I stepped out of the way, reached over to take the gun, and said we were done for the day. I was furious that my buddy hadn't gone over every aspect of gun safety before going out and buying her a deadly weapon. I tried to explain that she had a chambered round in the gun with the safety still off, and that an involuntary squeeze on her part would have left me singing soprano. She got real pissy about it and refused to accept the action as a grave mistake. I said I was sorry then, they both needed to attend a hunter's safety course before I ever allowed them to be around me with firearms. She was very offended by that comment and they left with her in a huff. She just didn't get it, and I'm not certain that even a safety course would get through to her. A few months later he told me that he had sold all the guns he had recently acquired. Thank God.
Good on you, Beetle, for taking the time to mentor this young man. These are the things that change a boy's life forever. ;-)