Jistme - I didn't know anything about the magnetic ring, you obviously know a lot more about guns than I do. Thanks for sharing the information.

I choose not to have guns in my house for similar reasons. When I lived in a small town while my daughter was young, there was a case of a baby sitting in a high chair (think she was under a year old) and kids on the other side of the wall playing with a gun, it went off hitting the baby in the head (think the boy was 17 y/o who had the gun when it went off). The baby didn't die, but was horribly brain damaged afterwards. Another case in the Spokane area or could have been Idaho, but a young woman sleeping in her bed and someone on the other side of the wall (neighbor again) playing with a gun and it goes off, hitting her in the spine and paralyzing her. She was an avid runner and it destroyed her life. We see "accidental" shootings on TV almost every day, little kids, it is so sad. I had a bad experience with my ex and don't like them around. I also know that if I ever pulled a gun on someone who was breaking in my house, it would come down to making a decision to pull the trigger, and I am afraid I would be one of "those" who has the gun taken away from them and used on them, so choose not to have them around.

I still wonder though why this guy didn't have the safety on, or have it unloaded while he was playing around with it. I do think it was partly that he was home from Iraq recently and likely still in his "soldier" frame of mind. How awful for all involved. There was a string of 3 or 4 "wife murders" by soldiers returning from Iraq a year or two ago in the Fort Lewis area, around Tacoma, Washington, and the issue then was raised about soldiers coming straight home from combat and not being debriefed before being sent home. Don't know what ever happened to that idea.

I hear you Marie , it is just so tragic....

well they should teach gun safety at school

at least an hour every grading period

if they can teach proper condom use

to save lives gun safety fits that criteria

as far as the idiot practicing his "draw"

if that was anyone else

they would be up on charges

and he should be as well

if not negligent homicide or worse

at least involuntary manslaughter

Believe me.. If there was a technology around today that could have prevented that incident.. it would have been implemented. To date.. I'm sure there has been 100's of millions of dollars spent in research and development to reduce misuse of firearms. It is a sad commentary that even a trained marine and soon to be deputy, is capable of the level of negligence or intent, that takes a life so needlessly. That is simply the human variant.

When I was living in Portland.. A downtown precinct Police Officer, chasing an unarmed purse snatcher emptied his 15 round clip, ejected and reloaded... then fired half of the next clip, before bringing down the petty thief. All this on the corner of 5th and Burnside. About 3 blocks from my work, in Mid day... How he didn't manage to hit anything with the first 22 rounds..including innocent bystanders, only God can answer. Men like this Police Officer, the sodiers at Fort Lewis, and that Marine are the poster children for limiting who should have their rights revoked from carrying and owning firearms though. Unfortunately.. if we removed the rights of people who are prone to poor judgement or mental imbalance, prior to them actually being convicted for it.. Smith and Wesson, Colt, Beretta, Glock. Winchester, Remington...etc.. would lose a major portion of their legitimate customer base. Not to mention the Rifle Association throwing a "Million Man March" sized hissy fit!

education from kindergarten on

1 hour per grading period would do wonders

thanks for your major concern
and for all your information
Jistme


i agree adj...
that would be a good program for kids in school

Well this just makes me think that the training is not what it appears to be.Hell a Marine sleeps with his rifle,and is carefully taught about such things.I mean how could he NOT know he had a loaded weapon.And if you were just practicing,you would make sure it was unloaded first right?I'm NOT saying he did it deliberately or on purpose but makes me question the training of our soldiers nowadays."Gunny" would have known if the gun was loaded or not..That's all I have to say about that.