Guns 101, part IV: The 4 Commandments
Part I: "Evil Guns"
Part II: "Why"
Part III: The Law
At this point, before even putting a weapon in your hands, some time should be devoted to the 4 Gun Commandments. The first, and by far the most important - every gun is always loaded. Notice there is no room for any sort of doubt in that statement; absolutes such as every and always are used. Sometimes you will hear this: treat the gun as if it's loaded. I don't like this version because of the conditional use of "as if." As a result of this Golden Rule, we have...
Rule number two - never let the muzzle cover anything you're not willing to destroy. To translate, don't point the gun at anything you don't want to put a hole in, especially another living being. This applies anytime the gun is in hand, whether in a full grip or held in an otherwise safe manner. Keeping this and the all important Golden Rule in mind leads us to...
Rule number three - do not put your finger on the trigger (or even inside the trigger guard) until your sights are on the target. This is the most commonly broken rule on TV and in movies. It kills me to watch the lack of trigger and muzzle discipline on shows like 24, NCIS, CSI:Miami, etc. Many guns have a very light trigger (especially in single action) and if you're in a situation where you need to use a firearm to defend yourself, between the adrenalin and nerves, your finger is going to be quite twitchy, which would be just enough to unintentionally discharge the weapon.
Rule number four is a little different, and in some cases is like a rule 3.5 - know your target and where your bullets are going to hit. What this is warning against is another thing seen in Hollywood all the time; just spray the area where the bad guy is with bullets and hope something hits. The reality is that any confrontation will probably be in your house, and contrary to beliefs, bullets will travel through sheetrock - any misses endanger others in your house.
Part II: "Why"
Part III: The Law
At this point, before even putting a weapon in your hands, some time should be devoted to the 4 Gun Commandments. The first, and by far the most important - every gun is always loaded. Notice there is no room for any sort of doubt in that statement; absolutes such as every and always are used. Sometimes you will hear this: treat the gun as if it's loaded. I don't like this version because of the conditional use of "as if." As a result of this Golden Rule, we have...
Rule number two - never let the muzzle cover anything you're not willing to destroy. To translate, don't point the gun at anything you don't want to put a hole in, especially another living being. This applies anytime the gun is in hand, whether in a full grip or held in an otherwise safe manner. Keeping this and the all important Golden Rule in mind leads us to...
Rule number three - do not put your finger on the trigger (or even inside the trigger guard) until your sights are on the target. This is the most commonly broken rule on TV and in movies. It kills me to watch the lack of trigger and muzzle discipline on shows like 24, NCIS, CSI:Miami, etc. Many guns have a very light trigger (especially in single action) and if you're in a situation where you need to use a firearm to defend yourself, between the adrenalin and nerves, your finger is going to be quite twitchy, which would be just enough to unintentionally discharge the weapon.
Rule number four is a little different, and in some cases is like a rule 3.5 - know your target and where your bullets are going to hit. What this is warning against is another thing seen in Hollywood all the time; just spray the area where the bad guy is with bullets and hope something hits. The reality is that any confrontation will probably be in your house, and contrary to beliefs, bullets will travel through sheetrock - any misses endanger others in your house.
posted by misawa at 8:12 AM
2 Comments:
Where are some good firing ranges where I can rent a gun to blast stuff for the fun of it?
There are several ranges in the Atlanta area that rent them, most of them are stores, too. My preferred location is Ed's Guns on the corner of Piedmont Rd and Canton Hwy (not sure if that's Kennesaw or Marietta). I usually go there once or twice a month. If you ever want to meet up, let me know (that is assuming you're not jaunting up to TN in your free time).
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