Sanity

[woodchip]

Well it looks like the rabid, basically ignorant, anti-gun crowd is losing traction. High schools are now getting into competitive shooting:

"Trap shooting is the fastest-growing sport in Minnesota high schools, and was recently introduced in neighboring Wisconsin and North Dakota."

"Next year, schools in Arizona, South Dakota, Illinois and Kansas will host teams. Middle-schoolers can also join high-school squads."

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/ ... -new-sport

Finally some sanity is replacing the fears and phobias regarding firearms. As a sport, shooting a firearm can be fun and rewarding. Glad to see a movement is underway to have school kids learn the proper safety lessons on how to handle firearms and have fun shooting in a competitive atmosphere. Hopefully this spreads to all school systems across this nation.

[callmeslick]

has utterly nothing to do with an explosion in handgun sales......nothing.

[woodchip]

has utterly nothing to do with an explosion in handgun sales......nothing.

wow, cuda is right...all you can do is troll by deflection. Topic has nothing to do with pistols.

[Jeff250]

If you don't want people to troll you and for your threads to unravel, then don't start your topic off by calling your opposition "rabid" and "basically ignorant."

[woodchip]

Wasn't referring to anyone on this board, so why do you throw that qualifier into the mix?

[Foil]

I have a coworker who is heavily into competitive shooting, and he loves to talk sights and equipment and venues and such.

I haven't tried any competitive shooting, myself, but it sounds like it would be fun, albeit expensive. If nothing else, I imagine it serves to assist firearms training, which is something I think both sides of the debate know is well-needed.

[callmeslick]

yes, but Foil, skeet shooting, trap shooting which are what the article discusses, as I noted, have ZERO to do with the role that handguns have developed in our nation. I'm all for education of anyone who wishes to own and use firearms for any reason, but teaching trap shooting to teenagers in suburban schools has nothing to do with the issues raised by those folks Woody would describe as 'rabid'.


Woody, my response was not a troll, but you gleefully declared it so. Why? My points above are quite valid.

[Jeff250]

Wasn't referring to anyone on this board, so why do you throw that qualifier into the mix?

I'm explaining to you why your posting style often leads to thread closures. The way that you say things, even if not breaking any rules on some technical level, riles people up and does not lay the groundwork for a good discussion.

[callmeslick]

speaking of sanity, and mental health, perhaps the schools will make this study part of the instruction:

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... FCC.f03t01


if we were to get away from predominantly angry people owning multiple guns, the society might progress to a safer place.

[Spidey]

So…we’re cutting back on art, music and shop classes…spelling…pfffft, who needs that.

Skeet shooting FTW!

[callmeslick]

how very true, Spidey

[woodchip]

yes, but Foil, skeet shooting, trap shooting which are what the article discusses, as I noted, have ZERO to do with the role that handguns have developed in our nation.

And again, you tried to steer the conversation to handguns which had nothing in the least to do with this thread. You want to discuss the role of hand guns then start your own thread.

I'm all for education of anyone who wishes to own and use firearms for any reason, but teaching trap shooting to teenagers in suburban schools has nothing to do with the issues raised by those folks Woody would describe as 'rabid'.

Rabid as in expelling 6 years for pointing a finger and going "bang". Or expelling kids for wearing NRA T-shirts. Or sending a kid home because he brought a toy soldier to school. That kind of "Rabid". Now if you want to talk pistols as being used in school sports, I suggest you get familiar with air pistols:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/10_metre_air_pistol

Again a golden chance to teach kids how to safely use a pistol.
Now why do you assume only suburban kids can do this. I suggest one of those golden examples of inner school oasis of learning could also get in on the competition. I suspect if a school administrator were to ask the NRA for help in setting up a program, you might be surprised at the number of donars willing to help. Of course if the administrator is ignorant and fearful about guns...it'll never happen.

[woodchip]

Wasn't referring to anyone on this board, so why do you throw that qualifier into the mix?

I'm explaining to you why your posting style often leads to thread closures. The way that you say things, even if not breaking any rules on some technical level, riles people up and does not lay the groundwork for a good discussion.

If it riles people up then it is their fault for not having a civil discussion. If all you want is dry didactic droning in the posts you read, I could name a couple of college professors I had that would be right up your alley. Otherwise cut out the infantile responses as a moderator should.

[Ferno]

So…we’re cutting back on art, music and shop classes…spelling…pfffft, who needs that.

Skeet shooting FTW!

And heaping the difference on every new student that enters higher education to the point where they're in debt for the rest of their life.

[Jeff250]

If it riles people up then it is their fault for not having a civil discussion. If all you want is dry didactic droning in the posts you read, I could name a couple of college professors I had that would be right up your alley. Otherwise cut out the infantile responses as a moderator should.

The only thing I asked you to do is to not use insults in your posts. And if that's too much to ask, which it shouldn't be, then to at least understand how including them in a topic opener, or in any post for that matter, creates a sour atmosphere that invites others to insult you back. If the only way you know how to prevent your posts from becoming "dry didactic droning" is by sprinkling in insults, then yes, I'm still asking you to not include insults in your posts.

[woodchip]

If it riles people up then it is their fault for not having a civil discussion. If all you want is dry didactic droning in the posts you read, I could name a couple of college professors I had that would be right up your alley. Otherwise cut out the infantile responses as a moderator should.

The only thing I asked you to do is to not use insults in your posts. And if that's too much to ask, which it shouldn't be, then to at least understand how including them in a topic opener, or in any post for that matter, creates a sour atmosphere that invites others to insult you back. If the only way you know how to prevent your posts from becoming "dry didactic droning" is by sprinkling in insults, then yes, I'm still asking you to not include insults in your posts.

And yet my Top of the Heap thread got closed even though I had no inflammatory language in it.

[callmeslick]

your 'top of the heap' thread got closed because of someone else posting obscenity-laden links into it. No one that I gathered blamed you for that.

[callmeslick]

now, on the topic, Woody, the problem that gets people 'rabid' is violence towards other humans. Now, mind you, in your youth and mine, we played with toy soldiers, all sorts of overtly 'violent' stuff, and I'll trust that neither of us went out shooting people. The issue isn't just guns, the larger issue is the modern tendency to not value human life. And, to return to Spidey's comment, perhaps the fact that we have eliminated arts and Humanities study has led to that lack of sensitivity. The fact that we have eliminated sports of any sort for 'budget' reasons might also be a factor in the loss of the concept of fair play and respect for others.

[Tunnelcat]

I have a coworker who is heavily into competitive shooting, and he loves to talk sights and equipment and venues and such.

I haven't tried any competitive shooting, myself, but it sounds like it would be fun, albeit expensive. If nothing else, I imagine it serves to assist firearms training, which is something I think both sides of the debate know is well-needed.

I love target shooting with both pistols and rifles. Like you say though, the ammo is expensive, even using reloads. Never tried skeet shooting, although that sounds fun too.