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Know gun laws
By Heidi Dillman/Willcox
I agree with your editorial, that Rex Allen Days is such a nice small-town event. It seems almost the whole town comes out to see one event or another, the most popular by far being the parade.
My son and my friends' children very much look forward to the parade. It was quite dismaying to see in that parade an "actor" of Marshall Bo's gunfight point a gun at a parade-watcher across the street from where we were sitting. If the actors want to gunfight amongst themselves, that's fine, that's their business and their safety.
However, to point a weapon at an innocent bystander? What kind of safety is this portraying? None!
The number one firearm safety rule is to keep one's muzzle pointed in a safe direction at all times. In other words, don't point the gun at something you don't intend on shooting.
My five-year-old knows this rule "by heart" and plays by this rule, even with toy guns. We practice and teach others by example so that it becomes second nature. We do not intentionally, even in play, display reckless violations of the safety rules.
Blanks can kill and the Bo show is absolutely negligent and dangerous in their firearm handling practices. What's worse is many children witness this and think it's OK, or it's just a game. If they're not brought up in a household that respects guns, they've no idea the severity and dire consequences playing with one may have.
At the very least, all parents should teach their children that if they come upon a gun, and they're not sure if it's a toy or to whom it belongs, STOP! DON'T TOUCH! Leave the area and tell an adult. It's that simple and that could save a child's life.
My son and my friends' children very much look forward to the parade. It was quite dismaying to see in that parade an "actor" of Marshall Bo's gunfight point a gun at a parade-watcher across the street from where we were sitting. If the actors want to gunfight amongst themselves, that's fine, that's their business and their safety.
However, to point a weapon at an innocent bystander? What kind of safety is this portraying? None!
The number one firearm safety rule is to keep one's muzzle pointed in a safe direction at all times. In other words, don't point the gun at something you don't intend on shooting.
My five-year-old knows this rule "by heart" and plays by this rule, even with toy guns. We practice and teach others by example so that it becomes second nature. We do not intentionally, even in play, display reckless violations of the safety rules.
Blanks can kill and the Bo show is absolutely negligent and dangerous in their firearm handling practices. What's worse is many children witness this and think it's OK, or it's just a game. If they're not brought up in a household that respects guns, they've no idea the severity and dire consequences playing with one may have.
At the very least, all parents should teach their children that if they come upon a gun, and they're not sure if it's a toy or to whom it belongs, STOP! DON'T TOUCH! Leave the area and tell an adult. It's that simple and that could save a child's life.
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