One more tragic incident
 

According to a Cincinnati paper, an 8 year old boy was killed Saturday when one of his brothers aimed a BB pistol at him and pulled the trigger. Turns out, it was a real handgun. The boys were playing at an uncle's house when it happened.

I guess the uncle wanted to be prepared for intruders so the pistol was not locked away and was loaded.

Too many children are killed this way.

Sounds like Uncle Fool had a weapon without proper training or background.

Less weapons with more control on who can own. NOW!!!!

If the NRA gets it's way, it will no longer be necessary to lock up your guns as you will not be charged in these type of cases.

Also, the Florida Legislature is proposing expanding the 'Stand Your Ground Law' to make it perfectly legal to fire warning shots into the air. What a stellar idea. Can you imagine sitting at the town squares and having warning shots fired all around you?

Reading these stories makes me sick to my stomach. I have an eight year old great nephew.

Now is the time to contact your FL legislator, since their annual session begins on Tuesday. Not that it will do any good.

gun controls will not eliminate stupidity!

It would stop unqualified people from buying guns and ammunition like it was popcorn and soda.

If you are opposed to firearms for self-defense, and don't want one in your home .... don't buy one.

If the stupid uncle did not have a loaded pistol that was not locked away, the 8 year old boy would still be alive.

Kind of like the loaded 12 gauge pump shotgun laying under the bed waiting to blow away a burglar, isn't it?

...but the boy's uncle did want a pistol for self protection; he bought one; kept it loaded and handy; and his 8 year old nephew got killed with it.

There are many many accidental shooting every year. We need control to help this horrible statistic come down.

Gun accidents happen because too many gun owners have no ability to do so.

First, I do not own a gun and never have. No fascination with guns ever in my life.

Now, I say that so it is clear I have "no dog in the race" so to speak. I have followed this conversation for years and have come to an opinion AND have a question for both sides of the debate.

My opinion.....this is another of those cable news issues, made important by them as they accent individual crimes and ignore the big picture totally. That has led it to be a political issue totally....one side versus the other and when that happens we have selected statistics supplied and nothing but emotion. That is my opinion as I watch from "the sidelines"....politics !!

Now, my question for both sides is this.....it took me a while to find this article which I read awhile back but finally found it. From Forbes magazine....and knowing that most folks simply ignore links that they do not feel will back their viewpoint, will try to give you an overview and ask both sides for opinions...

"Disarming Realities: As Gun Sales Soar, Gun Crimes Plummet"

"According to DOJ’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. gun-related homicides dropped 39 percent over the course of 18 years, from 18,253 during 1993, to 11,101 in 2011. During the same period, non-fatal firearm crimes decreased even more, a whopping 69 percent. The majority of those declines in both categories occurred during the first 10 years of that time frame. Firearm homicides declined from 1993 to 1999, rose through 2006, and then declined again through 2011. Non-fatal firearm violence declined from 1993 through 2004, then fluctuated in the mid-to-late 2000s.

And where did the bad people who did the shooting get most of their guns? Were those gun show “loopholes” responsible? Nope. According to surveys DOJ conducted of state prison inmates during 2004 (the most recent year of data available), only two percent who owned a gun at the time of their offense bought it at either a gun show or flea market. About 10 percent said they purchased their gun from a retail shop or pawnshop, 37 percent obtained it from family or friends, and another 40 percent obtained it from an illegal source.

While firearm violence accounted for about 70 percent of all homicides between 1993 and 2011, guns were used in less than 10 percent of all non-fatal violent crimes. Between 70 percent and 80 percent of those firearm homicides involved a handgun, and 90 percent of non-fatal firearm victimizations were committed with a handgun. Males, blacks, and persons aged 18-24 had the highest firearm homicide rates."

Disarming Realities: As Gun Sales Soar, Gun Crimes Plummet - Forbes

I do not believe that the sources are in anyway at all political which is important...While I understand the debate in itself, as it has been going on a long long time (even before the internet), all I see is the magnifying of single events that have characters or circumstances in involved that will show good on television.

PLEASE...dont give me the little smart retort about the children in CT. or another sensational crime. Of course that was a tragedy under any and all circumstances....I would love to hear unemotional debate on the subject, and love an response to my opinion.

I am not sufficiently informed to go deeper....I just see it as another media fueled political debate until I hear other wise.

I am a gun owner and have been for approx 55 years. I still practice gun safety, use shooting ranges to stay proficient with weapons. I truly believe it should be at least as involved to buy any weapon or even more so than it is to obtain a drivers license.

Yes, I know, and the uncle was a moron and should be prosecuted or sued. But, in the meantime, most gun owners are responsible so let's not overreact by constraining our legitimate right to self defense. That's where these discussions seem to always lead.

What about drivers of vehicles killing children, their drowning or dying in fires? The tragic deaths of children from these causes far outnumber their accidental deaths from guns yet the latter deaths appear to get the most publicity, largely from anti-gun media.

RealClearPolicy - How Common Are Child Gun Accidents?

Absolutely, this was a terrible tragedy. However, how old was the brother that pulled the trigger? Was he old enough to know better? Even if it had been a BB pistol, pointing it at his brother and pulling the trigger was unacceptable. Was this truly an accident or negligent behavior by an older brother? As soon as they are old enough to understand, all children should be taught gun safety and the consequences of mishandling firearms. As far as children dying from gun accidents, 2010 figures from the CDC list firearm deaths as 1.5% of all unintentional fatalities of children 14 and under. Motor vehicle accidents were number one at 34%, suffocation number two at 27%, drowning number three at 18%, fires number four at 7%, etc. Firearm deaths were number eight on the list.

Anyone ever remember that we have "the right to bear arms " according to, I believe, the constitution? You can't punish all for the stupidity of some. Firm approver of the NRA and "stand your ground ". The uncle's life is over because he was careless. Most gun owners have a brain.