Gun industry ad encourages children to buy guns, shows young girl holding a target in front of her

[Bjorn Against]

This is an actual ad the gun industry ran in Junior Shooters magazine...



http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/27/us/selling-a-new-generation-on-guns.html?pagewanted=3&_r=0

Not only is that girl clearly too young to be purchasing a gun, but notice where she is holding the target. This is the type of "gun safety" that the NRA's allies are pushing on kids.

If this is the type of ads the "responsible gun owners run" then we really need to question how responsible they really are.

[ZombieHorde]

1. LOL. She's showing off her score, not holding it for someone to shoot at. nt

[Bjorn Against]

2. It may not be her intent to have someone shoot at it, but it sure has a creepy appearance

That girl is way too young to be shooting guns, much less buying them.

[Pholus]

3. This guy scored higher...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022277486

[ZombieHorde]

5. Holy shit, that was funny. nt

[Zoeisright]

53. Yeah. And eight-year-olds can understand that.

I'm sure the unicorns in your back yard are telling you this is funny.

[ZombieHorde]

54. Hahahaha! nt

[Berserker]

4. Last I heard

Children can't buy guns so how can anyone encourage children to buy guns?

[Bjorn Against]

6. The fact that children can't buy guns is exactly the reason this ad is so irresponsible

[Berserker]

10. Point

understood. But this is nothing new. When I was in the boy scouts the magazine boys life always had ads with guns in them. No one thought a thing about it. I was target shooting with my father when I was 6 and I don't think that was irresponsible of him.
I see no problem if the parents want to teach their children gun safety.

[Duckhunter935]

7. Ok, is she supposed

to hide her target. Reaching a little bit there. Looks like she is a pretty good shot and proud of the fact. She could be somewhere where weapons are not even in the area.

http://www.juniorshooters.net/


Safety is the most important aspect of teaching juniors, as well as adults, the joys of participating in the shooting sports. It is everyone’s responsibility and should be at the forefront of our thoughts not only during the teaching of shooting sports but also when participating in such sports. When you go the the range, each range has safety reminder signs such as:

Never point a firearm at anyone.
A firearm is always loaded.
Know what is beyond your target.
Never put your finger on the trigger until ready to shoot.
Always keep the muzzle pointed down-range.

All shooting competitions and ranges have a Range Officer qualified in range safety and ensuring the people involved in the shooting sports are conducting themselves in a safe manner.

[Bjorn Against]

8. Never teach a little kid to illegally purchase a gun

Is it not obvious that girl is way too young to be buying and shooting guns?

[Duckhunter935]

11. available at your local gunshop, read the fricken add!

FFL required and federal law would be followed. If she is not old enough to purchase, she could not and it would not be sold to her. However she could ask her parents to buy it just like most things.

[Bjorn Against]

12. I did read the ad it says "Make Dad jealous"

I don't know how you could even attempt to make the claim that this is not trying to market guns to kids.

Would you approve of an ad that showed a eight year old with the words...

"Make Dad jealous! Marlboro cigarettes are available at your local convenience store!"

It is totally sick and irresponsible to market a product to kids that they can not legally purchase.

[Duckhunter935]

18. It would also be very stupid

If they could not be purchased as the individual you say is not of age. Then they make no money and lose money by advertising to non-eligible people. My goodness the ad is to get the minor to get the parents to buy the weapon. A 22 pistol is a very good gun for junior shooters.

[Bjorn Against]

21. Any parent who would buy that for a kid who is so young is a terrible parent

[justanidea]

55. Well that's just like, your opinion, man.

[Jenoch]

57. My brother bought .22 rifles for each of his sons when they were infants.

[Robb]

9. Shades of this:

[Berserker]

14. More like

Shades of this:

[IMG][/IMG]

[Robb]

15. I don't see the kids in your little NRA graphic.

Are they behind the car?

[Berserker]

17. Just showing

The ignorance of your post. Now go whine in meta.

[Robb]

19. OK.

[Berserker]

52. How did it go?

Did you find that some Liberals don't have to think the way you do? That's what makes DU the best forum on the internet.

[Fla_Democrat]

20. That one on the lower right hand side

is a flint glock.

[Duckhunter935]

23. Good one

[Robb]

13. Also, a reproduction of a Colt manufactured in... Italy.

A toy gun that fires real bullets. Grand.

[hack89]

16. It is not a toy

it is, however, a good gun for kids to learn on.

[ileus]

22. She holding her target in front of her...be kinda hard to see it behind her back.

these 1911 22's are a hoot to shoot. You can find them pretty cheap and shoot all day long for 20 bucks....Highly recommended for kids and family fun time.

We bought a SR22 this summer and the kids love that little pistol. I also bought a 22lr conversion for the AR's and now my 10yo daughter loves shooting the AR as much as my 8yo son.

22's are where it's at considering the cost of ammo these days.

[Bjorn Against]

24. I hope you are being sarcastic

If you are giving an assault rifle to an 8 year old child and a ten year old you are truly irresponsible. You are the reason we need gun control in this country, people who would give kids guns should not be owning guns themselves.

[Duckhunter935]

26. It is the same as

any semi-automatic weapon made in the last 100 or so years. But they do look scary. And yes the 22 caliber round is very cheap and the best round for beginners.

[Bjorn Against]

27. Ummm...this may surprise you but I was not thinking of giving a child a different semi-automatic

You clearly don't get it, I don't think children should have any semi-automatic rifle for that matter. The most powerful gun that kids should be allowed to access is a squirt gun.

[Duckhunter935]

29. That is your choice

That may not be other peoples choice though. I am glad you like to tell other people how to get along. You do not rule the world.

[Bjorn Against]

31. It should be a crime

I am not saying I rule the world, but I sure as hell support legislation to take guns away from people like you who believe providing guns to children is responsible gun ownership. You make a great case for gun control.

[Duckhunter935]

37. Nope

I am just following how things have been done since before this country was founded and has worked very well for hundreds of years.
If I want to teach kids how to safely shoot firearms in a supervised environment I will.

[ileus]

28. I didn't give anyone anything.

We shoot them at the range.

[Duckhunter935]

32. Sorry, missed assault rifle

It is not an assault rifle

An assault rifle is a selective fire (selective between fully automatic, semi-automatic, and burst fire) rifle that uses an intermediate cartridge and a detachable magazine. It should be distinguished from the US legal term assault weapons.[1] Assault rifles are the standard service rifles in most modern armies. Assault rifles are categorized in terms of using an intermediate cartridge power that is between light machine guns firing full power cartridges, which are intended more for sustained automatic fire in a light support role, and submachine guns, which fire a lower powered pistol cartridge rather than a rifle cartridge. Fully automatic fire refers to an ability for a rifle to fire continuously until the magazine is empty and no rounds remain; "burst-capable" fire refers to an ability of a rifle to fire a small yet fixed multiple number of rounds with but one press of the trigger; in contrast, semi-automatic refers to an ability to fire but one round per press of a trigger. The presence of selective fire modes on assault rifles permits more efficient use of rounds to be fired for specific needs, versus having but a single mode of operation, such as fully automatic, thereby conserving ammunition while maximizing on-target accuracy and effectiveness.

Examples of assault rifles include the StG 44, AK-47,[2] M16 rifle, QBZ-95, INSAS, Heckler & Koch G36, and Enfield SA80.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_rifle

[Bjorn Against]

34. I don't care about your terminology, I don't think kids should have ANY gun. Period.

[Duckhunter935]

35. don't give them one then

Let others run there own life

[Bjorn Against]

36. I won't, I only wish the gun nuts would refrain from giving kids guns too

Not all gun owners are gun nuts, but anyone who gives guns to kids is a dangerous gun nut.

[Jenoch]

58. If the kids are target shooting on a range and are being taught gun and range safety,

what's your problem with that?

[Duckhunter935]

25. But an AR

Is just a killing machine that spews HUGE armor piercing bullets at 2000 rounds a second. How can that be. Oh, that is right the AR platform is a modular weapon allowing you to use the same base rifle and tailor it to different shooters and for different purposes. Maybe that is why it is the most popular sporting rifle out there now. And just like all semi-automatic rifles over the last 100 or so years, it fires one round per trigger pull.

[ileus]

30. And CDT sells a 12ga upper you could use to duck hunt.

[Duckhunter935]

33. but you can't use an AR to hunt

I learned that here.

[GreenStormCloud]

38. So what?

Dad gave me a shotgun when I was 11. Under proper adult supervision, shooting can be fun for kids, and safe.

[Bjorn Against]

39. No shooting is not safe, nearly a thousand deaths a year from accidental shootings

And many more severely wounded, shooting is not safe. If you think shooting is safe then you clearly don't understand guns nearly as well as you think you do. And no, saying you never got shot or shot anyone does not mean that shooting is safe.

[Duckhunter935]

41. out of millions

if not billions of weapons discharges during the same time. Actually very safe as long as the rules are followed.

[Bjorn Against]

42. And kids are the least likely to understand the rules

[GreenStormCloud]

44. I understood them at 11. N/T

[Bjorn Against]

46. Well good for you, not all kids have been so lucky.

[Duckhunter935]

47. Actually

probably better than most adults as they get complacent and fail to follow the basics. That is how most firearms accidents happen.

[Bjorn Against]

48. Well that is reassuring to know an adult is even more likely to shoot someone than a kid is

[Duckhunter935]

49. More likely to shoot themselves

[Bjorn Against]

51. Oh, well that makes it all better doesn't it.

Daddy may be dead, but at least the kiddies survived the day at the range!

[Jenoch]

59. Are you against teaching gun safety to children?

It's the kids who are not taught gun safety who grow up to be adults ignorant of gun safety. Then they are a danger to themselves and others if and when they handle a firearm. I read in the news not infrequently about a gun dischaged accidently because the gun handler didn't know how to unload a gun or didn't know that a semi-auto handgun is not unloaded when the magazine is ejected. Ignorance is never a good thing.

[GreenStormCloud]

43. More children under 12 die from walking accidents,

than from gun accidents. A thousand accidental deaths a year in a country of 310+ million is not a large number.

[Bjorn Against]

45. Most kids do far more walking than they do shooting

Most parents don't give their kids guns, kids are far less likely to get shot if they are not around guns.

If kids went shooting as often as they walked there would be far more deaths from shooting than there would be from walking.

[ileus]

40. Of course it's fun and safe

Most everyone that's ever pulled a trigger for enjoyment knows that.

[aikoaiko]

50. omg.

[IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG][IMG][/IMG]

She's showing off her target with lots of hits in the center ring.

She can give her parent $300 to purchase the handgun for her and the parent can store it safely.

I don't see the problem.

[justanidea]

56. Oh wow. A magazine ad showing a kid shooting a .22

[img][/img]