Posted on 12/12/2003 7:54:09 AM PST by jdege
Rebecca Thoman
Published December 12, 2003
A boy's Christmas wish list that includes BB or pellet guns is a parent's worst nightmare. One look at contemporary pellet guns, named and modeled after their grown-up counterparts, the Uzi semiautomatic or the Magnum .44, should convince any parent that these "toys" are not what they used to be.
Modern BB guns are nothing like the wooden-stock rifles of 1938, the kind yearned for by Ralphie in the holiday classic, "A Christmas Story." Eighty percent of BB guns on the market today attain muzzle velocities (the speed at which the projectile leaves the barrel of the gun) high enough to penetrate bone. More than half meet or exceed the muzzle velocity of pistols.
[...]
The newest fad in pellet guns is the airsoft replicas, realistic Glock and Beretta lookalikes. Replicgun.com, a Web site that sells these toys boasts, "the real thing without the danger." But consider these incidents:
[...]
Giving a child a toy gun that looks real could be placing him in danger, especially when these contemporary replicas look more like the semiautomatics assault rifles packed by street thugs than the hunting rifles of yesteryear.
According to Dr. Farideh Kioumehr-Dadsetan of the Internaional Health and Epidemiology Research Center, "Giving our kids toy guns and telling them to stay away from the real thing sends a mixed message."
She urges children and parents to swap their toy guns for other nonviolent options.
[...]
Dr. Rebecca Thoman is executive director of the St. Paul-based Citizens for a Safer Minnesota Education Fund.
(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...
Another liberal lie. Very few BB guns attain velocities above 400 feet per second, the level usually considered sufficient to penetrate normal human skin.
As usual, the author is lieing to the public by mislabeling and misrepresenting terminology. BB guns shoot BB's, specific projectiles that are .177 inch round steel balls usually copper coated.
BB guns are a subclass of air guns, of which many are designed for hunting, target shooting, and in general, have been highly developed for many of the purposes that very low powered "parlor guns" were used for before they were outlawed in much of Europe, Asia, and most of the world through excessive regulation and "gun control".
To equate BB guns with all air guns is a simple, straightforward lie.
Typical of the left.
I agree. That is stupid. You should give your kids toy guns and teach them how to handle REAL ones.
Regarding realistic guns though, I came down the stairs one day and saw what I thought was a Sig .226 on the floor in front of the TV - my heart jumped ! I wondered how that pistol was where the kids could play with it? But it was an airsoft gun - which is an airgun that shoots low-velocity plastic balls.
One of my friends was driving through an upscale neighborhood and passed a juvenile by the street aiming a bb gun at passing cars. My friend stopped and told him not to do that. The kid smugly asked why. My friend showed him a (formerly concealed) pistol and said that someone might mistake his gun for a real one. The kid turned pale and immediately agreed that he could be placing himself in a dangerous position.
Kids don't know until they are properly educated. neighborhood
That's the way we've handled it too. Our sons don't have toy guns (except Super-soakers!), but they both know that when Dad considers them responsible they'll have the opportunity to learn on the real thing. My husband took our 10 year old out for the first time a couple of weeks ago. It was a big step for him, and he was proud to bring home his target to show off. Our 8 year old is still too apt to be silly when discussing gun safety, so he'll be waiting a while.
Interesting sidebar, I was asked to provide shotgun safety instruction for a boyscout jambouree a few years back at the Michigan ATA trapgrounds.
What was even more astounding than the fact nearly half of the scout masters were women (for which I compliment them for stepping up to the plate) was that I had 2 female scoutmasters refuse to allow their scouts to be "exposed to guns."
Amazing, considering my credentials and those of the other instructors.(2 DNR officers,1 State Trooper, and another NRA Cert. Inst.)When told they wouldn't get the merit badge, they raised hell, wanting an option for an "alternative badge." I reminded them of the fact that roughly 50% of homes had guns and it was fair to assume their scouts would be exposed to guns at some point, they were putting their charges in more danger by not teaching gun safety, they complained to the "officials" about the gun nuts in the pavilion! Sigh!!!
It took me about 3 seconds to find one of these for sale on the web...
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