I'm sorry that would-be Mason guy was killed in that stupid stunt, I really am. On the other hand, I am all in favor of fatal accidents being part of the KKK initiation.
By the way, even if a gun really has only blanks, it is still not safe! If one were to shoot a blank at someone's head at close range, the force from the hot gasses from the blank may be enough to punch a hole through a skull and kill the person. A few years ago I read a news story about an actor who was killed when a prop gun loaded with blanks was fired at close range to his head. I do not follow the Brady line that every gun is an accident waiting to happen, but most or maybe all gun accidents would not have happened had people used common sense.