Did my part Sunday to help corrupt New York's liberal youth, and spark another young mind to think of firearms in safe and enjoyable terms.  Yelled down to my fourteen year old son to get off his XBox, and that if he and any of his friends wanted to go shooting, that now was the time.  He came up from the young-man-cave and said his friend Dave wanted to go, and that it was OK with his mom (Go mom!).  So we loaded up and headed out.  

Dave had never touched a real gun before, and I assured his mom that we were all about safety, me being an NRA Instructor and all.  We headed out to the plinking range and set up some gallon plastic jugs and some cat litter boxes for targets, then uncased the first two rifles, a Browning "takedown" .22, and my old Winchester 290 Deluxe with the scope.  We went through a full safety discussion and familiarized with the guns, their parts and how they work (all of which at this point, my son can just about recite without me...), then we loaded up and took aim.

Now as I said, Dave had never so much as touched a real gun before.  Well, here's where the "Halo Effect" kicks in, and I've seen this with other friends as well.  With all the video games, these kids are spectacular at lining up and aiming a shot.  After a couple of shots when he realized that .22s don't kick, he just zeroed right in, even with just the irons on the Browning.  After a couple of tube magazine's worth in the "traditional" guns, we broke out the GSG and my AR with the CZ .22 setup.  These both have red dots, and the GSG is set up to co-witness.  The kids are even more familiar with this sight picture, and between the two of them, my son and his friend tore those bottles and boxes to shreds.

Dave was a great "student", listening to everything I said.  His muzzle control and trigger discipline were excellent for his first time out, and he picked up quickly on the controls and handling magazine changes, etc...  We even had a few misfires, and he patiently waited for me to help him clear the chamber and get running again.  We all had a great time, and Dave really appreciated the experience.

Add another player to our side...

Awesome! Good job!

You should be thoroughly ashamed of your caustic and depraved behavior.



What if this young man's life is forever and irrevocably changed, where he will learn to respect the potential of firearms, and treat them accordingly?



What the fuck is wrong with you, and folks like  you??? How are we ever going to raise a good batch of pliable lemmings if you formulate dumb shit like this?

Awesome job.

One of my all time favorite posts in my time here was the guy in IL who had all the members of his rod and gun club bring them in all their old rusted out junker guns which he turned into a Chicago gun buy back program for likr $150 a pop. He used the cash to purchase ammunition and several 22 bolt rifles, held a shooting clinic for youths at said club and then gave the rifles to the kids who succesfully completed the clinic.

Good job, unfortunately you just don't see many youth shooters. Last week I was in PA for a shoot and out of ~900 or so shooters maybe 30-50 were juniors.

*Based on what I saw, if more of them were juniors then I don't know where they were hiding.


It doesn't help though when you have to be 12 to shoot a gun @ a range in NY.

You done did good. Used to do the same with my son's friends years ago. Still have some of them
(now young men) thanking me whenever they stop by.

That is awesome.

Great. Just great.
He's doomed to spending paychecks on new toys and ammo.
Probably an addiction that will last a lifetime.

My son just entered his freshman year at college. No guns in the dorms. No guns on campus.
He doesnt miss us at all. He wants to come home and go shooting........

Great job!
I can't wait til my kids can understand gun safety and the importance of responsible gun handling... and to bring my kids shooting.
My son is 3 (daughter 1 week today!), and so are his friends... I think my wife wants me to wait a few more weeks before a range trip...

Excellent!!
I'll to admit I'm 20 turning 21 on new years.  My dad started me off learning about gun safety when I was 3 or 4 watching videos of this red eagle talking to kids about gun safety and when you find a gun: Don't touch, Leave the area, and tell an adult.    I forget what the tape was called or even who made it, I'll ask my dad next time I talk to him.  I'll also have to admit that I use to be like your son and play video games like it was my job, but I've started to grow slowly out of it 2 years ago now (but I did pick up the new Halo game last night)