“Public ranges are like the comment sections on YouTube.”Word. The problem with trying to surround yourself with smart, capable, witty, competent people for your friends is that you're occasionally reminded that your friends aren't the norm and... hey, Cletus! Stop pointing your frickin' Judge at me! And put some eye pro on!
Tuesday, July 03, 2012
QotD: They'll Let Anybody In Here Edition.
Sebastian made a comment in a post at Gun Nuts Media that made me cry and pound my head on the desk in frustration that I had not written it:
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17 comments:
Any gathering of more than just your immediate friends is usually grounds for calling it the equivalent of a youtube channel comment area. Of course, considering my friends, it's always like a youtube channel comment area. Weapons-grade derpyness. All. The. Time.
-Kresh
The WHOLE WIDE WORLD are like the comment sections on YouTube.
50% of all folks are below average.
Most forums exclude the below average by not talking about stuff they are interested in.
Youtube has something for everybody.
That's what I like about the Gunblogger Rendezvous.
At my local public indoor range, they airlifted a guy to the hospital after he got hit by a "ricochet." That penetrated his leg. And made a hole in the range wall.
When I'm there, I get on the firing line, shoot my drills as fast as possible, and get the heck out.
Where me and my friends are "religious" about the four rules, most of the people I see at the range are more akin to those folks that only go to Mass on Christmas and Easter. Every 5 years or so.
I know it's wrong, but I'm so relieved to realize it isn't just OUR range this happens on. (what is it about misery and company?)
I know I need more range time, I know I need to practice... but I've already made boys cry at our local range so it's hard to keep going. (In my defense - da is a retired Marine who went on into the FBI. So I was raised to have.... views when muzzle swept. Repeatedly. By the range officer. And really - who expects a man 2x my size to start blubbering for his momma just because a gal pulls him up short for being a nitwit?)
"Cletus! Stop pointing your frickin' Judge at me! And put some eye pro on!"
You know, I've lived my whole life in Texas, but never met a dude named Cletus. ;) #Shootin'BuddyShoutOut
This is why I continue to pay my membership and put up with the somewhat annoying new rules at my club. When I go out I get a range all to myself and whoever I've decided to bring (sadly now that I have to pay $5 a head I don't bring many buddies now...)
Unfortunately, the casual shooter only casually follows the safety rules.
my indoor range is pretty good, they've got both cameras on every lane, and usually two roving safety officers. I've been there several times when they've pulled one of the morons from the line and sent them packing for doing something stupid.
Elitist?
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Rant -
"I think a part of it has to do with public ranges, actually. Because they’re open to the public, those ranges will tend to attract a slightly less radical crowd than you’d see at a match, which tends to be pretty self-policing."
Drop the word "public" and I could perhaps agree. Somewhat.
Yes, there are a lot more idiots on the public roads than driving in a NASCAR event. But look at the audience: people who are actually aware to some degree of how to drive well and safely - and hordes of screaming eejuts I might not want to drive me to the grocery store.
Should golf be country-club fee-payers only? True, I suspect even the amateurs in a pro-am tournament are such, so what? Even they would have stories about fellow dues-paying members.
Yeah, those who pay to fire and do so weekly are more likely to be proficient and less annoying than someone who only wants to shoot once or twice a year to be sure their weapon is still working and they can still hit something at ten yards or less. Stop sneering, maybe even volunteer to help at such a range once in a while.
JohnA,
I'm not even talking about "proficiency", John, but if not liking somebody pointing their gun in my face makes me an "elitist", then you just go 'head and pin that big ol' scarlet E on me, and I'll wear it with pride.
I took the time to educate myself, by readin and by emulation, to handle a weapon in such a way that it does not endanger those around me. I expect everyone else around me to do likewise. This isn't rocket surgery. Children as young as five or six can master it. If Cletus doesn't care to try, then hell yes I'm going to call him a moron.
Your kidneys don't know if the bullet that went through them was fired by a bad guy or just a criminally indifferent klutz.
I was asked by my local indoor range to not return. They said, I was too "confrontational".
Look, I told the guy with the fancy Inox Beretta to stop pointing his gun at me. I informed the range safety officer. When he did it again, I calmly placed my hand on his weapon and pushed his muzzle down, and told him the truth. I told him that if pointed that gun at me one more time, I was going to take his shirt and hang it from my target holder, and roll it out there for me to use as a target, with him still in it.
After that I just go to a friend's house. It's three or four of us, all with proper training.
-Rob
I was asked by my local indoor range to not return. They said, I was too "confrontational".
Look, I told the guy with the fancy Inox Beretta to stop pointing his gun at me. I informed the range safety officer. When he did it again, I calmly placed my hand on his weapon and pushed his muzzle down, and told him the truth. I told him that if pointed that gun at me one more time, I was going to take his shirt and hang it from my target holder, and roll it out there for me to use as a target, with him still in it.
After that I just go to a friend's house. It's three or four of us, all with proper training.
-Rob
I'm not even talking about "proficiency"
Nor did I mean you, proably not even someone you know. Heck, the comment was not even from here but from the site you linked to. Sorry.
But that commenter seemed to be saying if you weren't paying dues you could not be proficient or trusted.
Yes, I too certainly want anyone using a firearm to know - and follow - the basics: and of course that is more likely to be true at a club range. But I was upset by that commenter, as with the "YouTube" bit. Perhaps a bit more so - I grew up a block from an Olympic ice skater, who was only able to skate during the winter at a local pond. Not the same level of danger being surrounded by once-a-year types, perhaps...
We have a local "redneck" range. An area where you can shoot for free without any RO. Its awesome because if I want to practice drawing from concealed, shoot a dozen full water jugs... whatever, I can.
It sucks because -somedude- is always coming out and being Cletus. On two occasions I have had bullets flying towards me and on two other occasions I have had my gun out and pointed COM to dissuade a terrible idea.
The incoming rounds were due to Cletus not checking out the area before sending bullets ACROSS instead of down range. His backstop was an INTERSTATE highway. First guy was shooting his scoped .44 mag at a 2 ft long watermelon from 15 ft. zero hits. We had his ricochets dancing over our heads. He got to meet my carry weapon (with indexed finger) and notification that my fellow shooters had him in the hunting rifle's scopes, waiting. Not a bad guy really after he cleaned his shorts and took a proper tour and cleaned his shorts again once I pointed out his down range INTERSTATE.
Sigh
Another time two morons tried to roll me...
I no longer go alone and park with quick easy egress in case Cletus and clan show up.
Having said that, I have met MANY a great shooter out there.
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