Derby Evening Telegraph

[Rob M]

This letter appeared in Monday's (Sept 1st) Derby Evening Telegraph:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's Simple: Guns Kill

I see that youngsters and parents are being invited to a training event to educate them about ball-bearing guns and airguns (Derby Evening Telegraph, August 2).

As a parent I would remind other parents that airguns can and do have the capability of killing children (such as Matthew Sheffield and George Atkinson, both aged 12 and killed in the last couple of years by airgun pellets).

Sensible Parents know that the best way to ensure that no more children are killed or injured by air weapons is not to 'train' them to use air weapons but to discourage them from having anything to do with guns.

We don't train children to smoke safely by giving them smoking lessons, we don't train children to use drugs safely by giving them cannabis and letting them have a go.

The message is that these things kill - have nothing to do with them.

The message should be the same for airguns.

Chrissie Hall,
Member of the Home Office Firearms Sub-comittee on Licensing
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I will be writing to them shortly to put the other side of the story across, but it may help if other people write too.

How can this obviously biassed, twisted woman really be a member of the Home Office Firearms committee? I thought that they should be unbiased, looking dispassionately at the facts, rather than trying to force their own agenda.

You can check out the telegraph at www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk

It may be best if you write in on paper though.

Cheers

Rob M

[Sid]

Derbyshire Local Education Authority sent a memo around all it's schools last year saying that due to the risks involved with target shooting ( i.e. none <img src="http://jsramsbottom.co.uk/bbs/e/icon_rolleyes.gif" alt="Roll Eyes" width="15" height="15"><!--graemlin:--> ) it shouldn't be considered as an acceptable activity for school trips.

Deaths by drowning, falling off mountains etc etc etc on school activities are obviously rare events which shouldn't prevent these sort of trips going ahead. Geography teachers are all trained by the SAS in crossing rivers and such like <img src="http://jsramsbottom.co.uk/bbs/e/icon_rolleyes.gif" alt="Roll Eyes" width="15" height="15"><!--graemlin:-->

No deaths or injuries from target shooting in living memory however is a completely valid reason to ban such a risky activity...

[phuttmutter]

Will email them with some protests later today.

did you see the article about the cat shot at point blank!

[delta1]

thought I'd send this in, would welcome your thoughts first.

Dear Sirs,
My attention has been drawn to the letter in your paper regarding this subject.
Your correspondents argument is principally flawed.
Guns do not kill. People do.
People are not "killed by airgun pellets" they are killed by irresponsible use of an airgun.
Sensible parents know that telling a child to have "nothing to do" with something can have the opposite effect.
An invitation to a training event may be the start of a disciplined and fascinating hobby for both the parent and young person alike.
If a young person or parent shows an interest, a properly organised range or event is exactly the place they should be educated.

Responsible use of an airgun is no crime.
This should be the message for airguns.

Richard Harley

[robinghewitt]

You could point out that the kid got shot almost accidentally. There was no intent to kill, just a lack of education. If you ban your kids from having guns you will only make them more curious, they will still want to play, and If there's no nice, safe, 100% accident free, home office approved, adult supervised firing range handy, then it'll be somewhere else and they might even get to bring it home with them.

It's an Olympic sport Godammit, where do these morons come from?

[delta1]

thanks for the reply, edited and sent <img src="http://jsramsbottom.co.uk/bbs/e/icon_cool.gif" alt="Cool" width="15" height="15"><!--graemlin:-->

[Boondime]

As someone relatively new to shooting, I have to say that only a few months ago, I too felt very "anti - gun".

Guns frighten people, they only see the misuse of guns (both air and firearms) in the press as there is no reporting of any sporting activity to speak of.

Telling the general public "Guns Don't kill" is an assault on their intelligence. Everyone knows that it is definitely the gun that does the killing. Knives kill, cars kill, smoking kills, people die playing football.

The proliferation of BB Guns and replicas - CO2 or otherwise on the streets means that the general publics awareness of these weapons is as a result of nuisance or misuse. The press turning every incident into a major incident.

As a group of sportsmen and women - you are very badly represented because no-one knows you are there.

I have to admit that with three kids I also thought "guns are dangerous - stay away" and as a protective father feared for my kids coming across the crazed kid on the playground with an air pistol. (Never happened) I, along with most (IMHO) members of the Gret British Public, would have banned em all. Because I didn't do it - it didn't affect me if it was banned so stuff em and keep us all safe.

"Pellet guns" and "air Guns" are seen as nothing more than a nuisance by the majority of the population, they can see NO LEGITAMATE USE for these weapons - so ANY call to restrict them has massive popular support, especially after the attrocities commited in recent years with firearms.

Some months ago, a friend suggested we have a go at shooting as it is something that we could do as a family, and its cheap, only the cost of the pellets, and fun.

I nearly fell off the chair when the wife said "yes lets have a go".

Over the next few weeks we graduated from indoor pistol shooting to visisting the local rifle club on "airgun night" (by far the most popular night) and have now moved on to full blown FT and HFT.


I have been staggered at the way the kids have accepted the disciplines of safety and their behaviour around guns is a marvel to behold. (Awful the rest of the time...).

As a family we now spend more time together shooting, setting the guns up, the scopes up etc..

Its also a sport at which the young and old of both sexes can compete together, and my youngest gives her elder brother some real competition.

Educationally the kids are learning (probaly not aware of it though ) about trajectories, velocities, air resistance, Ye-olde english feet, ftlb and grains etc.. etc..

Getting back to the article, what you have not picked up is the total error of logic that the lady has used to villify airguns.

She says " we do not teach children to take drugs or smoke why should we teach them to use air weapons " what she has done here is to associate in the mind of the readers - target pistol shooting an Olympic Sport - accepted all over the world as a sporting discipline - with drug taking.

I would suggest that anyone who makes such errors of logic and judgement should NOT be fit to hold any office where logic and judgement is required and every damn one of us should write to her boss on that one.

We should be crowing. GB has the best airgun makers in the world, we have the best shooters in the world, its a wonderful safe hobby thats instructive, and enjoyable. Tell everyone.

You can't argue with public opinion, you have to change the publics perception of things - they need to see the positive side.

Happy Shooting

SteveH
PS Friend was right, cheap hobby - apart from three guns four scopes, two pistols, various targets, air bottles, leads, gauges.......

[phuttmutter]

I think I'm going to go for Chrissie Hall.

the Home Office Firearms Sub-comittee on Licensing need to be made aware that the views of CH are in contradiction to her post at the HO.
She should be removed from her post and given the address of antigun groups to work for.

I let my daughter on my S410 she's 11 and shows great interest and promise. and understands the safety issues to the letter. and has even repremanded me for leaving the gun standing up unattended (sorry) <img src="http://jsramsbottom.co.uk/bbs/e/icon_rolleyes.gif" alt="Roll Eyes" width="15" height="15"><!--graemlin:-->
I have also taken to showing her field skills and working with knives.

[shootist]

I think you will find that this lady is a member of the 'Gun Control Network', and may not be a member of any Home Office committee, just invited to give evidence at committee meetings (not yet sure of this last).

I have contacted the BASC who are going to be looking into this. I have also despatched a letter to the Derby Evening Telegraph.

Please bear in mind though that it's possible that this woman may be as useful to shooting as Hitler was to the allies in the last year of the war. If the attempt on his life had succeeded, then the generals would have taken over, sued for peace, and Germany would not have been defeated. before anyone says that this might have been a good thing, lets not forget the several little rehabilitation camps that the Germans put together for an assortment of minorities.

[Sandy Smith]

Hi all,
in case anyone wants to see the actual diatribe, here's the URL;

http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/di...tentPK=6880899

I'm certain Rob has given everyone the article verbatim but I feel that it sometimes helps to get a general idea of how the paper is biased.

Delta 1, would you post the addy you sent your email to as there are several listed and it seems logical that we all write to the same one.

Cheers,
Sandy

[rarms]

I would think it is better to send to different addresses otherwise it is like being mail bombed and they will (rightly) assume that a club has been told to all right, writing to diffreent addresses will all end up in the same place as they will forward it internally I should think

[delta1]

I sent an email to the paper by following the link on their home page, and filled in the webform. Sorry I can't be more helpful, not too good at doing links etc.

[john paul]

Chrissie Hall needs to remember the Home Office motto : BUILDING A SAFE AND TOLERANT SOCIETY.

JP

[MercMH]

As above says it reads like its from she is speaking for the Home Office however she is a member of a unelected Consultative Committee (ie a Quango). And this was just her opinion and not even the Committees

She is on the anti shooting side of the committee, there is also a pro side

HTH

Matt