Reckless shooters threaten range/State Game Land #157

[theo]

Saw this in the Courier today

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/loca...n-range-2.html

Reckless shooters threaten range
By: DALE MACHESIC Burlington County Times

It was a professional dilemma week for me as the outdoors writer for our newspapers. That isn't necessarily a first, although this one was particularly tricky.


Posted on one of the websites for those that need to get out more earlier this week, sorry to those that enjoy these sites, but after the video I saw I'm more than a little disgusted that illegal activity can be posted seemingly by anyone doing anything with no regard for the law.

Aimlessly firing questionably legal weapons at a public range was the gist of the video-recorded escapades. Pointing guns at the camera operator, firing at others while they were down range, firing from multiple points beyond the safety line, shooting the standards from which targets are to be hung, and the list goes on. These imbeciles represent that very small fringe that have somehow gotten their hands on weapons and then demonstrated their complete disregard for any semblance of proper and legal use of them. They then filmed it, which could enable the agenda carriers to use it to give the millions of responsible gun owners a black eye.

The dilemma, to publish the video site or not, was easy to overcome after my anger subsided and after consulting a few close friends. These same friends fully understood why the decision was not an easy one. But the majority agreed that more harm than good could come from making these morons into some sort of mindless celebrities. These geniuses have watched one too many movies where somehow the word bad has a reversed meaning from the one most of us grew up with.

The reason I am even reporting this is that this could have a direct impact on whether the Pennsylvania Game Commission re-opens the public shooting range at Nockamixon.

"State Game Land #157 (Nockamixon) range was scheduled to open this fall. It will not open this year, and an opening date has not been determined. The reason for this change is that we are evaluating a number of options, which includes possible relocation of the range to another location on SGL 157. Evaluating all these options will take time and then cost estimates will need to be developed. With all the other Growing Greener II projects the Game Commission is undertaking our engineers have a huge workload. Because of this, a timetable for re-opening has not been determined," PGC spokesman Jerry Feaser told me this week.

What Feaser didn't reference is the fact that the demonstrations of improper gun use shown in this video are a threat to every gun range across the state.

The public hearings held earlier this year for area residents to weigh in on the PGC plan to re-open the Nockamixon range were very well attended. The majority of the residents were outspoken in their support of the hunters and shooting sport enthusiasts who frequented the range before it was closed for repairs.

They were equally outspoken in their disdain for the very small number of idiots that treated the range like it was the Wild West. They told numerous stories from first-hand experience of shooters firing what sounded to them like automatic weapons. They told of late night trespassers at the range.

What the PGC said in response was, in effect, that they knew of a handful of past rule-breakers and would do everything in their power to prevent these sorts of disruptions to their 'neighborhood'. They also said that power is very limited.

The PGC made it crystal clear that they did not have the funds to patrol the area 24 hours a day and that we would all have to work together to prevent problems like those discussed. The crowds agreed, reluctantly, to accept this at face value. But they asked that their requests be considered.

The antics on the video are proof that one small group of law-breakers could do harm to someone. If that happens, the first party that will be pursued in any and all legal actions will be the PGC.

If they don't have the funds to staff and monitor the ranges 24/7, it's hard to imagine they would have the funds to defend against any catastrophic lawsuits. The options could be simple down the road. Close all public ranges. Or close most so that revenue could be available to staff a few ranges across the state.

As of this week, the PGC still plans to continue its plan to re-open the range at Nockamixon. That's a very good thing. But it will be the responsibility of every shooting enthusiast and hunter in this area, whether you use that range or not, to keep a watchful eye on it and help the PGC officers and state police keep the few away that could ruin it for the rest of us.




October 06, 2009

[adymond]

We know who these fucksticks are that the article is referencing. I would like to see a follow up that ended up with those douche bags in some sort of custody.

[NikeBauer21]

We know who these fucksticks are that the article is referencing. I would like to see a follow up that ended up with those douche bags in some sort of custody.

Word... that peeved me off so bad, I felt like puking....

[renegadephoenix]

here's the thread with the link for the video.

http://forum.pafoa.org/general-2/733...ibly-nsfw.html

[d90king]

I wish those fucktards had never made it off of the range due to their ass-hole safety practices...

[PocketProtector]

Maybe it's just me, but 3 days after the opening of archery state wide, the writer has nothing to write about so he gives antis fuel for the fire??....how about an outdoor article ? No not excusing the asshats.

[adymond]

Maybe it's just me, but 3 days after the opening of archery state wide, the writer has nothing to write about so he gives antis fuel for the fire??....how about an outdoor article ? No not excusing the asshats.

I don't think that's the agenda. It came across rather that he would like for those shitstains of society to be cleaned so that we don't have to deal with them.

[PocketProtector]

I don't think that's the agenda. It came across rather that he would like for those shitstains of society to be cleaned so that we don't have to deal with them.

Not saying an agenda, just a weird time for that article especially when there's only 1 out door article a week or every few weeks in that publication

[Mosinshooter762]

What is tragic is that the said dangerous acts seem to have been staged, and acted by the actors, and actress in the video. It seem they used a lot of time, effort, and used a lot of equipment to make the fake dangerous acts in the video. I notice a news article, or forum thread saying it was fake has not followed. Just like a safe day at the range is not newsworthy it must also be the case that when area shooters reputations have been unjustifiably tarnished it is also not newsworthy.

[mcmcallister]

this shit is def propaganda....i have never seen anything like these morons in all my shooting days......they say "retards from nj"........this is exactly the kind of shit that corzine loves....how dare they disrespect cabelas by placing a store in their video