Negligent Discharge

[wboggs]

This will make you pay closer attention for a good while...

http://negligentdischarge.com/

[Hoootie]

Wow that simply sucks. Never forget that what you are holding is a deadly instrument.

[tdyoung58]

WoW, that really sucked. read through the whole thing. Definitly worth the checking to make sure it's unloaded

[TRB]

This is getting boring in a nauseating way.

The four Universal Rules of Gun Safety

To be memorized:

1. All guns are loaded.
2. Never point a gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Never place your finger inside the trigger gaurd until your sights are on target and you have made the decision to shoot.
4. Always be sure of your target and what lies beyond it.

If you disobey one of the rules you are on your way to a negligent discharge. If you disobey two of the rules there is a very good chance that you have just had an negligent discharge. If you didn't, eventually you will.

[Chevmeister]

Good story, i read alot of it. First let me say it really sucks to be that guy. Second, havign a ND isnt always a bad thing, when someone gets hurt IT IS ALWAYS A BAD THING, but if noone gets hurt, and the bullet ends up in the backstop, just not when you wanted it to, its a good reminder that even the most experienced shooter can fuck up. We were talking about this in the chat last night. im guessing because of this thread, and come to find out, a very well respected member here who is accepted as a reference on shooting and safety, has had several NDs and another member was only seconds from and ND, he was habitually checking the chamber and didnt expect a rtound to be in there, so he closed it, after closing it he thought he might have seen a live round. He did, he was a few seconds from needing a new window.


LEARN THE RULES, LIVE THE RULES. Add the rules to your shootign routine, memorize them and repeat them to yourself, print them and put them on your safe door, in your range bag. "Theres only two types of shooters, those who have had a ND and those who will." <(stole that from lycan)

[Mtbkski]

This is getting boring in a nauseating way.

1. All guns are loaded.
2. Never point a gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Never place your finger inside the trigger gaurd until your sights are on target and you have made the decision to shoot.
4. Always be sure of your target and what lies beyond it.

Complancey is the root of most accidents. Do it over and over and over and over.....

And pretty soon, even the best will forget to do something.

Boring is the key word in your statement.

Try as hard as we like. Most of us will do something STUPID in our lives that may almost get us or someone we love killed. Be it in a car, shooting, family events, working around the house. When you do it over and over again. You just start to think, that you don't have to think about it anymore.

[britisharmy]

He is lucky he only shot himself in the leg, and nobody else got hurt.

[Garpman]

This is getting boring in a nauseating way.

The four Universal Rules of Gun Safety

To be memorized:

1. All guns are loaded.
2. Never point a gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Never place your finger inside the trigger gaurd until your sights are on target and you have made the decision to shoot.
4. Always be sure of your target and what lies beyond it.

If you disobey one of the rules you are on your way to a negligent discharge. If you disobey two of the rules there is a very good chance that you have just had an negligent discharge. If you didn't, eventually you will.

Yes, this is getting boring, so let's open a can o worms !

The above interpretation of the first rule is wrong and simply rejects all common sense.

Instead of "all guns are loaded", it should be:

TREAT every weapon as if it were loaded. You treat it as such until you visually and physically inspect it to ensure that it is not.

For the sticklers that adhere to the all guns are always loaded motto, that would mean you could never dry fire practice your firearm (because it is loaded); you would never be able to do draw training (because it was loaded); you could never clean your firearm; you could never disassemble your firearm (because you need to unload it first, but it's always loaded !), etc.

I'm not saying that that is how you feel, but I have come across other gun owners who adamantly feel this way, and simply put, it is wrong and rejects common sense. And for the record, I do agree with the statements about complacency, which is why you have to be extra careful and diligent when visually and physically checking your firearms. That means, no drugs or alcohol, having a clear state of mind, etc.

Other than that, the four rules are the most basic and most effective. They compliment each other. I was taught to remember them by the USMC with this little diddy:

TREAT, NEVER, KEEP, KEEP. I also added KNOW at the end, for "KNOW your target and what lies beyond it."

I didn't say that to say that I know more or that I'm better than anyone. It doesn't matter if it was the Army or your grandfather that taught you, as long as it is some wording of the basic 4, except that all guns are always loaded. That is just assinine.

[TRB]

Complancey is the root of most accidents. Do it over and over and over and over.....

And pretty soon, even the best will forget to do something.

Boring is the key word in your statement.

Try as hard as we like. Most of us will do something STUPID in our lives that may almost get us or someone we love killed. Be it in a car, shooting, family events, working around the house. When you do it over and over again. You just start to think, that you don't have to think about it anymore.

What is getting boring is having to repeat the rules over and over again.

By boring I mean it is frustrating that so many choose to ignore the rules.
By boring I mean it is frustrating that so many who have been "taught" by their daddies still don't have a clue because daddy didn't, either.
By boring I mean frustrating that so many still do not seek competent training.
By boring I mean it is frustrating that so many prefer to budget for a new gun rather than training.
By boring I mean it is frustrating that others make excuses when a negligent discharge occurs.
By boring I mean that it is frustrating that there are those who choose to make apologies for themselves and others who may have a negligent discharge in the future.

Maybe what I mean is frustrating, like having to justify my comment.

[TRB]

Yes, this is getting boring, so let's open a can o worms !

The above interpretation of the first rule is wrong and simply rejects all common sense.

Instead of "all guns are loaded", it should be:

TREAT every weapon as if it were loaded. You treat it as such until you visually and physically inspect it to ensure that it is not.

For the sticklers that adhere to the all guns are always loaded motto, that would mean you could never dry fire practice your firearm (because it is loaded); you would never be able to do draw training (because it was loaded); you could never clean your firearm; you could never disassemble your firearm (because you need to unload it first, but it's always loaded !), etc.

I'm not saying that that is how you feel, but I have come across other gun owners who adamantly feel this way, and simply put, it is wrong and rejects common sense. And for the record, I do agree with the statements about complacency, which is why you have to be extra careful and diligent when visually and physically checking your firearms. That means, no drugs or alcohol, having a clear state of mind, etc.

Other than that, the four rules are the most basic and most effective. They compliment each other. I was taught to remember them by the USMC with this little diddy:

TREAT, NEVER, KEEP, KEEP. I also added KNOW at the end, for "KNOW your target and what lies beyond it."

I didn't say that to say that I know more or that I'm better than anyone. It doesn't matter if it was the Army or your grandfather that taught you, as long as it is some wording of the basic 4, except that all guns are always loaded. That is just assinine.

I have read a semantic discussions of rule number one. They are eloquent statements that you echo in your post. However, I choose to reject them based on my training and observation. Those that say "treat" will verify and then proceed to "treat" the gun as "unloaded". If the gun is out of their direct administrative control the have the tendency to "treat" the gun as "unloaded" when the gun comes into their control because it has been verified as such.

While it is true that a loaded gun cannot be dry fired, the loaded gun can be unloaded and dry fired. It can be reloaded and holstered. It can be unloaded and stored. Therefore, when you pickup the gun, it is loaded.

I will stand with Jeff Cooper's statement on the first rule, asinine as it may seem to some.