My son and a friend (high school students at the time) took me to the Firing Range in Belmont several years ago. It was on a Sunday and Sunday was Ladies Day (ladies shoot free).
It was my first time shooting. I grew up in a household where guns were present (my dad was a policeman). My dad was of the opinion that guns were more harm than good in the general public and never encouraged any of us to shoot or own one.
The owner of the Firing Line (Bob?) was very attentive, extrememly safety conscious and quite passionate about ownership and his own collection. I was given a 38 semi-automatic, hearing protection and a paper target. I was shown how to load and shoot, did pretty well on the target (I still have it) and really had a great time. I never went back simply because it wasn't appealing to me and I had no intention of becoming a gun owner. Would I encourage anyone else to go? Absolutely! Try it.
I think that the majority of people who go to these ranges and events are responsible and exremely safety conscious. The father who let his son fire that machine gun made a terrible error in judgement and he will pay that price for the rest of his life.
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