In a perfect world, there would be no crime, no murders, no robberies, and no assaults committed with firearms. Unfortunately guys…..we don’t live in a perfect world. Even more unfortunate, quite often news headlines are inundated with stories that proliferate the tragedies that are committed in conjunction with the use of a firearm. Today was no different. This afternoon gave witness to multiple tragedies in which innocent civilians found themselves victim to senseless violence committed with a firearm. ***From the PSA family to all those affected we would like to take this time to send out prayers and well wishes.***
Although tragedies such as the ones committed today do nothing but add to the deplorable stigma that firearms carry, media misinformation doesn’t aid in the reformation. The short clip below (you can find it on our YouTube channel as well) exemplifies what happens when the media is able to disseminate incorrect information during the wake of a tragedy. Unfortunately, this young lady has done an excellent job of providing the public with MISINFORMATION. In her report, she identifies what she believes a semi-automatic rifle sounds like while discharging. At the end of the clip she mimics the sound that a Fully-Automatic rifle (rifles that are illegal to the mass majority of us) would make alluding to the fact that the perpetrator in this tragedy was armed with one (when in actuality he was not). What’s more… she identifies that sound as one that resonates from a semi-automatic rifle (similar to rifles that millions of Americans own legally).
In less than a minute, this reporter has been able to put in the minds of viewers that semi-automatic rifles are capable of bursts and rates of fire that can (and should) be alarming to any of us not engaged in combat. Semi-auto’s are NOT capable of extreme rates of fire (unless the shooter has a lightning quick finger!!!). ***Semi-Automatic rifles, handguns, and the like are only able to discharge ONE (1) bullet per depression of the trigger.***
As custodians of the 2nd Amendment, avid shooters, and firearms professionals, we feel it our duty to make sure that you guys understand your firearms and their capabilities. The picture below illustrates the only capabilities of semi-automatic rifles. The rifle on top is an AR-15 and the rifle on the bottom half of the picture is an AK-47 (Kalashnikov). Both only have two settings: 1) Safe & 2) Fire. The fire selection switch the young lady was referring to in the clip above allows “1 bullet per squeeze.”
The tragedy committed today was undoubtedly an unconscious act of egregiousness and we hope that through education, training, and some application of common sense we can eradicate such ignorance. Through the same avenues we also hope that we can eradicate the dissemination of misinformation from our mainstream media.
*** If you are unfamiliar with firearms and/or their accessories, and want to learn more, PSA strongly suggests that you find, enroll, and attend a comprehensive and reputable firearms safety course. Firearms safety is all of OUR responsibility.
We want to thank you for taking out the time to stop by our lane at the shooting range!! We hope that you enjoyed your stay and hope that you stop back by early and often to catch up on all PSA updates! We truly hope that we were able to hit the target, and if you ever have any questions please don’t hesitate to shoot them our way!! We look forward to shooting the breeze with you soon again!!
And as always….remember to watch your six and stay low!!!