This is something I read today in a comment in a Facebook group for female gun owners. A girl was sharing how she just got her first firearm, and a negligent discharge happened when she handed it off to someone who was going to “train” her.

You may be so well-immersed in the firearms community, online or in real life, that you wouldn’t DREAM of making any sort of mistake in handling your firearm.

But guns are not self-intuitive. People aren’t naturally gifted in firearm safety. It’s our job to share and teach safety to beginners, but to tell them, “You shouldn’t own a gun”… What kind of a comment is that?

That’s the kind of comment that’s going to prevent the new firearm owner from asking for help.

That’s the kind of comment that’s going to cause this person not to train, not to carry this life-saving tool with them.

Never mind, “You could use more training” or “Here’s the mistake you made and how it could have been avoided”. Let’s just tell the beginner to surrender their second amendment right and not seek any more safety training for fear of embarrassment or rejection.

Folks, we need to do better! So much better! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen the same sort of comment. Someone posts a photo with their finger on the trigger or with their gun not seated properly in their holster and all of a sudden they’re deemed unfit to own a firearm. Let’s focus on being constructive and helping others stay safe and LEARN from their mistakes! Enough bashing! Because NO ONE starts out an expert at this.