what if you harmed a loved one?

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mr_dove

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I recently watched a very graphic video of a man removing his thumb in a power tool accident. Now, woodworking is one of my other hobbies and I have alot of power tools around. It got me thinking about whether I would sell all my tools if I seriously injured myself. To be honest, I think I probably would sell them partly because of the trauma of the incident.

This string of thought led me to thinking about a similar situation with firearms. What would I do if I harmed myself, a friend, or a loved one? Would I remove the guns from my home?

I think it will almost always depend on the severity of the injury. At a minimum I would put everything in the safe for a few weeks/months and do some soul searching. At the maximum I would go ahead and gift/sell everything (in the event of a serious injury to a loved one).

I'm curious to hear how others would approach such a situation. Would you sell your guns or take other remedial action?






For those interested in the video that got me to thinking, it is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbI2CNvgHVY
Lets not discuss the authenticity of the video.
 
My father just had a similar incident while wood working. The piece of wood that he was cutting kicked back and took a good portion of his thumb off :uhoh:. FWIW he still enjoys wood working and kept all of his tools. I think that if i injured my self I would learn from my mistake and move on. Now if i hurt some one I loved i would probably be over whelmed with guilt and I am unsure on how I would react BTW. Im pretty sure that video is a fake
 
I dunno, I've been in some scooter wrecks and I still ride. Can't blame the tool.

Biker
 
Look you can't sit around all day wondering "What if?"

What if I run someone over with my truck? Could I ever drive again? Maybe I should quit driving now and avoid it.

I can think of an infinite number of "defeatist" scenarios which end with me shooting someone who shouldn't be shot. But the fact is, the gun has nothing to do with it, as I can think of just as many defeatist scenarios where I could wind up harming an innocent person with no firearm involved. And I'm sure in this crazy mixed up world of ours, it happens every once in a while that someone who shouldn't does in fact get shot.

That's why they're called accidents.

No, rational thinkers must think constructively, and be objective. Yes, there is a bit of inherent hazard in owning and operating a firearm even if you are a perfectly trained, perfectly safe owner. It's inherently dangerous to own and operate a table saw as well. However far more people own and operate automobiles which are far, far more dangerous. Why? Because when you step back and look at it objectively, the tools in question enable you to accomplish things you couldn't otherwise which improves the quality of your life. The benefits do in fact squash the risks and you can't spend your life paralyzed by fear of what "might" happen, otherwise you'd never do anything at all.

That's life, and life is dangerous. There are no guarantees of absolute safety, despite what the leftists and gun grabbers would tell us.
 
Ish happens. The better question is, are you capable of learning from your mistakes or prone to repeating them?
 
cross that bridge if you get there.

I recently gave up motorcycles because the possibility of becoming seriously injured or dead is real, and the thought of leaving my wife to fend for herself and our 3 kids is more than I can bear. I just can't put myself in those dangerous positions anymore. You can't hide under the covers either. If death comes to me by no input of my own, fine. If I put myself in a dangerous position, then bad on me.

Final thought: refer to my first sentence. I had 2 bad wrecks on my bike and came out unscathed, but have known several 'dadies' who didn't make it and left their families on their own. I reached the bridge and made the decision. Don't worry about what 'might' happen, deal only with what did happen after it happens.
 
I've injured myself in accidents with power tools ($24K worth of surgery and physical therapy to fix tendons), cars, motorcycles, knives, industrial machinery, model airplanes, while hiking, and while *ahem* intimately engaged.

I've always tried to learn from my mistakes and recognize the warning signs to prevent them from reoccurring. I think it's much more productive (and better for my mental health) to learn and grow from my mistakes than it would be to just abandon the activities I enjoy.

If I was so disturbed by an incident with a piece of equipment that I never wanted to use it again, the last thing I would do is to sell it. Why would I burden someone else with something so dangerous?
 
Either that video is a fake, or it is the dumbest guy I've ever seen...and the weakest reaction to losing a thumb as well.

Oh, I forgot to answer the question. I think if you accidentally hurt someone else, you shouldn't be allowed to own firearms, because you are obviously not responsible enough to have them.
 
I don't cut tomatoes any more because I've cut my fingertips.
I refuse to use post-it notes due to multiple papercuts.
I took the garage door openers off my garage doors because there's a risk that they could crush a child or pet.
I don't buy peanut butter, raisins or toys for my kids due to safety recalls.
I get all my nurishment from an introveneous drip because I contracted food poisoning once that left me in the bathroom every 15 minutes for an entire night.
I have all carpet floors because anything else can be slippery when wet.
I sold my house and I now live in an all-concrete bunker with dehumidifiers because of risk of mold.
I don't eat at restaurants because "you never know if the cook washed his hands" trust me, i worked in a restaurant when I was younger...the cooks hands are the least of your worries, especially if you are rude to the wait staff or have stiffed them on tips in the past.
Mushrooms? Don't even get me started.... I don't even go down the produce aisle at the grocery store because of the risk of fungus born illness.
I had the flu once, so now I avoid speaking to people or touching anythign that may have germs upon it's surface.

Sure, saws are 'scary' and so are guns. I've never gotten hurt when I was paying attention and had a full respect for the 'scary' tool or object. Think about it, of all the car accidents have you been in, how many were because someone "wasn't paying attention"... ALL OF THEM... and it doesn't matter if you're paying attention either, some moron can still wreck into you. At least with guns and tools I'm in control and paying full attention. To polish off this argument, I'd like to propose this scenario... "Oh no, the saw is going toward my thumb! should I move it? Oh no, it's getting closer! I could move it or turn the saw off... Oh no, it's gone." If you're paying attention, you move your thumb or your saw, if you're not paying attention then you cut it off. There's no such thing as an intentional dismemberment, so do everything intentionally and you will not have a problem.
 
My grandfather worked construction all of his life and lost several digits in the process. I remember one story where he cut off his thumb while working on a roadway. They laid the thumb in a form they had just made, and it got covered by cement, he bandaged his hand and finished out the day.

Myself personally, I would not give up firearms or tools if I hurt myself, and most likely not even if I hurt someone else. I would learn from my mistake and keep on going. My foremost reason for owning firearms is to protect my family. That mission will still be there.
 
What if...

Grasshoppers had shotguns, would the birds still mess with them?
The dog hadn't stopped to take a dump, would he have caught the rabbit?
What if your grandma had not married your grandpa, would you exist?
These are some of the questions that keep me awake at night.:rolleyes:Now I have to worry about new stuff! Thanks a lot.
 
Have you ever cut yourself with a knife? Heck I did, washing dishes just sunday. Did you sell all of your knives? I bet not.

Seriously, it would depend on the situation entirely. If it was complete negligence and I killed my wife or one of my children? Probably, would sell all of my guns.
 
Seems to me some of the wisest people I have ever met had a body part missing or shortened or an eye put out. They learned from their mistakes and moved on.
 
You make a mistake. Do you blame yourself--the acter--or do
you blame the tool--the means. Seriously, this question goes
to the root of a lot of the static and noise in the whole gun
question: who should be held responsible, the acter or the
means used by the acter?

what if you harmed a loved one? Didn't Oscar Wilde say
something about that issue?
 
my Grandpa would say "blame the fool, not the tool"

I always practice the 4 rules of gun safety, ride my cycle safely, wearing good riding gear, and pay close attention with power tools, Mistakes cause accidents, try to keep from making them, and watch for others that might.

I am not that emotional of a person, and don't see much reason to get rid of firearms after an accident, other than to attempt to place guilt or responsibility on innatimate objects, if a defect in the firearm itself caused the accident (aka kaboom with factory ammo), or to avoid the proverbial "doghouse" aka sleeping on the couch.

as a side note, the video looks fake, I had the unfortunate oppotunity to see a similar accident in highschool woodshop, that thumb would go flying, A LOT more blood, and in the case I witnessed, the poor guy didn't realize what happened until about 30 seconds later when he looked at his hand, and promptly flopped on the ground
 
The video linked by Evil Monkey is a clip from a comedy sketch show called MAD TV (derived from MAD comics).

I'm surprised the laugh track and bear trap Christmas tree stands weren't giveaways to the posters calling 'fake'. It's supposed to be funny.:rolleyes:
 
I was reffering to the original video posted by Mr. dove, could be real, but not likely, the one from mad TV is kinda funny, but not what I was referring to, the screw through the thumb at the end made me wince a little:eek:
 
if i inadvertently injured a family member with a gun, i'd be pretty effed up.

if i accidentally killed a family member with a gun, i'd make sure there was at least one extra round ... for myself.
 
Anxiety DuJour? Gimme a break...My buddy shot himself (he fully recovered) with MY gun once. I shook my head, and he re-learned a lesson or two ( and endured copious ridicule from everyone he knew). It never crossed my mind to make any changes to my guns, myself, my habits or my choice of shooting buddies. I'm a Toomaker. Once during my apprenticeship I was running a lathe and had my shirt untucked because I was hot, and the tail got stuck to the grease on the saddle feed shaft and wrapped around, trying to draw me into the machinery. Luckily, my shirt tail tore off before before I got hurt or killed. I could have wussed out and given up my apprenticeship, but I don't work that way. I learned my lesson and simply quit wearing tailed shirts and went to close-fitting and lightweight shirts. Some folks seem to delight in cooking up new disasters to occupy their need for gloom & doom. Life (and death) happens, and if you honestly feel you actually couldn't live with an accident, you should get rid of your guns now.
 
As an electrician, I've laid myself out a couple of times with the 480v flu, I've never considered giving up my trade after the fact.

More to the point, one gentleman I work with lost a finger years ago when his kid discovered one of his guns. He yelled at the kid and reached for the gun, the kid, scared as heck, accidentally pulled the trigger, and just like that he's short one booger-hook.

He still owns guns, he's invested in some nice safes however.
 
Why does it matter what others would do?

In answer to your question I beleive that people have to take personal responsibilty for their mistakes. Different people will do this in different ways.

Approximately 3 years ago my best friend was killed by his daughter-in-law (through marriage). It was a gun "accident" or maybe stupidity would describe it better.

His D-I-L was shooting a mini-14 in his backyard (20 acres & legal). He had recently convinced her to buy one because they were fun.

As he was walking back to his house, she turned to talk to him and swiveled her entire body thus pointing the rifle at his back - while doing this she must have been fingering the trigger &/or safty (it's at the front of the trigger guard and can be pushed off safe when the finger is in the trigger guard) and all of a sudden the rifle went off! One round thru the spine and up into his heart. He was gone before he hit the ground from what I was told.

She definetly violated the 4 safty rules many times - she probably never learned them - I don't know - I wasn't there and it was 4 states away from where I live.

My friend should have stressed safty to her and if he did then he should have stressed it more! The girl (early 20's age) definetly never handled a rifle before and should have been supervised much more closely.

She had recently purchased the minin-14 and a Taurus snubnose. When the Sheriffs arrived she told them to take them and destroy them. She will most likely never own or handle a firearm again. The accident devastated the family escpecially the Mother (wife) & daughter.

The Wife will not own any mini-14 type rifles (meaning mini-30 which he didn't own)...she "hates" the way the safty is on that rifle. But she still owns other firearms.

Theres a reall life answer for you.

BTW, I own more guns now than when it happened. I "blame" them both - D-I-L and victim. But all I can do at this point is forgive because there was no intent to harm anyone it was a stupid human accident.
 
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