A five yr. old shoots and kills the alligator?

[goclark]

Why are they laughing about this on CNN?

I tuned in late but there is a photo of the child with the gun drawn and dad and the reporter are both OK with that -am I the only one that is concerned about this act.

Did I miss a piece of the story?

[DontTreadOnMe]

1. of course it is funny!

And now Little Johnny has learned how to get the gun and shoot his friend if he feels the need.

[goclark]

2. Right you are ~ I could not believe my eyes

To think that CNN would have the child with the gun pointed and not find anything wrong with that -- it was not John King but another one of the Suits on CNN.

[madeline_con]

6. That's quite a leap and a stupid assumption.

Gator poaching always leads to murder! :eyes:

[Posteritatis]

16. DU has been deep in refined, cautious logic mode lately, hasn't it? (nt)

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

34. Because the millions of kids that grew up shooting guns all kill their friends.

:eyes:

[vadawg]

3. depends on the circumstances of the shoot, was the kid defending himself or pet or sometinhg

i think we need more info, my 4 year old recently killed a copperhead with a spade because as he said it was t close to his little sister, context is everything...

[goclark]

5. A spade is absolutely OK with me

Good for your son!

I wish I had the video of the segment, it was a big difference.

[vadawg]

7. yeah as i told him that was okay for a snake but if its a bear he needs the rifle lol

seriously though five isnt to young an age to learn to shoot, my kid has a .22 that i got for him when he turns 5 as agreed by his mother..

[madeline_con]

4. Lil som bitch poached a gator!

[goclark]

8. Maybe it is the school teacher in me

I taught children that age and what they see that looks like fun - they want to try it. They don't do well with cause and effect at that age.

[madeline_con]

9. I think he "gets it" that the gator's dead.

Not all small people are that disconnected from reality, especially those taught to handle hunting rifles.

[goclark]

14. Do they have to have a license for a five year old?

How are they determined to be mature enough to shoot a rifle?

:shrug:

[madeline_con]

24. I don't know TX gun law.

He and Dad were hunting together. Parents decide when the kid is old enough. He was obviously able to hold and fire it.

[madmax]

10. Won't be so funny when he kills

a sibling if he has any or a friend. :grr:

[vadawg]

12. yeah because that is automatically the next step in growing up

i wonder how many of the youths who actually kill their friends etc actually killed an alligator when they were 5 or are you just imagining this is the outcome..

[madeline_con]

13. Post #6 addresses your concern. n/t

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

36. That's the logical next step.

For the incredibly ignorant anyway.

[Forkboy]

49. Or a man in Reno just to watch him die.

[XOKCowboy]

65. I know what ya mean. That's the first thing I thought of doing...

when my grandpa took me out hunting.

What an idiotic statement.

[Peregrine Took]

11. I heard a newswoman in Chicago commenting how "funny" this story was...

what is so funny?

[goclark]

17. I just don't think it is funny at all ~

If you need a license to buy a gun and a car as an adult, why is it OK and funny for a five year old to have a gun? :shrug:

[aikoaiko]

18. In most of the US, you technically don't need a license to buy a gun or a car.

just sayin.

[madville]

39. You don't need a license to buy a gun in most states

In Florida the only advantage having a concealed weapons license gives you when buying a firearm is you don't have to go through the three day waiting period on handguns, you can take it home that day if you have a CWL.

[madville]

15. That was a cute story - I was hunting that young

My dad bought me my first shotgun when I was 5, a H&R .410 youth model single shot, killed a bunch of squirrels and rabbits with that and still have it. At 9 I was deer hunting by myself with a Winchester 30-30 and I had my own gun cabinet in my room with the .410, a Ruger 10/22, and the 30-30. We had a bunch of woods behind the house and after school my brother and I would squirrel and rabbit hunt by ourselves all the time.

When kids are brought up around guns, taught to respect them, and instructed in proper handling/safety there is no danger. I know many kids I would trust with a gun long before some of the dumbass adults I know.

The gator hunting is pretty cool also. A few weeks ago my brother and I were talking about putting in for an alligator hunting permit here in Florida. It would be pretty neat to take one legally, I love the meat. Did you know the gator's leg meat is much better than the tail?

[goclark]

19. And how would the children that were not taught to use a

gun feel about wanting to do that when they see a gun around their house?

Again, I taught 5 year old children and to put that on TV and make him a Jr. Hero is not appropriate IMO.

I rest my case.

[madeline_con]

26. An intelligent parent teaches kids to respect them and their weapons.

On;y the most irresponsible would have a kid who felt it was ok to just take the weapon without their parents' knowledge or permission. Hopefully, adults that stupid don't own firearms.

[vadawg]

33. yup the way i do it is, my son can come shooting with me anytime he wants

he has already fired a few rounds and understands not pointing the gun at anything, by allowing him to participate whenever he wants to it means the guns dont become taboo and something that is to be done sneaky..

[madville]

27. If the child cannot be trusted with a firearm it should be safely stored

There are guns in cartoons(remember Elmer Fudd and Yosemite Sam), guns in video games, guns on TV, guns in movies, etc, etc. But suddenly seeing junior with a hunting rifle and a dead alligator is going to make them start shooting up the neighbor kids, ok.

Kids should have proper firearms training if they have access to firearms or potentially could. Hunter education courses are a good place to start for children to have positive exposure to firearms.

[goclark]

54. I was raised in an urban area ~

The clip that I saw on CNN was not one that I would feel appropriate for a young child.

[X_Digger]

48. So was I..

My granddad and I took these two foxes at the same time when I was 9..

(sorry for the image quality, it's a scan of a polaroid from the the early 80's.

[flvegan]

20. The gator must have been some sort of inconvenience for humans in the area.

Therefore, it must be executed. Let that be a warning for all you shit species that aren't people. Don't in any way inconvenience humans...or you're likely dead.

Our world, fuck you. God said so.

[vadawg]

21. right on, thats telling those smelly animals, dont fuck with our gardens

[flvegan]

22. We should have pre-emptive strikes on the animal nations

before our precious petunias are nibbled, our carrots pilfered and our youngsters needlessly worried!

[vadawg]

23. damn right i got a fecking groundhog who ate a lot of my crops this year

next year if he comes back we will be trying groundhog stew... its eat or be eaten out there

[flvegan]

25. Stew?

Why wait? I think you should head out and slaughter yourself a wide range of groundhogs and impale them on spikes around your crops as a warning to future groundhog raids! That'll learn them.

[vadawg]

29. if only it was that easy to warn the creatures to stay away from other human food

but unfortunately the creatures are pretty dumb and dont realise that if they see bambi nailed to a barn door that its a warning to leave the area,

[flvegan]

32. Yeah, they're the dumb ones.

[madeline_con]

28. Maybe they'll eat it. Or sell the meat. Not everyone's a vegan. n/t

[flvegan]

31. Thanks for that bit of breaking news, Dan Rather. n/t

[madeline_con]

41. Thanks for the "execution" remark. :)

[flvegan]

42. Well, it WAS appropriate.

So, you're welcome.

:hi:

[madeline_con]

51. Yes, assuming it's just wanton killing is always appropriate when an animal is shot. n/t

[flvegan]

60. Not by definition.

[madville]

35. Gator meat is awesome

And I'm not talking about that fried crap you get at the seafood shack. I make a good alligator stew and it's also good grilled over charcoal on shish kabobs.

We usually get the tail, leg meat and jowls.

[vadawg]

44. mmmmm need to get some to try, just had some caribou this week

real nice done tandoori style, i quite fancy making some gator into a curry...

[X_Digger]

45. MMMmmm!

Broiled with a good light bbq? Yum!

[madeline_con]

55. I'm not a fan of green animals.

No frog legs, turtle or gator.

[madinmaryland]

38. No. They just needed something to make their new boots from and

something fried.

Un-fucking-believable.

And why is a five year old running around with a gun. Oh yeah. Thanks, LaPierre.

[madeline_con]

43. Yep. it's LaPierre's fault people hunt and eat gator.

:eyes:

[madville]

53. The NRA does many good things when it comes to gun safety

One of their primary missions is gun safety and education. Sure we only ever see the political side but the do contribute to and support quite a few Democrats.

[madinmaryland]

59. If you consider $14.25M to rethugs and $2.9M to dems as supporting "quite a few"

democrats.

mim shakes his head.

[XOKCowboy]

30. Has anybody got a link to this story??

I'd like to see some facts instead of the speculation in this thread.

[madeline_con]

47. Here

Boy, 5, kills giant gator

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=7040280

[XOKCowboy]

62. OK so the kid wasn't poaching was he?

Are alligators endangered in that area? I doubt that the kid and his dad just left it there to rot. They are edible you know.

I'm really failing to see the outrage in this.

[madeline_con]

64. I'm not familiar with gator season in TX, r whether there is one.

FL has a season and a lottery for hunting. The problem with that is, we get a lot of inexperienced people winning it.

Post 50 has a pic. They took it home. I just hope the little sucker doesn't get too big a head and end up in a dangerous situation.

[aikoaiko]

37. Anyone know the rifle and ammo used?

:shrug:

[madville]

50. Story said .410, here's a picture

My son has a single shot .243 that looks similar to that.

[madeline_con]

52. That gator's a monster! n/t

[aikoaiko]

61. I'm impressed that a ,410 stopped that beast even with a slug or OO.

but its like the experts say, shot placement is most important.

[X_Digger]

40. Reminds me of this..

6 year old IPSC shooter using a 1911.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSYCQC4D7KU

[Treo]

56. I was thinking of this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDlodGEp_9o&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCuvmbeX8t0&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2B2rKj4eZgo&feature=related

11 year old Mckenzie at the shooting range

[madeline_con]

58. Very cool. She's responsible and is a damn good shot! n/t

[DefenseLawyer]

46. Davey Crockett killed him a bar when he was only 3!

And he went on to become King of the Wild Frontier, if memory serves. Cool hat too.

[marshall]

57. A case of a gun being used properly

If a family lives in an area where gators are likely to threaten humans, then by all means people should be trained to use guns to save lives.

[The Straight Story]

63. Not much different than fishing at that age

Just using a different rod :)