Locke and Load

Eddie Eagle

The NRA has had a program for many years featuring a character called Eddie Eagle who teaches kids what to do if they find, or find themselves in the presence of, a gun. The mantra that Eddie Eagle sings repeatedly is "Stop, don't touch, leave the area, tell an adult".

Now I can personally vouch for the effectiveness of this message, though I didn't depend on Eddie Eagle to convey it. I'm a parent. However, whether the program works or not is not even the issue. My question is, what can it hurt? Is that not exactly what you would want your child to do if they found a gun? Maybe in a friend's house?

But, of course, there are people who don't want this taught. Like this quote from some mental giant "local emergency room doctor" who "has treated his share of juvenile gunshot victims":

Nobody should trust Eddie Eagle to make their child any safer than before they took the program. Rather than try over and over again to gun-proof our kids, I think we ought to child-proof our guns.

Ya gotta hand it to the libs. They can come up with some damn slogans. Unfortunately, many of them lose their appeal when you look at them more closely. And to me the question comes to this: Who would you rather trust more - your child whom you and Eddie Eagle have drilled repeatedly to stay away from guns or your child's friend's father that has been reminded repeatedly via public-service announcements to lock up his guns?

If your answer is not your child, you must have some damned high-caliber neighbors.

posted by The Man @ 1:45 PM