It Certainly Can’t Hurt
There are a lot of bills moving around the Statehouse in Des Moines…this is the first so-called “funnel” week…items which have not progressed to a certain point are essentially considered “dead” for the year. That’s why you get some rather unique—to say the least—bills introduced last minute; they stand no chance of moving forward, but it allows the person introducing the measure to make a political point and see if there is a possibility of part of it being attached to another bill later on.
One measure that seemed to me to be a good idea was a truly bi-partisan bill that would develop and provide gun safety training to K-12 students in schools, with both Democrats and Republicans in the House figuring out ways to give all schools the necessary resources to teach young people about gun safety.
I recall being in (I think) 5th grade maybe a half-century ago and going through what was called “hunter safety” sessions, complete with a shiny completion certificate. I never used the training and never went hunting, but it gave me information about, and respect for, firearms.
This apparently is similar, teaching children about the dangers of firearms left unattended, what a young person should do if they see one—including telling an adult, etc. It’s not intended to be political—as in pro-gun, or anti-gun—but simply facts. That alone is sort of refreshing.
It’s not intended to be “the solution” but merely another piece in a broader safety puzzle.
That’s why I was surprised to hear opposition, from folks who say the bill is wrong because it puts the onus on children and not adults to practice gun safety.
I’m guessing those folks are stuck in the mindset of finding “the solution” and rejecting anything else; that’s sort of the way we attack things politically these days, wanting to do a single thing and calling whatever it is “fixed”. After all, it’s the responsibility of parents to practice fire safety, but I’d like children to know how to react if a fire breaks out.
The bill has advanced far enough to make it through this week’s funnel…we’ll watch to see what happens next.
