Esme Deprez writes inn BloombergBusiness that trap shooting is the fastest-growing sport in Minnesota high schools. The first thing I expected to see was gun control advocates up in arms (see what I did there?) and foaming at the mouth to have this trend stopped. Shockingly, there is very little backlash. Some schools won’t allow yearbook photos with firearms but otherwise it’s fairly quiet.
“This is the best thing to happen to the shooting sports in 50 years,” said Dennis Knudson, a 74-year-old lifelong trap shooter, after watching his grandson compete. “It’s so fun to see the youngsters stepping up. It will preserve the sport, and they’ll do it for the rest of their lives.”
I’ve often stated that when we got serious about fires in school, school deaths by fire stopped. We used non-flammable building materials, taught students what to do and how to act, installed fire alarms, sprinkler systems and more. As a result, school fire deaths are almost non-existent. By approaching guns in much the same way, I theorize that we can see similar results. Education instead of fear will always be a better approach for our society.
The program’s motto is “Safety, fun and marksmanship” and offering this program as a means of education instead of the proliferation of fear is a fantastic thing for the 9,245 Minnesota students that have participated.
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