Texas gun range offers birthday parties for young children

How young should children be before going to a gun range to shoot guns? This Texas gun range is offering fun for the family. Children as young as 8 can shoot guns while celebrating with their young friends. From the article:

"The age limit is eight years old. You have to be tall enough to get above the shooting table,” Prince told WFAA. “They're not gonna be left unattended. Parents are gonna be one-on-one, or if there's not enough parents, we'll have range safety officers here to show them how to do it safely."

The "Range Rules" on Eagle's website include the provision, "Young shooters (under 18 years of age) are ONLY allowed to shoot on the range with their parent or guardian; one young shooter per adult. No children are allowed on the range nor are they to be left unaccompanied in the showroom while adults shoot."

Yahoo News noted that birthday parties aren't the only gun-themed events aimed at children. Last Christmas, toddlers in Arizona were allowed to pose for pictures with Santa Clause while holding high-powered firearms.

If you read this blog, you know how many incidents of children finding loaded guns and shooting either themselves or someone else are reported. Kids and guns just do not go together. For adults to encourage young children to shoot guns does not make sense. Adults are responsible for allowing guns to fall into the hands of young children. Learning to shoot a gun does not necessarily equate with safe use of a gun. Even adults are not always safe with their guns. This we know from the many accidental gun discharges of law abiding adults. So Happy Birthday everyone. Be safe.