In the video below, parents and administrators at Boca Ciega High School (in Gulfport, Florida) freak out when they discover that a couple of kids brought a backpack-stashed Kahr pistol to a football game. The report doesn’t mention any plot to shoot anyone so…what? Why the cops and extra security measures to prevent someone else from bringing a gun to a game?
Students and parents are far more likely to die from a drunk driving accident going to or from the stadium than a teenage [or older] active shooter. All of which make me wonder . . .
if you know anyone suffering from hoplophobia: an irrational fear of guns. Not just an aversion. Out-and-out fear, complete with an adrenalin-infused fight, flight or freeze response. If so, how did you deal with it?
My Mommy.
I’ve dealt with it by not buying her a gun.
Simple.
As for the occasional hoplophobe who wanders up to my gun counter at the store: depends on how much of a troll I want to be as that moment.
A true hoplophobe would not approach your counter. I am acrophobic, I don’t – CAN’T – approach the edge of a cliff. It is physically impossible, I will turn and run the other way, condition black.
People who approach your counter are either trolls themselves are merely uneducated.
What are they so worried about? The school said it was going to put up more signs.
Why would not having backpacks keep out guns. I carry CW9 all the time and it is never in a bag.
Sadly, my wife… she once hyperventilated and got mad and ran out of the room when my parents gave me some ammo for my birthday. No gun, mind you – just ammo for a rifle I had gotten restored and which was stored at their house. I was like – “what do you think, I’m going to throw it at you?” She cannot stand the sight of guns, though as my son and I have taken up hunting she has learned to ‘deal’ with their presence in the house (as long as they are locked up and in the safe). I have a pistol in the safe and one in the truck, but she doesn’t know about either.
Unfortunately, this fear stems from an incident when she was a teenage when, while staying with a friend, the friend’s drunken father decided to show off his new gun and it discharged about a foot from her head. She was petrified of guns for many years thereafter, but I introduced them slowly. She has never fired one, and I’m not sure I could ever get her to a range to work through it.
That’s not an entirely irrational fear, to be fair.
I tend to agree – though I wish I could track down that jackhole who put that fear into her! Her parents also do not have guns, and her dad does not hunt. Conversely, my dad was a LEO and I was training to be one for a while before I became a teacher (for a while).
Ironically, I’ve slowly gotten her to understand that it’s not a matter of IF things ever go to heck, but WHEN… and we need to be prepared. This country is one major ordeal (massive power grid or water supply issues, etc.) from pseudo-collapse. We see it all the time with these riots, etc. Not sure who it’ll be, but when they come knocking, I’ll be ready.
My wife has a similar aversion, although without the traumatic event. Instead, she was raised in a progressive and highly educated household where guns did not exits, and were never discussed. I have broken her in to at least accepting my black powder firearms because they are “historical” and actually quite beautiful. She has even handled one of my 1873s after I put on some faux ivory grips I made. and she applauded my efforts in building a Kentucky long rifle (kind of) from a Traditions kit–because it is representative of olden days. But she cannot tolerate the sight of a semiauto pistol or modern rifle. (I know, it doesn’t make any sense, but we are not dealing with logic but with feelings.) So other than my Kahr, there are three rifles and two pistols she has never seen.
Since it was a gun free zone, there was no gun. They all simply had a common mass hallucination. I recommend they all go home and take a happy pill because it never happened.
Exactly!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYYyUFb2wCQ
It’s even more laughable for anyone who knows that school or the area around it. I GUARANTEE that every game held there has at least a dozen or so guns in attendance. Most surprising thing is that it was a well-made gun like a Kahr, not a Jennings/Sccy/hipoint or similar. And if you’re coming/going to the game through that part of Gulfport, you probably need protection. Lets put it this way. My friend’s drug dealer lives a block from that school, and is saving every penny he can so he can move out of there as fast as possible.
“Lets put it this way. My friend’s drug dealer lives a block from that school,…”
I’ve always suspected you rocket scientists partake (on occasion).
*wink*
{ The scene – A darkened living room somewhere, with Pink Floyd playing on a vintage Marantz stereo and the remains of a mostly-eaten jumbo pizza on the living room table }
Rocket scientist #1 – “You know what would be really cool? What if instead of the first stage just crashing in the ocean and sinking, we could fly it back to earth and land it upright, so we could use it again? Think of the money we could save! We could be RICH!”
Rocket scientist #2 – “No way! You’re *stoned*, dude!”
*snicker*…
Yup, a few people actually. I even had a couple of people ask me to teach them to shoot in order to get over their fear of guns. For one woman it wasn’t enough. After spending a full day getting her comfortable enough to hold an empty revolver, she went so far as to actually put one round through a Ruger Blackhawk with a starting 38SPL load in it. Barely enough to make the heavy revolver’s barrel move in recoil. My 6 year old son shot it without issue. Still, she cried the whole time, shot it once, put the gun on the ground, and left. What’s interesting is that she had never had any particularly bad experiences with a gun. She was just scared of them.
Another woman had watched her brother shoot himself, and was afraid of guns after that. Fair enough. But after a day of training, she had no trouble with a 1911 in .45ACP it at all, although she still didn’t enjoy shooting handguns. She became a fairly regular pig hunter though and bought an inexpensive AR15.
Humans are weird.
Yeah I do.
I don’t deal with it, they stay away from me…….and sometimes cry because they know I carry a gun.
so why not try to educate the fear out of them? i guess all that matters is you huh. and with everyone else having the same attitude, it should be no wonder why the world is the way it is.
Thats a hell of an assumption. I know pleanty of people who have told me they would rather die and let their children die before they touched a gun…. some people are so far gone they can’t be levelled with. To think YOU can change anyone and everyone is simply narcissism. You have no idea the depth or content of the conversations leading up to the detente they’ve found themselves in.
Not my job to treat mental illness.
Never try to tech a pig to whistle. Tough on you and irritates the pig.
I’m sure that I know hoplophobes, but their mental illness hasn’t been revealed to me. If it was, I would suggest to them that they try therapy. Or Valium. Or just GTFO, because I don’t choose to be around crazy people.
My at the time girlfriend, then fiance, had a friend living in her parents house for awhile who, while not quite “freaked out” by guns was borderline, and whenever I was over she made it very clear that she didn’t want to see it. If it was resting on the counter or anywhere else in the open she would ask me to move it out of sight. My wife has never particularly cared even when we were dating. She thinks I spend too much money on guns and related items, but has never been bothered by the fact that I carry. She will not let me dry fire practice in her presence though!
Wtf is this post even about? If kids are bringing guns to school in a backpack, YES THAT IS A REAL PROBLEM. It’s not hoplophobia. Stop it.
First time I think I’ve read something stupid in its entirety on ttags.
I would think it depends on the individual. I would have no problem with my 19 year old carrying a weapon into a game. He has been raised to respect weapons and trained how to safely and effectively employ them. He has the judgment and temperament to handle himself and a firearm in public. The problem is, in our “dependent” society other kids who don’t have this kind of background taint those that do and cut into the good kids rights.
I suppose that you could, sort of, kind of have a point, if the extra security is only directed at children. If the extra security applies to all adults attending the games, including concealed carry licensees are who statistically safer than police, then this article is accurately illustrating an irrational fear of firearms.
So, Mr. Stinky, if YOU have a problem with anything, none of the rest of us are supposed to discuss it or have a different opinion than yours…
I don’t think so.
Why don’t you find somewhere else to hang out, since our discussion doesn’t meet with your approval.
Really, Stinky?
This is the first time you’ve “read something stupid in it’s entirety” here at TTAG?
You must be new…
Sorry, guys… Y’all know it’s true and we tolerate each other anyway – big, happy family and all that.
Is this a bad time to bring up my wife’s fear of vacuum cleaners or gas pumps. After lots of therapy she can walk past the oven and not hold her breath with her hands over her head. The struggle continues.
A Boca Ciega HS senior was shot nine months ago during a gang shooting.
my mother and she is a prime example of people fear what they don’t understand. but at least she admits it.
Yes, my brother-in-law’s mother is pants-on-head afraid of handguns and doesn’t even want to be in the same home if I am armed. Her supposed reason is that her late husband, who had several hunting rifles and shotguns, threatened to kill her one time. How that translates to me? I have no idea.
The farthest that I am willing to go is to conceal my handgun when she is around. I am not willing to disarm to pacify her.
Note that I specifically chose the word “pacify” in that last sentence because I want to tie in the idea of pacifying babies with pacifiers. We SHOULD pacify babies (with pacifiers) because they are, well, babies. We should NOT pacify adults who act like babies.
Is hoplophobia when someone calls your gun a FEG?
Nyuk, nyuk, nyu-… uh, why are you guys coming towards me with pitchforks and a bucket of tar?
I have no problem with my 19 year old son and guns. I know his abilities. However, our local police don’t have a clue as to his law abiding abilities. That’s why he doesn’t carry outside our home, anywhere it’s illegal for him to do so. Quite a few friends car carry, I have been told by gun dealers that I can give him permission for him to car carry, but I can’t get law enforcement to also agree.
“However, our local police don’t have a clue as to his law abiding abilities. ”
Do you have a clue to the reliability, the “law abiding ability” or the character of each person driving with you on the road? Or are you counting on the “driver’s license” to guarantee that for you?
Do you know the ability and character of each person who passes you on the sidewalk, in a store or any other place? Or do you count on the police and the “permits” to guarantee that for you?
The police don’t have, and can never have, a guarantee of this any more than you do as an individual.
And what’s more, is your 19 yr old son immune from attack until he’s whatever age the police are comfortable with?
What?! There is no known plot to shoot anyone so all is well with a teenager bringing a gun to school? Give me a break. A high school student bringing a gun to a school or a HS football game IS a problem. It’s not irrational and you don’t have to be afraid of guns to not want a HS kid to carry a gun. As much as I love my guns (AR-15s, 30 round mags, and all), when my kids are in HS, I don’t want their peers bringing guns to school. That doesn’t make me or anyone else who feels the same afraid of guns. It makes one nervous of what a [potentially unstable, at best underdeveloped decision making] teenager could do (accidentally or on purpose) with that gun. Teens aren’t known for making the best long term decisions if you haven’t heard. Crazy OFWGs.
Any law that says a teenager with a job (and with it actual responsibilities) is not emotionally mature enough to be trusted with something, yet is perfectly fine with it being done by a 21 year old that never worked and needs a safe space because they saw “Trump 2016” written in chalk, is completely arbitrary and baseless.
“The report doesn’t mention any plot to shoot anyone so…what? Why the cops and extra security measures to prevent someone else from bringing a gun to a game?”
Uh………McFly………..MCFLY!! Who needs a master planned plot to be concerned about kids with guns? Hmm?
Let’s just work with the most plausible scenarios here, shall we? They brought the gun to school and to the game because they’re in a feud with someone or more people. By your own admission, it’s extremely unlikely that anyone will be shot at these events, so I seriously doubt that any bullies or punks hassling these kids are themselves armed. So a gun is very likely, well, overkill, in terms of self-defense. These brats are the escalating factor and dealing with the problem unreasonably.
The more likely scenario is that they just want to play tough and carry a gun. In that case, these juveniles are, what is the word? Ahhh…..juvenile. That’s it. They’re playing with a deadly weapon and have no idea what they’re doing. The proof? These jackwagons either couldn’t keep it concealed, or else couldn’t keep their mouths shut and prattled on excitedly within earshot of parents. Well. Excited mouths are connected to excited index finger, and earshot is within gunshot.
So, yes, ban the bags and search the purses going forward. Their parents won’t preempt the idiocy of their offspring, so it’s up to the State to do so. And before you lying hypocrite “2A absolutists” start in with the righteous indignation and waterworks, just know that this is what you came for. This is what you asked for. This is YOUR idea. Where your guns are banned (and how *does* a self-defense firearms protect you from a crossfire or a negligent discharge, anyway???), you demand that security be super tight such that nobody can sneak weapons in. Well, you’re getting your wish at the next game. You’re welcome.
You cant argue with what an irrational persons fears most times.
But with all of 2 rounds?? I have to wonder what army these kids thought would attack during a football game.
You need to have a full mag even for a Zombie or 2. Or so Ive been told.
I say step aside little lady. Knowing it is a guy I am talking to.
*snickers*
If you really, really want to elicit gut reaction, do not bother with firearm. Bring a blade, average-sized (bushcraft cheapo like Mora will do) and shiny.
ed: my mom’s response to old Baikal 27?
– break action,
– peek through barrels,
– yell “where is that fucking slob who owned it?”
For a very long time, my wife was afraid of firearms. That changed with the San Bernardino shooting. Wife was visiting daughter, who lives about 5 minutes from the freeway the shooters were driving on…while it happened. Wife came back home (Utah) stating that she never wanted to feel that defenseless again.
After significant training and practice, wife has overcome her fear of guns. In fact, she is now very proficient with her Bersa Thunder .380 (her choice of firearm after trying out several handguns). And she has her CC permit…carries consistently when she’s awake. Gun on nightstand while sleeping. She no longer feels defenseless.
Facing your fear is a good thing…
Not that she’s fearful of guns, but it might be more of a fear of spending money on firearms. My father-in-law had an FFL years back, so I ordered a Uberti .45 revolver from him. While talking to my wife, he told her he has a package for me. She interupted my poolside beer with the question about what the package might be. I told her I had ordered a gun from him. The last words I heard from her for about 3 mos. was ‘You bought another gun ?’ Does that qualify as hoplophobia ?
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