A Texas man accidentally shot a child while officiating a wedding in Lancaster County on Saturday, the sheriff’s office says.

Chief Deputy Ben Houchin said deputies were sent to a wedding at Hillside Events near Denton on a report of a gunshot wound.

Deputies learned that 62-year-old Michael Gardner, the wedding’s officiant, fired a gun to get everyone’s attention.

“He was going to fire in the air, and as he did that, it slipped and went off,” Houchin said.

The gun was loaded with a blank that Gardner made with gunpowder and glue.

  • DTFpanda@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Americans have an estimated 120 guns per 100 citizens, almost double that of the country with the second highest amount of firearms per capita.

    Tell me again how that isn’t a problem.

        • JustAManOnAToilet@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          So first of all, no we don’t have double the murder rate, and secondly even looking specifically at “firearm related deaths” we aren’t even in the top 5? All that with 120 guns per 100 people, nearly double that of the next country (according to the above commenter).

          • hperrin@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Yes, there are multiple factors, just like basically everything in life. We’re not the absolute worst at one statistic, so there’s no problem right?

            That stat obviously won’t scale linearly, because it’s not like every 1 person owns 1.2 guns. There are a few people who own like 50 guns, and that drives up the average.

            If you’re cool being the only “first world” nation way up near the top of the gun death list though, I guess there’s probably no convincing you anyway.

    • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      It’s a tool. Blame the idiots that don’t use it correctly, not the tool itself

      There are 908 motor vehicles per 1000 citizens in the US (source

      In 2020, there were 5,250,837 vehicle collisions in America source

      Tell me again how cars aren’t the problem.

      Oh wait, that’s right, they are just a tool. The problem is people.

      • PRUSSIA_x86@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Exactly, we should treating guns like cars. They should require revocable licenses, registration, training, and significant financial investment.

        • tburkhol@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Not to mention liability insurance. Your gun harms/kills someone? You’ve got insurance to pay for it. Your gun stolen and used to harm someone? Prove it was securely stored or it goes on your insurance.

      • Kalash@feddit.ch
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        1 year ago

        Tell me again how cars aren’t the problem.

        You do realise cars actually require a license to operate? You literally already have “car control”.

        So what exactly is your agrument again?

        • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Copy pasted for like the 5th time

          Yeah 100% if you want to own a class of gun (say a revolver) you should have to take a class on that specific type of gun and pass a written and practical test, and renew this regularly. Want a different type of gun? Better go take that class and pass that test.

          Rabid anti gun folks are just as bad as the rabid pro gun folks, but the regular ass folks in the middle all seem to agree that strong controls on who can purchase the dangerous tool is the most reasonable solution

          But this is lemmy, basically Reddit but more intense. I fully expect the folks here to be rabid anti gun without any rationale arguments for that stance

      • hperrin@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Ok, let’s treat guns like cars and require a training period and license to use one.

        Though I would probably treat it more like a forklift, because a gun is a lot more immediately dangerous if you make a mistake than a car, like a forklift. With a car, you usually have to be doing something wrong for a while before you’ll kill anyone. With a gun you just accidentally pull the trigger when it’s pointed at someone and you probably just ended a life.

        • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          100% agreement! I world have no problem being made to take the required classes and tests to qualify for my firearms like this, and anyone who refuses or fails has to turn their firearms over. 100% agreement. I think it would help these kinds of issues as well as public perception, so I wouldn’t have to argue this hard to stand up for the right to keep my family safe

      • N4CHEM@lemmy.ml
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        1 year ago

        No, no, you’re right there. Cars are a problem too. But that’s a different topic, we’re talking guns now.

        • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Ah ok so any tool that can possibly harm you must be banned

          Just go live in a padded cell and leave the rest of us alone

          • N4CHEM@lemmy.ml
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            1 year ago

            Who talked about banning cars? Don’t put words in my mouth and don’t be so rude.

            Cars are a source of different problems: pollution, traffic congestion, lack of space in cities due to parking needs… and accidents too, yes. All of these issues can be solved with his public transport, and 95% car rides can be replaced by public transport (unless I’m transporting the furniture I just bought back to my house).

            There’s no need to go live in a padded cell (although if you wish to, be my guest), just stop whining online and look for solutions instead.

      • DTFpanda@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Nice red herring. What does this have to do with the fact that there are TWICE as many guns per person in America than the next highest country? Doesn’t that tell you that maybe we have influenced too much gun culture in our society and made it too easy for people to obtain without proper vetting and safety regulations?

        • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Copy pasted from a reply to some other asshat

          Yeah 100% if you want to own a class of gun (say a revolver) you should have to take a class on that specific type of gun and pass a written and practical test, and renew this regularly. Want a different type of gun? Better go take that class and pass that test.

          Rabid anti gun folks are just as bad as the rabid pro gun folks, but the regular ass folks in the middle all seem to agree that strong controls on who can purchase the dangerous tool is the most reasonable solution

          But this is lemmy, basically Reddit but more intense. I fully expect the folks here to be rabid anti gun without any rationale arguments for that stance

          • DTFpanda@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            I fully expect the folks here to be rabid anti gun without any rationale arguments for that stance

            Maybe don’t start off your argument with calling someone an asshat then 🤷‍♂️

            I’m not anti gun, btw. I own a shotgun and know how to use it. My state recently passed a ban on semi-automatic assault weapons that I voted in favor of. But go ahead and keep insulting those who disagree with you and assuming they’re ‘rabid anti gun.’

            Americans have all sorts of mental health issues that are completely undiagnosed and many of them are dealing with their unchecked emotions by waltzing into a Sportsman’s Warehouse and back out with a cart of weapons after signing some waivers and shooting up places with large gatherings of people.

            I don’t even understand how people argue against this shit. It’s been happening for far too long, getting much worse, and America is basically alone on top of this shit mountain we’ve built for ourselves.

            • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              Copy pasted from another reply

              Yeah 100% if you want to own a class of gun (say a revolver) you should have to take a class on that specific type of gun and pass a written and practical test, and renew this regularly. Want a different type of gun? Better go take that class and pass that test.

              Rabid anti gun folks are just as bad as the rabid pro gun folks, but the regular ass folks in the middle all seem to agree that strong controls on who can purchase the dangerous tool is the most reasonable solution

              But this is lemmy, basically Reddit but more intense. I fully expect the folks here to be rabid anti gun without any rationale arguments for that stance

        • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          I live in a bad neighborhood and have had to defend my family against fucking armed meth heads trying to break into my house and harm my wife and son. The police are completely useless. I am a cripple and can’t fight. If I didn’t have a gun we’d all be dead by now.

          If you try to take the guns away in this country, you’ll take them from law abiding folks like myself that use them for self defense but not the criminals we need to defend ourselves from

          Maybe if we had real police that actually protect and serve we could be in the same page. As long as the police are worse than useless and every junkie criminal has a gun, the rest of us need one too

          You think I want to raise my kid in a world where everybody is armed?!? Fuck no! This sucks! It’s better than being dead though. That’s the alternative. If you’ve had the privilege to live your life in safe areas that’s great! Not everybody does.

          • breadsmasher@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            armed meth heads

            Huh … because of guns? You need guns because other people have guns?

            So if there were no guns … you wouldn’t need a gun?

            As someone from a country with sane gun control. Not once in my entire life have I wished to have a gun to defend myself with against other people.

            I don’t even live in a “good” area. But because guns aren’t exactly legal, there are very few guns around at all.

            This is an entirely workable solution as almost every other western country has demonstrated. America is just obsessed with owning (to use your words) “tools” to murder each other with.

            You know what happens when guns are actually restricted? They become difficult to get for everyone. Going by the logic “banning guns means only criminals have guns”, do you ever wonder why other countries don’t have a huge crimimal-gun-problem? Because its a myth perpetuated by gun nuts.

            The average person in modern society should have no reason to own a gun.

            America is just psychotic

            • jackoneill@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              Try to follow along. You can’t take the guns away from the criminals in this country. There are more guns than people. We are not an island. We are literally swimming in guns. I don’t like it, but if you try to take them away YOU WON’T TAKE THEM AWAY FROM THE METH HEADS you will only make it harder for law abiding citizens to defend themselves

              If you could magically get rid of all the guns, sure! Let me know when you figure that out