"Texas fraternity's gunfire leads to brief police standoff"

[Tom Earp]

Originally Posted by Sciencewoman

I'm thinking about Dick Cheney accidentally shooting his friend while duck hunting a while back. I think a fraternity sponsored event involving guns is fraught with the potential for a serious accident...if they did do this, I think a supervised shooting range, like skeet shooting, would be better than private property. Some members may not have experience with firearms and gun safety. I get that they had permission and I don't think they deserve bad PR as a fraternity. However, this was not a good idea and I sincerely doubt their liability insurance carrier would support this kind of event.

Really your going to go there with that statement?? If it is not illegal then why was it even brought up in the first place???? It seems to be the Anti Greek Crap we see all of the time. Why did the Police make such a big deal out of it??

[ComradesTrue]

Originally Posted by Tom Earp

Really your going to go there with that statement?? If it is not illegal then why was it even brought up in the first place???? It seems to be the Anti Greek Crap we see all of the time. Why did the Police make such a big deal out of it??

Some things can be both legal and a bad idea at the same time. This is a prime example and has nothing to do with "anti-greek crap."

[shirley1929]

Originally Posted by ComradesTrue

Some things can be both legal and a bad idea at the same time. This is a prime example and has nothing to do with "anti-greek crap."

Co-Sign

[NWguy]

If alcohol was involved, as sometimes is the case with fraternity outings (not all, some), the potential for danger is sky high. Also, I'll assume most of these men were novice gun users and that makes it even riskier.

Even in rural Texas, there's gotta be other things to do - bowling, pizza party, miniature golf, camping trip, etc. With the money they spent on guns and ammo, they probably could've rented out a movie theater screening and watched "Zoolander 2" together.

[DGTess]

Originally Posted by NWguy

If alcohol was involved, as sometimes is the case with fraternity outings (not all, some), the potential for danger is sky high. Also, I'll assume most of these men were novice gun users and that makes it even riskier.

Even in rural Texas, there's gotta be other things to do - bowling, pizza party, miniature golf, camping trip, etc. With the money they spent on guns and ammo, they probably could've rented out a movie theater screening and watched "Zoolander 2" together.

If that's not what they wanted to do, the point is moot. That's imposing someone else's ideas on them.

If there was alcohol involved, it's not cited in the original news report.

I'm still not seeing the issue. No one was hurt; it was on private property. If it was rifles and shotguns, anyone over 18 may legally fire them safely. I see nothing here any more egregious than any other noise complaint over a fraternity outing.

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by NWguy

Also, I'll assume most of these men were novice gun users and that makes it even riskier.

Assuming most of these men were novice gun users in rural Texas is a pretty bold assumption.

[rockwallgreek]

Originally Posted by Kevin

Assuming most of these men were novice gun users in rural Texas is a pretty bold assumption.

Kevin's point is very well taken. This is Texas. My grandchildren shoot with their daddies. They comprise 3 girls and 1 boy. The youngest girl doesn't, she's too little. My four sons in law, my four daughters, myself and my husband all have our Concealed Carry License. I have chosen not to carry. By the time my grandchildren are 18 they know all about guns, how to take care if them, etc. this is Texas and how we live day to day. Now as a Sister who can approve or disapprove an event, I would be very Leary about approval with just the basic info. I'd add a lot of questions

[NWguy]

Okay, let's say they were all experienced with handling guns (hard to believe, but I'll go with it), so what were they shooting at in the dark? At a firing range, there are targets - i.e. clay bunnies - that you can visibly see in daylight, but in the dark?

I understand guns are part of the Texas culture, but I haven't heard of California fraternities planning a surfing outing, or Colorado fraternities coordinating a rockclimbing outing. The liability if someone was to get hurt - by participating in something potentially dangerous that was organized as a chapter outing (vs. some of the guys going out on their own) - would weigh heavily on the chapter. They could've been sued for liability, had someone been accidentally shot.