Community Chat

[NoelSeven]

From the Indy Star:

Firing guns on New Year's — a perilous, time-honored tradition

Dec. 31.

The trouble comes at midnight, when more than a few neighbors step into their yards and usher in the New Year by firing guns into the sky like happy, liquored-up cowboys in old Westerns. Much of the noise seems to come from semi-automatic weapons.

In much of Indianapolis, as in much of the world, gunfire is as integral to New Year's Eve as booze. People celebrate with gunplay in Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Europe. In the U.S. they do it in the city and in the countryside, too.

Gravity being what it is and population density being what it is, bullets fired in jubilation sometimes hit things or people and do damage — or worse.

"When fired into the air, bullets can return to the ground at speeds greater than 200 ft./sec., a sufficient force to penetrate the human skull and cause serious injury or death," said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

http://www.indystar.com/story/life/2014/12/30/firing-guns-new-years-perilous-time-honored-tradition/...

[nun ya]

Wow... that is awful. Fireworks in the hands of anyone scare me.

Shooting off guns on New Years is common here in Pa

[chickenbutt]

Thanks for the info, Noel.  Wow, I just cannot imagine this, and this is actually the first time I've heard of it.  *sigh*

[NoelSeven]

For anyone interested, I just checked online and there are numerous articles about firing guns on the 4th of July, also.

What next?  Christmas? 

[lulu2]

I saw this article on Yahoo this AM.  Call me uneducated but just how does one use his/her head as a launchpad for fireworks?

[gmkb]

Sad for the family of this young man. Males in his age group seem to believe they are immortal. Combine that irresponsible behavior with alcohol and it is a tragedy waiting to happen.

[Tissyanne]

 A tragedy for this young man. I won't criticize a 22 year old for making a tragic mistake that cost him his life.  God be with those who love him, and now must live with this the remainder of their lives. 

[Apple Crisp]

I thought of suicide, also.

[sfnative]

With regard to shooting off guns just for the heck of it, I recall an episode of "CSI: Las Vegas," where the team was challenged with finding our how a female (I believe) had been shot in the head and killed.  After interviewing all the usual suspects, it all came down to physics: the victim's position was determined; the angle of descent of the projectile was determined; then a formula was used to determine the approximate origin of the projectile (bullet).  In this case, the guy was just shooting off his gun, if I remember correctly.

[Plaid Pants2]

I'm convinced that young men have waaaaaaaay too much testosterone coursing through their bodies, and it clouds their thinking. They think that they are being impressive, but they're not.