The National Rifle Association’s “Eddie Eagle” gun safety program for children has just turned twenty years of age. Geared for younger kids, it features an instructor in an eagle costume who teaches the little ones a mantra for safety when they encounter potentially dangerous objects, such as an unsecured firearm that might be loaded.
STOP!
DON’T TOUCH!
LEAVE THE AREA!
TELL AN ADULT!
This widespread program is one reason why accidental death of children by firearms has decreased dramatically in this nation since just the 1980s, even though there are millions more guns in America now than there were then. In addition to the popular Eddie Eagle, NRA has worked with fish and wildlife departments at the state level to make gun safety classes widely available at little or no cost to the public, and hunter safety classes mandatory before a hunting license is issued.
It is said that the Eddie Eagle “four-step” program came from a young firefighter in Idaho who was an NRA member. There had been a spate of tragic accidents around the country involving children who had found unattended blasting caps. Our nation’s fire service had great success in mitigating future tragedies of that nature with a program that told kids,
STOP!
DON’T TOUCH!
LEAVE THE AREA!
TELL AN ADULT!
The young firefighter suggested to NRA that it would be wise to adopt the same concept within the context of firearms safety for young people. Wherever it came from, it obviously worked.
It’s tough to argue with success. It’s sad, though, that some schools have refused to allow the Eddie Eagle program, because it is sponsored by the NRA, and in some circles the NRA is seen as politically incorrect.
Whether or not it’s taught in the schools where you live, Eddie Eagle’s four steps to keeping kids from getting hurt by powerful, adults-only objects left unsecured is something that should be taught to all our little ones. Don’t wait for Eddie Eagle: teach it to them yourselves.
An easy way to remember it, guys, is to realize that it’s the same four things your lady is likely to say to you when she sees you ogling a particularly attractive member of the fair sex.
STOP!
DON’T TOUCH!
LEAVE THE AREA!
TELL AN ADULT!
Sure wish that the Eddie Eagle program had been around in the 1960’s when I was in elementary school. At about 12 years old I was showing my dads guns to my best friend when he pulled the trigger on a .45 caliber pistol. Fortunately the gun was pointed at a big box of clothing. My mother still brings out that bullet from time to time to remind me of how precious life is and just how easily that it can be taken away. I learned a life-ling lesson from that incident and safety has been paramount in my thinking ever since.
That was a hard lesson to learn and I’m glad that I’m here today to talk about it. Today I’m a lifetime member of the NRA (since 1996) and it’s a shame that some schools are putting political corectness over teaching our kids about gun safety. The next 12 year old might not be as lucky as I was.