Man Shoots Self Twice Trying to Kill Caged Raccoon
The 2nd Amendment gives Americans the right to bear arms, but perhaps some people shouldn't exercise those rights. For example, an Iowa man who accidentally shot himself -- twice -- while trying to shoot a raccoon in a cage.
It seems that a raccoon got caught in a trap in the rural town of Redfield Saturday morning, so 68-year-old Larry Godwin decided to shoot it.
Well, the first shot ricocheted off of the cage and hit Godwin in the lower abdomen area. He then dropped his gun and it went off again, hitting him in about the same spot.
He is being treated at a hospital in Des Moines for what The Associated Press calls non-life threatening wounds.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is investigating, likely to make sure that the man is telling the truth and that the raccoon did not somehow wrestle the gun away from the man and shoot him itself.
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"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I am not so sure about the former"
I'm glad the guy is ok. Now, take the raccoon near a lake or river and release him into the wild. I do it all the time. Raccoons, skunks, opossum. Domestic animals you take to a no kill shelter. Rats, mice and the like you destroy them in quick humane fashion.
I am a card-carrying NRA member, and I support the raccoon; it this guy can't shoot any straighter than that, he needs to be shot by a raccoon.
Agreed. He's not a man. He is a dumbass.
I would propose that its fine for Mr. Godwin to own a gun, but he ought to buy one he knows how to operate. That second shot from a dropped gun sounds like B.S. to me, unless he was shooting a very old gun. Current SAAMI specs require a drop test.
Technically, the right to keep and bear arms existed before the Constitution was ratified and does not depend upon the Constitution for its existence; Under 18th century English Common Law the right to keep and bear arms was simply part of what it meant to be "free" -- and has always been the most obvious distinction between free men and slaves. The Constitution merely forbids the government from _infringing_ that right.
(This distinction between rights recognized versus rights granted was the technicality used by Jim Crow era Supreme Courts to refuse to uphold the 14th Amendment -- as that amendment referred to rights "granted" by the Constitution.)
Whatever, I'd like to know what kind of gun he was using. It takes a pretty light caliber to ricochet off a thin metal cage (unless it was merely a bit of lead spray from a bullet that fragmented). Also, I'd like to know what kind of gun it was that went off when dropped. Nowadays only crappy handguns go off when dropped (though most long guns are still vulnerable to doing that).
Too funny.... However, it could happen to anyone. I was hit with ricochets once while grouse hunting. Fortunately, this was bird shot and I had a thick vest. Also, the shot was from someone else, swinging too far out of his field of fire.
This is definitely a Chevy Chase moment :-)
Been hunting with Cheney, eh?