Quote:
Originally Posted by kageri
The thing that disturbs me is that not only did they apparently have nothing to do but shoot snakes that are just chillaxin in trees, but there's also a cop out there who has such bad aim with a gun that they shot a toddler while aiming for a snake in a tree. There needs to be a mandatory I.Q. and vision test in order for people to be allowed anywhere near firearms.
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The grandfather specified that he SAW the first bullet hit the water, then the second one hit his grandson, so you have to question,
HOW this could have happened if the snake was up a tree! The only thing I can think of is that the cop was standing on a raised bank around the pond or lake, on the opposite shore from the grandfather and kid, and trying to shoot a snake in a tree that was growing out over the water, at a level below the bank. There have been other incidents of cops shooting at animals and either injuring people or damaging things like cars, when they really shouldn't have been shooting at the animal in the first place, since it was not posing a threat. Police officers are supposed to not only take IQ tests, but also psychological exams, but I guess a lot of 'em slip through the cracks in the system. ANY law enforcement officer, including police, should be trained to know if there are venomous snakes in their area, and how to recognize them(something a third-grader can learn), and how to respond when there is a genuine risk to human lives, rather than BEING a risk to human lives through their ineptitude. This is actually mandatory for military personel; they receive training in safely dealing with venomous/dangerous wildliife both where they undergo basic training, and in the areas to which they are deployed. Every branch of the military emphasizes leaving the animal alone whenever possible.
This isn't the only case involving a human shooting because of fear of snakes. Last week in South Carolina, a retired state trooper accidentally shot and killed HIMSELF after using a shotgun to kill a "Water Moccasin"; he'd spoken with a buddy via cell phone as he was going to kill the snake, which he also said was in a tree(Water Moccasins do NOT climb trees), and apparently as he was trying to put the loaded gun back in the gun rack, it discharged, killing him. That makes two people dead due to a total lack of common sense, both over an animal that could not have harmed anyone in the first place.
pitbulllady