They're all excuses. 767 may have some inside track to some information, but nothing has been presented which leads me to believe it was nothing more than operator error and an accidental discharge at the fault of the pilot.
The fact that there have been no other discharges inside an aircraft indicates that unfair or not, other pilots have been able to negotiate the program without serious incident (ala an AD).
I heard this argument in Iraq several times. The fact that soldiers were forced to clear their weapons in clearing barrels before entering the installation or chow halls and various areas actually increased the number of AD's. Now, the majority of those AD's were in clearing barrels (rather than in a crowded chow hall), but nonetheless, the number of AD's increased. Some people argued that forcing the soldiers to load and unload their weapons several times only increased the number of potential discharge opportunities.
This is the same cry me a river, "it's someone else's fault" attitude that most of America has taken. The age of personal responsibility is over. It's always someone else's fault. Some law, some rule, some procedure, some other person....whatever.
The fact is, if you carry a firearm, it's under your care. Period. If you load it, clean it, handle it, etc, then you should be more than familar and trained with all of those things (including shooting).
If you can't do those things, OR you can't negotiate some portion of a bureacratic policy safely, then you have a duty to yourself and everyone else to stand up and say "This is beyond me" and you also have a duty NOT to carry a firearm until either you're more properly trained, OR the program is altered to be more in line with your skills.
You don't just continue carrying a gun (which can kill people, especially in an aircraft) and then blame someone else when YOU discharge it.
I own MANY guns. I'm responsible for them all. If I do something that causes injury to myself or someone else, I, ME, MYSELF, YOURS TRULY, am at fault. If a child gains access to one of my guns and hurts themselves or someone else, I am still responsible.
It's my duty as a gun owner and carrier to operate safely. All these excuses do harm to the overall gun ownership perception in America.
PEOPLE kill other people. Not guns. Not programs. Not bureacracy. PEOPLE.
If the guy had some sort of mitigating circumstance that caused him to discharge, I'm sure that will come out in the end. If he was in a struggle, if someone else bumped into him, whatever.
I have the utmost respect for the pilots who volunteer for this program and have stood up and taken an active interest to protect themselves AND their passengers.
But the very definition of a "profession" in philosophical study indicates an occupation whereby the power and responsibility you wield has equally potent negative consequences in the hands of the "wrong" person as it does benefit in the care of the "right" person. Doctors, lawyers, police officers, soldiers, teachers, pilots.....all have the ability to harm members of society if the responsibility they carry is misused.
If a doctor screws up, he has a medical board to answer to and he is punished. If a police officer screws up, same same. A soldier, a teacher, whatever, both from their professional organizations (and also through litigation
).
When a pilot volunteers to carry a gun, they should know that they're carrying an extra set of responsibilities and with it, come consequences for the misuse or misapplication of it, intentional or otherwise.
Carrying a gun is a serious deal. It's unfortunate that all of you are quick to make excuses for this guy. He may be a great guy. He may be the kinda guy I'd like to marry my sister, or go out fishing on my boat. He may be a great pilot. But if he screwed up, he screwed up. He should be reprimanded and punished as an example of what will happen if other people make similar careless mistakes.
If he could not negotiate the infamous "program" without incident, then he shouldn't have been carrying a gun. If there were dozens of other pilots discharging their guns in aircraft, the argument would have some creedence. But it's not the case.
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