Gun Safety

Here are Jeff Cooper's Four Rules:

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1. All guns are always loaded. Even if they are not, treat them as if they are.

2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy. (For those who insist that this particular gun is unloaded, see Rule 1.)

3. Keep your finger off the trigger till your sights are on the target. This is the Golden Rule. Its violation is directly responsible for about 60 percent of inadvertent discharges.

4. Identify your target, and what is behind it. Never shoot at anything that you have not positively identified.

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I would change the first sentence of #3 to "keep your finger off the trigger till your sights are on the target and you have made the decision to shoot." You may have noticed that Hollywood has adopted that rule and I think it's a fine idea.

For example, look at this promo shot of Kristanna Loken as "Painkiller Jane" on the SciFi Channel (she has a couple of serious .45s, there):



Or this old shot of Peter Sellers (P-38, old school):



Both actors have their fingers off the triggers.

Now, in real life, take a look at this shot from 1981:



That was a high-stress situation, the President had just been shot. And the Secret Service agent with the Uzi has his finger off the trigger.

Guns that are in good repair generally will not fire unless the trigger have been actuated. If you keep your finger off the trigger, you are not going to experience the heart-stopping joy of an accidental discharge.

Target verified, sights on target, decision to fire and then and only then put your finger on the trigger.