Editing Firearm (section)

== GUN SAFETY ==
Should be self-evident, but to be frank it isn't. Between the movies having actors brandishing guns everywhere, the video games and toys like airsoft that make them look more harmless than they are and plain human ignorance and negligence; people forget that they're holding something that could easily scatter someone's brains or outright remove their skull.

That said, there are four main rules to gun safety.
*Muzzle sweep: Avoid this. Muzzle sweep is one when points or sweeps a gun in a direction onto people or objects that could get harmed. To avoid this, one should keep the gun's barrel pointed away from anything that you don't intend to destroy or value. This means one must be conscious of where they are pointing it. Or in other words, '''never point the gun at something you don't want to shoot!'''

*'''Treat every firearm as if they were loaded at all times.''' Even if you fully know the gun is empty after removing the magazine and checking the chamber, still treat it as if it wasn't. This creates a force of habit so that if you are ever in a rush/interrupted while handling your gun/given a weapon by someone else/whatever... you will avoid any mishaps and tragedies that could arise because you think the gun is empty where it actually isn't. The only obvious exception is during maintenance, and that's only after visually and physically ensuring the chamber is clear and the magazine is removed (or empty if your gun's magazine is built-in). Don't feel peer pressure to stop obsessively checking each and every chamber around. As far as addictions go, this is not a bad one. Always, always check multiple times. If you don't feel sure for a single moment, check it. Better to waste a couple of seconds loading a magazine, cocking a round, or disengaging the safety features than risking a life from impatient carelessness. Just ask Alec Baldwin.

*'''Know the target, what's in front of the target, and what's behind the target.''' Remember, bullets are designed to punch holes in things. Even if you've got pinpoint accuracy, the bullet might go right through the target and kill some guy who's just minding his own business. This is why any self-respecting firing range has a thick wall or a pile of packed-down dirt behind the targets. Bullets that don't punch through the target and don't shatter (like frangible rounds made of sintered metal) can ricochet back at the shooter or others around them. For this reason, shooting at metal targets is usually done with the targets angled down. And loudly letting people know when you’re going to fire a gun reduces the risk of idiots somehow getting in between the target and the shooter.

*Trigger discipline: '''Never put your finger on the trigger unless you want to kill/destroy whatever you're pointing your gun at.''' Why? Any number of things, either in a firefight or peaceful day in the gun range, can cause you to be spooked and involuntary clench your fingers. If your finger happens to be on the trigger of a live gun, you can potentially cause a negligent discharge, and that's bad. As in "You're putting your and other people's lives at great risk for being a colossal idiot" bad. It doesn't matter if you're a hardcore Tier 1 spec ops operator or regular Joe taking on recreational backyard shooting, everyone's susceptible to the dreaded ND, which is why it should be second nature for you to always keep your finger '''''off''''' the trigger until ready to fire.

Easy, right? Well... apparently not. Ask any gun enthusiast and they'll gladly tell you all sorts of horror stories that happened because [[That Guy|somebody]] failed to follow these simple rules. Guns are not toys, guns are tools built with the purpose of causing damage. Entertainment is secondary to safety every single time, and when dealing with equipment whose literal raison d'étre is dealing damage this is only amplified.

And for the love of the God-Emperor, don't be a fucking tool and mix alcohol/drugs and firearms together. Doing so, very, very unsurprisingly results in the breaking of one or more of the aforementioned rules.