Did you hear about the $73 million about the settlement between Remington and some of the families of the Sandy Hook school shooting?

Several things to be clear on here:
1.  This case did not go to trial.  The Supreme Court of Connecticut allowed the lawsuit (which was completely baseless).   I think if the case had gone to trial that Remington would not have been found liable for a mentally ill person misusing their product.
2.  Remington is bankrupt and the settlement was between the insurance companies who currently own their assets and the plaintiffs.

Still, this is an awful precedent and one that, if allowed to continue, could destroy capitalism and our freedoms.  

As a law abiding gun owner, I also noted a couple of things in the article that frustrated me.  First, here's a quote from the plaintiff's lawyer:
"When it came to the military looking for the best weapon, the most lethal weapon, the most destructive weapon, and the weapon that could provide our soldiers, should they be forced to shoot and kill the enemies of our country and our freedom, they chose the AR-15," he said during the press conference. "The greatest military in the world…chose the AR-15."

The US military's primary rifle is an M4 capable of full-automatic fire, not an AR15.  This is an attempt to make a specific rifle evil, which is just ridiculous.  What if the killer's Mom had only owned a lever action cowboy-style rifle or a handgun, would he have still gone on a killing rampage?   Of course he would have! 

The truth is a gun is amoral, not good or evil.  The crazy person using this particular rifle to kill people at Sandy Hook was evil.  He killed his Mom and then went and killed a bunch of first graders at a school.  He could have done that just as easily with any number of weapons.  

Another quote from this attorney: "But they (the plaintiffs)…had the energy and drive and motivation to do one thing, and that was to do whatever they could so that other families…would not have to go through the kind of pain and loss that they had."

Are they seriously celebrating this settlement as making the world safer from mass shootings?  This lawsuit and settlement has done absolutely nothing to make people safer.  All this settlement did is line the pockets of the legal teams for both sides.  

I'm often asked if I teach rifle courses.  I typically say "yes, I can teach you to shoot a rifle but everything I know I learned from Project Appleseed."   Project Appleseed events provide two full days of training and shooting plus some bonus history lessons from the start of the American Revolution.   The instructors will take you from complete beginner to very proficient shooter in one weekend.  These events are  and are a TON of fun and great for the whole family.  I took my son for the first time when he was 12.   

If you are interested, check out Project Appleseed's site  and sign-up for a course.  There is a course next weekend with slots available.  The Appleseed team is also offering precision pistol courses.