Once again, the hysteria over firearms hits the press. Actor Alec Baldwin fired a weapon on a movie set and AT THIS MOMENT for unknown reasons ended up killing the director of cinematography.  This is a tragedy as is any death.

I have read several “news” reports citing the “SCORES” of firearms tragedies or “a long history” of firearms accidents on movie sets. Directors are calling for the banning of “prop guns” during the production of movies as they say computer generated graphics are good enough, even if they look fake. A director that I’ve never heard of named Craig Zobel said, “There’s no reason to have guns loaded with blanks or anything on set anymore,  (They) Should just be fully outlawed.”  Notice that he is calling for legislation not just an industry agreed to prohibition.

Once again, back the F’ing truck up a few yards.

In ALL of the “news” reports, only TWO incidences are cited, Jon-Erik Hexum and Brandon Lee. Hexum killed HIMSELF when he was fooling around with a pistol showing off to a female on the set, by placing the pistol to his head and firing a blank round into his skull. That was NOT an ACCIDENT, that was plain stupidity. Hexum was a MORON and splattered his own brain, therefore that doesn’t count as an “accident” or mishap.  Brandon Lee’s death happened because the armorer on set didn’t fully clear the weapon of a bullet, from a “dummy round”, which had become lodged in the cylinder of the revolver used in the scene. A subsequently loaded “blank round” propelled the lodged bullet down the barrel leading to the death of Lee. That was determined to be “negligence” on the part of the armorer. The facts are that prior to this incident involving Alec Baldwin there are a total of ONE death due to the USE OF FIREARMS on movie sets.

Perhaps the histrionic news media should review facts before writing stories. ONE is not MORE THAN FORTY (“scores“, a score is 20 so “scores” would imply 40 or more). ONE is not a “LONG HISTORY” of accidents.

More people have been killed while filming automobile and aircraft scenes in movies than by filming firearms scenes. Why isn’t there any outcry to eliminate cars and planes in movies?