Reply #85: I learned to shoot at that age. [View All]

[jeepnstein]

It was just part of growing up. Of course, it was also highly structured and "my" rifle was kept with the others. Ammo was tightly controlled and stored separately. I wasn't allowed to shoot on my own until I was something like twelve or thirteen. As a result, I've never really viewed guns as anything other than incredibly dangerous tools that require strict adherence to all the safety rules. The biggest rule was "You killed it so now you're going to eat it". That really takes the fun out of taking random shots at the local wildlife.

The eight year old in this case must have had something serious going on. I've never met a murderer yet that didn't have a "valid" reason for what they did. They're fascinating people to spend some time with. Of course, their thinking is seriously flawed but they can pretty well tell you exactly why they did it. Here's a hint, "I just snapped" is a cop-out they use to avoid the death penalty.