Idiot Warnings on Guns. Law?

[rocinante]

Is there some law requiring manufacturers to engrave idiot warnings on a firearm? Are lawyers so in control or potential juries so stupid that it is not a given that handling and operating a firearm improperly is inherently dangerous? I personally am insulted and don't like MY property defaced with unnecessary UGLY STUPID nanny state bull. Cha ching. my two cents.

my ruger new vaquero says under the barrel and out of sight

BEFORE USING GUN READ WARNINGS IN INSTRUCTION MANUAL AVAILABLE FREE FROM STURM RUGER & CO INC. SOUTHPORT CONN. USA

my marlin 1894C says but not too obtrusive on the barrel

WARNING! Misuse can cause injury or death -- follow warning and instructions in owner's manual

Looking at a BAIKAL BOUNTY HUNTER II shotgun in HUGE UGLY PROMINENT LETTERS. I was considering one until I saw that atrocity.

READ OWNER'S MANUAL BEFORE USE

neither my saiga rifle or shotgun has idiot messages engraved on them. Is this because evil black guns are inherently scary looking?

 

[SDC]

It's merely a case of CYA; if someone DOES do something stupid, and ends up hurting themselves or someone else with one of those guns and tries to sue the company for it, all they need to do is say "Hey, the gun itself says to RTFM; you didn't do that, so you're the author of your own misfortune."

 

[Standing Wolf]

The fear of lawyers is a certain indicator of social rot.

 

[W.E.G.]

My law is that I make every effort to avoid buying guns with that sort of damage.

You won't see that on a Glock, or a Colt, or an AR15, or a FAL.

 

[MDW GUNS]

I hope gun manufacturers read post like this, because I see this as an insult as well!

 

[RPCVYemen]

My law is that I make every effort to avoid buying guns with that sort of damage.

One of two things will happen:

1. The idiot messages will become the standard, in which case avoiding them will severely limit your choice of weapon, or
   
2. Manufactuers will stop stop putting the idiot warnings on handguns. If that happens, 25 years from now, all the old geezers on THR will be saying, "The 2032 models are crap. Quality has gone to hell. The best models they ever made with the '08 year. I have been high and low for an early S&W 'idiot warning' model, and I can't find one for under $20,000."

Mike

 

[MDW GUNS]

I hope not that this becomes the standard.
If it does, where does it stop?
Will there in 10 years be a display on your gun asking:
Are you sure you want to pull the trigger?
Press YES if so or NO if not; press INFO for more information!

 

[Liko81]

Manufacturers are covering their ass. They want it understood that, given that they make their money from firearms as the 2A gives them the right, they have done everything possible to make sure the firearm owner does what they have a responsibility to do: learn how the gun operates and how to use it safely. Lawyers have tried going after manufacturers for supplying the weapon that a gunman used to slaughter a school, or for supplying semi-auto versions of select-fire or full-auto weapons that are so easy to revert to that state that that MUST have been the manufacturer's intention.

Even if there is no criminal liability, it would take millions of dollars for a manufacturer to defend themselves against a class-action suit, and such suits generally go against the deep pockets in favor of the little guy. All it takes is one victory and a gun crime victim could end up with a controlling interest in Colt, Ruger or Smith & Wesson, or even H&K or Sig, and what do you expect someone against guns will do to a gun manufacturer under their control? They'll liquidate the company for every penny its assets are worth and everybody else with a stake in that company loses completely. Gun manufacturers are therefore going to take every step they can, while still being able to sell firearms, to ensure they are not held liable for criminal or uneducated use or misuse.

It's similar to signs saying "we are not responsible for loss, theft or injury on our property". BS, of course they're liable for a death or injury caused by an amusement park ride they maintain, and such statements hold exactly zero weight even if in a contract such as a membership form. But if it prevents even one lawsuit it's worth hanging the sign. On a firearm or other consumer product it holds even more weight; given that ANYTHING can be used as a weapon, holding the maker responsible for an item's misuse is absolutely unassentable. Such claims only have merit when an action that can result in harm is (1) undertaken by a minor, (2) whose parents could not reasonably have known the danger involved, and (3) is so likely to happen that the manufacturer could not have failed to realize the action would eventually happen. An adult knows that a firearm is dangerous, and therefore should be expected to take steps to discourage minors from improper use; therefore the liability rests with the parent of the minor as it usually does when the minor does something stupid or criminal.

 

[joffe]

If they stamp that on the gun they can forget my business. What happened to warning labels that were supposed to be read and then disposed of?

Do you see any cars with WARNING: OBEY SPEED LIMIT. WEAR SEAT BELT. stamped on the steering wheel? No? Auto manufacturers have come up with less obtrusive solutions to the lawyer problem, gun manufacturers should be able to use the grey matter they were issued at birth and stop this nonsense.

 

[Nightwing]

This is my favorite one yet. I laughed so hard when I saw this!

Had to set the gun down and laugh for like 10 minutes

 

[siglite]

When I first saw that picture ^^ I thought "Some jerk stole my photo!" I took one a couple of years ago of the same thing... But my picture's better

 

[Nightwing]

^ hahaha. Was so funny!
Also had another gun that had a huge sticker wrapped around it! I had to peel it off of the gun, and clean all the adhesive off of the gun. It was awesome.

 

[jpcampbell]

Having removable stickers would be great until the original owner sold the gun then the new owner could sue the manufacture for any mishap.
It will only be a matter of time before the warnings have to be in other languages as well as English, their won't be a spot on the gun without a warning.

 

[siglite]

Oh... and I fail to see how those idiot warnings affect the accuracy, reliability, or function of a firearm.

If I have a bolt-gun that shoots sub MOA, I could care less if it has "YOO R TEH STOOPUD, NOOB" stamped in the barrel. If my semi-auto EBR shoots 50,000 rounds without a serious malfunction, it's just fine with me if it has "U R DUM, DONT SHUUT URSELF, K BAI" stamped in the receiver.

Who cares what it says? Does it work? Is congress trying to ban it? Have you written your congressman lately about the stupidity of bans? What really matters here?

I think every barrel should be stamped "Please write your congressman today in support of the 2nd Amendment." Or "Please submit a positive story on firearms to your local media source."

But hey, that's me.

 

[Master Blaster]

Buy a ladder or scaffold lately? A sticker on every rung.

Lawsuits are the reason for the idiot warnings.
If you want to blame someone blame the lawyers, and the idiots who sue for their own mistakes, not their victims. Blame the DNC handmaiden of the legal profession.

 

[Nightwing]

U R DUM, DONT SHUUT URSELF, K BAI

haha. OMG! HI2U! NuGUN? Bc423fu1!!! OK BAI!!!

 

[BruceB]

For Heaven's sake, there is a REASON for the warnings!

Back in the early '70s, Ruger was was forced to pay MANY MILLIONS OF DOLLARS in a suit by a fool who shot himself with an "old model" Ruger single-action revolver. In spite of 130 years' use of such single-actions by shooters, this guy ignored the common practices associated with original Colt-style actions, and shot himself. The suit was the direct cause of the re-design by Ruger which gave us the New Model single-action revolvers.

Since then, to minimize the chances of having to pay another massive settlement, the safety warnings have appeared on all Rugers. The warning inscription may even have been required by the court, although I'm not certain about that. Other manufacturers, also desirous of staying in business, saw the possibility of their own liability, and acted likewise.

Would you rather see the manufacturers forced out of business by bankruptcy, just so we can smugly say that our "intelligence" is not being "insulted" by such warnings? IT HAS ALREADY HAPPENED! The gunmakers are protecting their very existence from the legal sharks that eagerly attack whenever a potential profit rears its head.

I would say that one of the primary aims of a business, almost as important as making a profit, is to PROTECT the business from harm with a view to STAYING in business. I don't like the warnings, either, but I understand why they're on the guns.

 

[Nightwing]

MY GIFT TO YOU ALL

 

[Bezoar]

but the thing is, when the original colt saa came out, if you shot yourself, everybody told ya "gee hope you learned not to do that again" just further proof that idiocy and lawyers have violated or collective self.

 

[strat81]

Hopefully a lawyer will chime in, but I recall from my biz law classes that this has to do with civil law and torts. Product liability and negligence on behalf of the company seems to be the issue. It's not just guns.

Bought a new car lately? Look at the sun visors for child seat warnings.
Pumped gas lately? It's flammable, or so the sign says.
And the one we ALL know... HOT COFFEE from McDonalds.

Remember... it's never your fault. It's always (ALWAYS!) someone else's fault. Usually its the fault of a big, bad, evil corporation.

 

[siglite]

The warnings don't matter. I saw a case where a guy shot himself in the leg with a Remington 30-06. The barrel had the idiot stamps. I saw and heard the judge flat out TELL the plaintiff "I think you shot yourself for the money." The plaintiff still won a huge settlement.

 

[Ultrachimp]

Oh... and I fail to see how those idiot warnings affect the accuracy, reliability, or function of a firearm.

If I have a bolt-gun that shoots sub MOA, I could care less if it has "YOO R TEH STOOPUD, NOOB" stamped in the barrel. If my semi-auto EBR shoots 50,000 rounds without a serious malfunction, it's just fine with me if it has "U R DUM, DONT SHUUT URSELF, K BAI" stamped in the receiver.

Who cares what it says? Does it work? Is congress trying to ban it? Have you written your congressman lately about the stupidity of bans? What really matters here?

I think every barrel should be stamped "Please write your congressman today in support of the 2nd Amendment." Or "Please submit a positive story on firearms to your local media source."

But hey, that's me.

I'd *want* a gun that said "YOO R TEH STOOPUD, NOOB" or "U R DUM, DONT SHUUT URSELF, K BAI" stamped on it. Hell, where can I get it done?

 

[foghornl]

Maybe something stamped near the muzzle crown:

VERY FAST Pointy stuff exits here.

 

[jakemccoy]

I don't think I have any warnings on my guns. If I saw such warnings, it didn't bother me enough to remember what it said.

 

[Owen Sparks]

I used to teach a martial arts class. I was worried that someone might get hurt and sue me so I talked to a lawyer about the wording for a disclaimer. He said that in my state, you can't get people to "sign away their rights".
What he suggested is that instead of having students sign something saying that they would not sue me, was to have them sign a paper acknowledging that they were aware that the practice of Karate was potentially dangerous and that they understood that by participating that they were putting themselves at risk of serious bodily injury or even death. Of course we never had any one get killed or even hurt beyond a few bumps and bruises but I had to exaggerate the dangers on the disclaimer. That way if it ever got to court, no one could say that they weren't warned of the dangers.

I think that is what the gun industry is trying to do.