The only thing I learn at the range (besides my trigger control ) somedays is how delusional some people are about firearms...
"Yikes, that's a 45!!! You could shoot someone in the pinky...."
"Wow, your little 22 seems more powerful than my 38...."
"That bulk ammo sucks, you should use...."
Hopefully the range was different in "those days"
Doubtful. You'd assume that, considering that most everything was spread only by experience and word of mouth at that point, and actual education (teaching, informational reading, etc), you'd hope that mass communication would make information easier to find, not make the wrong information easier to toss around. Also, statistically, that average IQ in the US has risen over the past 50 years, whether it seems like it or not.