Alec Baldwin and gun safety

Since Alec Baldwin's tragic mistake is in the news, it occurs to me that Puritanism about guns -- the idea that there is something so dangerous there that we cannot even think about them -- results in harm.

I was pointing out to someone that one should take responsibility for the safety of any weapon one handles. If Baldwin had taken one -- just one -- gun safety course this terrible death could have been avoided.

My interlocutor repeated Baldwin's dodge (apparently -- I'm not really following the story), that somehow the prop director is at fault. The truth is that everyone who handled the gun is at fault, including Baldwin. But Baldwin is the one who pulled the trigger. Simple gun safety protocol -- of which I believe most are ignorant -- shows this. 

Let me tell you what I told this fellow, on the theory that it might promote gun safety just a little. I am certainly no expert. I stand by my Second Amendment Rights but also by the responsibilities entailed. I probably have some of the terminology wrong, because as I said, I'm not an expert. Nevertheless, here you go -- this is my attempt to explain that it's the person who fired the gun who was at fault for not following basic gun safety, and maybe if you someday pick up a weapon, you will remember how it goes:

If you (or let's say, Alec Baldwin) took a gun safety course, here is what happens:

The instructor (who is knowledgeable and experienced, literally a gun expert) takes the weapon, points it in a safe direction, flips open the cylinder (if a revolver) or expels the magazine (if a pistol). He spins the cylinder and examines each chamber, or takes the slide back far enough to ensure there is no ammo inside. With a pistol, he inserts his pinky finger to be sure there isn't a round chambered.

He then returns the cylinder/reinserts the empty magazine and activates the safety. He hands the weapon, handle first, to you, the ignorant student.

Your weapon has now been checked and determined to be ammo-free by an expert.

What should you do?

If you say "it's ammo-free, I'm good, someone else has dealt with it" and take the weapon and start whatever it was you were going to do, YOU FLUNK.

YOU go through the exact same procedure that he JUST PERFORMED before your VERY EYES. Step by step. And only then do YOU know that your weapon is safe to handle. If you watch responsible gun owners, they go through this procedure without even thinking, just like you check around your car before you get in, without even thinking. 

This video demonstrates what I'm talking about. Note at the end he says, "I check it. I'm not going to take anyone's word for it."