Appearing on CNN's Piers Morgan Tonight earlier this week, actor Richard Dreyfuss made some refreshing comments about the National Rifle Association, saying that they are best group to turn to for solutions on gun violence while noting they are experts and were founded in order to education people about firearms.
"I don't think the NRA is a villian," Dreyfuss said. "I think we should turn this over to the people who are expert at this and the original mandate of the NRA was to train responsible gun ownership and the NRA should handle it. They should train excellence in gun ownership."
He did take a dig at "people killing weapons," but instead of suggesting a ban on them, he suggested they be held in an armory controlled by the NRA, not the government.
"The NRA should be thought of, or think of themselves, as heroes and take care of this problem," Dreyfuss said.
Nearly one million people go through NRA firearms training courses each year and the organization has a youth program whose instructors have taught more than 15 million children across the country about firearms safety.
In civilian training, the NRA continues to be the leader in firearms education. Over 50,000 Certified Instructors now train about 750,000 gun owners a year. Courses are available in basic rifle, pistol, shotgun, muzzleloading firearms, personal protection, and even ammunition reloading. Additionally, nearly 1,000 Certified Coaches are specially trained to work with young competitive shooters. Since the establishment of the lifesaving Eddie Eagle® Gun Safety Program in 1988, more than 12 million pre-kindergarten to sixth grade children have learned that if they see a firearm in an unsupervised situation, they should "STOP. DON'T TOUCH. LEAVE THE AREA. TELL AN ADULT." Over the past seven years, Refuse To Be A Victim® seminars have helped more than 15,000 men and women develop their own personal safety plan using common sense strategies.