What could POSSIBLY go wrong? Via ThinkProgress:

Sen. Lee Bright (R), the sponsor of the legislation, argues that “the more guns we have the safer we are.” “[H]ad there been someone in Newtown with a weapon, had it been a teacher, they could have stopped it early,” Bright explained. His bill would allow schools to offer gun training at an off-site location: Bright says he got the idea after hearing from older constituents who “remembered the days” when students could join a rifle team or learn about shooting during a school day. “We’ve got football, we’ve got basketball, and we’ve got baseball,” says Bright. “I think if they had a hunting team, it would be a great idea.”

The class, dubbed the “South Carolina Gun Safety Program” course, would focus on learning how to properly use a firearm, safety techniques, and the history of the 2nd amendment and the right to bear arms, according to Bright. “The more training we can get on the history of our nation, the founding of our nation, the better,” he says.

What he really means is: The earlier we can indoctrinate our kids into our obsessive gun cult, the harder it will be for them to act like rational people.

This bill is meant for high school. But once that’s normalized, it won’t take much to extend it to junior high and then, why the hell not?, elementary school. Get’em while they’re young and you’ll have an responsible gun owner NRA member for life.

I imagine that, say, California had a gun safety class that highlighted how dangerous guns are and the statistics on gun violence, Republicans would be howling about brainwashing. But putting a real gun in the hands of kids? FREEDOM!

Just as a personal aside: I taught archery at a summer camp for two years. Despite my repeated warning that even the crappy bow and arrows we were shooting were potentially lethal, the kids, particularly the teens, couldn’t help but screw around with them. Going so far as to point them at each other. I’m sure nothing bad will ever happen in a gun course, though.

And before some wise ass cracks a joke that I was a terrible instructor, make sure you have a way of guaranteeing every gun instructor will be a top of the line professional.

Like this guy!