Blinded By The Frog

Some Denton-area teenagers were out playing with a potato gun over the weekend and the episode ended badly for one of them: (Denton Record-Chronicle, registration may be required)

A Denton teen is in critical condition after being shot in the face with a frog exploding from a potato gun, and his mother wants to know why the illegal weapons are available on the Internet.

Daniel Benjamin Berry, 17, was taken to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth early Sunday after he looked down the PVC pipe barrel and was struck in the face by a frog.

"He is going to be blind in both eyes," said his mother, Lisa Berry, from her vigil in the critical care waiting room. "Some other kid ordered one [potato gun] over the Internet. They thought it was a toy. It's not a toy. It's a dangerous weapon."

The accident occurred about 1 a.m. near the Old Alton Bridge in the Copper Canyon area. Denton County Sheriff's spokesman Kevin Patton said three teens took the homemade mechanism, which is considered an illegal weapon, to the bridge along with a supply of potatoes to fire for recreation.

"At some point, someone decided to fire frogs from the gun," Mr. Patton said. "And at some point, the gun misfired."

A crowd of teens had gathered to watch, the sheriff's spokesman said.

"Mr. Berry was a spectator. He walked over to try to help with the misfire. He looked down the barrel and the gun fired on a delayed reaction. The frog struck him in the face."

...

Ms. Berry said she doesn't blame the other boys for her son's injuries. They did not know the destructive power of the weapon they bought, she said. Once her son is past the critical phase, she plans to find out more about how such weapons can be sold, she said.

Daniel wanted to join the Air Force but she would not sign for him, she said. She encouraged him to go to college until he was old enough to join without parental consent. So he has been attending the International Business School in Denton.

"All he ever wanted to do was be an Air Force pilot," she said. "That isn't going to happen now."

This whole incident leaves me with several rather intemperate thoughts:

• Where was the parental surpervision? They may be teenagers, but they're still underage and need guidance.
• Why didn't the parents of the other teen who ordered the gun know about it? It's not like it's a popgun you can hide under a shirt or something. It's a freaking potato gun.
• I don't understand how they thought this kid would be able to become a pilot. If he doesn't have enough sense not to look down the barrel of an explosive device, he doesn't have enough smarts to be a pilot
• What kind of sadistic bastard puts a frog in a potato gun? I know that young kids can be somewhat cruel, but these were teenagers. They're supposed to know better.

Of course the mother wants to hunt down the potato gun supplier, but why didn't she raise her son with enough sense to avoid looking down the barrel of a gun?

Am I just an insensitive prick for thinking that a bit of personal responsibility is needed here? Frankly, at this point, I don't care anymore. I'm tired of things being made against the law because some irresponsible people don't have enough sense not to get themselves hurt doing something stupid. (I didn't put that bit about "something to offend everyone" up there in the top left corner for nothing.)

Posted by Aubrey at April 15, 2003 10:28 AM