When a young girl got a shotgun as a present, she was overcome with joy, but haters everywhere sharply denounced the gift and tried to spoil her moment.
A young girl named Presley was given a special gift, and as she opened it she was overcome with unabashed joy and excitement. What kind of gift could spark such an emotional response, you might ask? I'll tell you what: a brand new Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon over-under shotgun.
Clearly, this was a shotgun that she'd long dreamed about having for her very own. Her parents knew it and filmed the opening of the gift, which no doubt signified the high level of trust they felt toward their daughter.
They filmed the episode and sent it to Beretta, the firearms company, which proudly published the video on their facebook page. Beretta rightly called the video "touching" and an "emotional moment," saying "It's what we call #BerettaJoy."
That's when the hate began pouring in—but before we get to that, you have to see this video. You can't keep from smiling if you try.
As though on cue, and typically predictable of gun control and anti-hunting advocates, the clueless and ignorant anti-gun crowd began responding to the video with sharp criticism of everything from Presley's parents to American culture. Some called her parents "irresponsible," "disgusting" and worse.
"What a disgusting gift for a child," wrote one.
"This message is horrible!!! Kids should cry for puppies or for a new game, or for a beautiful present, but not for a gun! I'm so sorry, but this is horrible!!!" said another.
Other comments were much worse than that. Many people also used the opportunity to criticize America, saying such things as "...who would waste his time teaching kids something smart when you can give them weapons and teach them how to kill? America is such a BRILLIANT country, destined for destruction."
"This is appalling," declared another. "The American psyche is beyond redemption. The place is awash with guns. Your society is heading towards oblivion. You have made pariahs of yourselves with this predilection towards firearms. It is insane. Build a wall. Stay inside it. Give the rest of the world a break."
Many of the negative commentators seemed to come from countries outside of the U.S., and I'm also betting that nary a one of them had every visited the Beretta page before this incident came into their view. Fortunately, there were many very supportive comments as well, from people who defended and celebrated the young girl's coming of age and the exceptional gift she received.
One sensible person wrote, "These ppl trashing the parents for buying their kid a gun are out of touch snowflakes. That little girl is without a doubt more responsible than all these ppl who have their panties all balled up. Enjoy the gun kid and shoot straight."
Another said, "I have read a lot of these posts hating on the fact that this child is getting excited over a gun... But raising a child to use and respect firearms raises them to a maturity level that so many of the adults responding can only hope to achieve."
A third posted this mature comment, "I'm saddened to read comments calling this disgusting or horrible or wrong. She is happy to receive an amazing gift and I'm just as happy for her. Guns are not evil. They are NOT wrong. Teach a young child to respect guns and handle them safely. You have a right to your opinion, but how dare you belittle a child's emotions simply because they don't line up with your own. Shameful."
Try as they might to ruin young Presley's special day, I have a feeling that all of these hateful individuals failed miserably. Hopefully she is as mature, responsible and sensible as her parents obviously believe she is, and the stupid and ugly comments from the clueless nattering crowd will be like so much water rolling off a duck's back.
It's a shame that these people don't know what it's like to be trusted by their parents, or that they live in countries where their upbringing makes such freedoms seem foreign and weird.
Like what you see here? You can read more great articles by David Smith at his facebook page, Stumpjack Outdoors.
NEXT: Why I Do Hope Someone Tries to Shoot Me
