I have no issues with teaching children the proper way to use guns and rifles. In this case I don't think the girl should have be allowed to shoot that type of a weapon, it was poor judgment on the part of both her parents and the instructor. The burgers and bullets thing seems a bit whack to me though, how about a normal shooting range with qualified instructors in your area.
From what I understand, this was the pistol version of the UZI, which would be harder to brace and control for anyone, compared to the rifle version, especially for a young girl that had no previous training. I think the instructor should have been behind her also, just in case something went wrong, not next to her.
It's too bad the little girl will have to live with this hanging over her head for the rest of her life, for that she can thank her parents. You don't have to be a genius to see that allowing your little girl to shoot an UZI like that, is not a smart idea. Maybe a 22 rifle would have been a wiser choice.
All the years of responsible owners and users not having a negative gun-related incident in their lifetimes, does not make headlines. You don't hear of all those families over the years who grew up with guns in their homes, learned to use them, clean them and respect them. When people save their own lives because a criminal was about to rape and kill them, but they used their gun for protection, that does not make the headlines.
That doesn't mean that there isn't a large segment of people in America who own and use guns in a responsible way. The headlines are made when gangs and criminals shoot each other, or innocent victims, and they will
always get their weapons illegally off the streets regardless of how strict gun laws get. And it is true that crime does go down in areas which allow concealed carry, and have relaxed gun laws.