Just wondering

If you have a decent recall of “The Andy Griffith Show,” there is a good chance you remember a certain running gag.

A couple of times each season, Deputy Fife would accidentally discharge his sidearm, whereupon Sheriff Taylor would relieve him of the weapon.

I’m sure most of us found this amusing. But would we now?

Anyone who pays the slightest attention to the news has to have been exposed to countless reports of accidental gunshots and the carnage they have caused.

So is there a point when depictions of careless gun-handling ceases to be funny?

To be sure, it was a different time. Just think about the presentation of Otis the town drunk.

And let’s not forget, it was all make-believe. I guess that’s why nobody ever got hurt when Barney’s gun kept going off.