Folks from all over the net are commenting about the just-released White House photo of the president supposedly skeet shooting at Camp David back in August. My first impression of the photo was that he couldn't possibly be shooting launched clay pigeons because the muzzle of the barrel is not elevated enough to hit an aerial target. That mystery has been solved for me by blog master Jonn Lilyea, over at the military blog, This Ain't Hell, with the posting of a second, more complete photo which includes the target.

Another, easily spotted discrepancy is that the shotgun is improperly held: the butt of the stock is sitting too high on Obama's shoulder to absorb the recoil. Firing multiple shot shells from a shotgun held in that position would quickly become a very painful experience.And, there's no evidence of recoil which anyone who's ever fired a shotgun, even with target loads, knows is substantial.

The question is why, if the president is a frequent and accomplished skeet shooter, as the White House claims, would they release a photo which makes him look so amateurish?