On Wed, 02 Nov 2005 21:27:03 GMT, Dave Lyon wrote:

My understanding is that every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
Therefore, the energy that is applied to the bullet must be absorbed by the
gun and the shooter in the opposite direction.

Yes. Only reason it doesn't hurt you is because it's more spread out
(area), and dampened by the mass of the firearm. You still get the same
energy delivered to you (more, actually, due to air resistance to the
bullet), it's just spread out over more area _and_ more time so you're
not injured.

Dave Hinz