I hear what you're saying, but no guarantee they'll shoot worth a darn with a .243, either. If they're going to make a bad shot, might as well be with a heavier round.
Most of the time, the shooter who is bad with a 300 magnum, is also a poor shot with a .22.
What does a "heavier round" get you? What bullet do you shoot in the 300 mag that turns a gut shot elk, into a not gut shot elk?
There isn't "power" in any cartridge. Bullets kill by destroying tissue. How much tissue is destroyed depends on how deep and how wide the wound channel is, and where that wound channel is placed.
I see A LOT of people shoot, including children, and have seen the exact opposite from what you believe. Take anyone with a flinch and give them 200 rounds (or 1,000 rounds) of 300 mag and they won't fix their flinch no matter how much time you give them. Hand that same person a 223 and within 20 minutes they're over it.
Having taught and taken a bunch of first time hunters and shooters to their first animal, including elk, I absolutely would rather them take WHATEVER gun/cartridge combination they hit the best with from field positions, whether it be a 223 with bonded bullets or a 338WM.
Personally I believe it's ludicrous that people take anyone hunting after 20-30 rounds of "practice" and think they are ready. I've watched plenty of people take they're children/wives/girlfriends/friends hunting for the first time after the usual shoot a few rounds from the bench (some never had them shoot at all), and see the frustrations, failure and disappointments that usually result. There is a lot of reasons for that, not the least of which is not knowing to use the gun they have.
I, and those I hunt and shoot with have a 100% success rate when we let a new hunter choose what they carry after truly teaching them how to shoot and handle whatever weapon they are using competently from field positions while being timed (make it a game). Teach them, make them apart of the entire process and let them choose what they use. Very often they will choose a very low recoiling round, and they will kill with it just fine.
