Why U.S. Gun Sales Are Shooting For The Moon

[hack89]

According to the FBI, over 1.5 million background checks on customers looking to purchase a firearm were requested by gun dealers to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) last December. That’s a record. In fact, nearly 500,000 of those background checks occurred during the six days before Christmas—people were putting more than Red Rider BB guns under their trees!

This $4.1 billion industry “has had nineteen months of growth in an otherwise anemic economy,” boasts Sanetti. “We’re grateful and proud that our industry has helped maintain jobs from the manufacturer through retail levels during these difficult economic times.”

Indeed, this prolonged surge in gun sales has driven Sarah Brady’s group to some very creative spin; for example, Caroline Brewer, of the Brady Campaign, said, “The research we’ve seen indicates fewer and fewer people are owning more and more guns.”

Sanetti doesn’t think the Brady Campaign’s spin has a syllable of truth in it; after all, he pointed out that the NSSF’s First Shots Program (a program that holds shooting lessons for the public) has been growing fast. “Fun, new action-shooting sports, such as 3-gun and sporting clays, are also bringing in a lot of new shooters, especially women,” he says.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/frankminiter/2012/01/18/why-u-s-gun-sales-are-shooting-for-the-moon/2/

[ileus]

1. People are learning shooting sports are a fun family activity.

Plus they're handy for hunting, and self defense.

So many great uses for firearms no one can own just one.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

2. I have been running into "Prepers" lately

Many are of the liberal persuasion and urban. Not clear how pervasive they are, but their numbers seem to be growing.

[montanto]

4. What is a "preper?" Not familiar with the term.

[DonP]

6. "Preppers" is kind of a new group - as in being "prep"ared

From what I've seen so far they range from people that stockpile some water and food and have a generator and fuel against anything from a serious Winter storm or other weather related disaster, to being "prepped" for the electrical grid going down for an extended period.

They can be urban as much as suburban, versus rural. Having firearms for home defense and possible hunting is pretty much integral to their philosophy.

There are actually a growing group of stores that cater to them now, everything from storage barrels and systems for collecting rainwater to small windmills for generating your own power.

IMHO, they are more pragmatic and not as "far down the road" as the "survivalists" that are stocking their bunkers, but they may shop at the same stores. e.g. 8 or 9 55 gallon barrels of hard wheat and their own hand operated mill etc.

[montanto]

9. Ah, I see.

I guess I'm a "prepper lite." Living in L.A. and being aware that a major earthquake could put civilization offline for a few days or weeks I try to make sure I've got subsistence food and water for such a period, as well as the means to defend myself and my family over such a time. People get pretty crazy when the lights go out. I'm not hoping for any long term vacation from civilization though.

[DonP]

10. Most of us are, to one degree or another

Every time they predict a heavy snow up North, a hurricane down South or serious Tremors out West we're treated to the footage of people in a grocery store fighting over the last package of Pampers or gallon jugs of water.

The whole Katrina disaster made it pretty clear that you and your neighbors better be prepared to take care of yourselves for at least a while. The old saw, "What do you do when you dial 911 and nobody answers?", applies here.

A few days of food and some extra water, a generator and a reliable source of heat (where I live) covers the basic needs

I'd rather not be there "dukeing it out" on the 10 o'clock news with the Minivan driving neighbor lady over the last box of Cheerios East of Dodge city.

[MicaelS]

49. And now we have Doomsday Preppers on NG

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/doomsday-preppers/

Doomsday Preppers explores the lives of otherwise ordinary Americans who are preparing for the end of the world as we know it. Unique in their beliefs, motivations, and strategies, preppers will go to whatever lengths they can to make sure they are prepared for any of life’s uncertainties. And with our expert’s assessment, they will find out their chances of survival if their worst fears become a reality.

[aikoaiko]

14. I thought he meant "prepster"

Prepster

[IMG][/IMG]

Armed preppies. It could be a whole new market.

[Hoyt]

43. They are called "Young Republicans."

[rrneck]

5. Is that "preppers"? nt

[ProgressiveProfessor]

13. My spell checker did not like it either way

[BiggJawn]

12. I'm a Prepper, she's a Prepper, he's a Prepper, we're all Preppers...

... wouldn't you like to be a Prepper, too? Be a Prepper...
OK, couldn't resist.

It doesn't give a Liberal boy much comfort when he reads about municipalities being so strapped for cash that they're not responding to certain police calls anymore. I live in one of the poorest counties in the state, it's already a 15-minute wait from the time you call 911 to The Man showing up, I would hate to see what's going to happen when the crunch hits this part of the state.

The power grid in this village is flaky, too. Last outage was 3 1/2 days, the average outage is usually 4-10 hours. we have a Gennie, a goodly collection of "Aladdin" mantle lamps, and canned goods. Also a camp stove in case the gas gets disrupted.

Plus I bought a pellet rifle on a whim and re-discovered how much I enjoy shooting. since I'm no longer bothered with an ex-stepson who thinks he's Thug Life personified, there's no reason not to rebuild the small collection I had.

[DonP]

15. Alladin lights are great

My family started buying them years ago when they were still relatively cheap. My mother was an Iowa farm girl and they grew up with them. Much better than plain kerosene wick lamps.

They put out so much light with just a little kerosene, that every time they lost power in our neighborhood we'd get neighbors stopping by to ask why we hadn't lost our lights too. They put out quite a bit of heat too, if you need to take the chill out of the place.

I grew up out in the boonies. Being ready for a power loss or being snowed in with no cops or fire departments within 30 minutes or so was an integral part of living out there.

[X_Digger]

16. What is this device?

We use coleman lamps- would this be something similar?

[PavePusher]

18. Similar concept....

http://www.aladdinlamps.com/Index.asp

Aladdin's didn't used to have the mantle, just a wick. That's the style I grew up with. These newer ones give off a lot more light.

[X_Digger]

19. Ahh, an oil lamp.

We had plenty of those too. Never used kerosene in them though, too stinky. Lamp oil is relatively cheap.

[PavePusher]

22. Yep. We used 'em a lot in rural New England.

I currently have two each of these: http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/sportsmans/Stansport-Kerosene-Hurricane-Lanterns/productDetail/Fuel-Lanterns/prod9999001066/cat100902

in the garage for power outages. I should break them out tonight and test 'em, haven't used them in over a year.

[DonP]

20. A Kerosene lantern with a mantle

Alladin lamps use a Coleman style mantle and a wick as opposed to the old fashioned railroad style lanterns, with just a braided cloth wick. The lamps put out almost as much light (some say more) than a Coleman without the pressure pumping. or any special fuel. They run on plain old kerosene.

They are usually good sized and hold plenty of fuel, so they run for a long time on one filling. They are made from plain pressed glass to very elaborate cut glass models with very elaborate hand painted glass shades with reflectors for use in the "parlor".

They've become very popular with both collectors, and "preppers" I guess, because they were the peak of technology before the REA and electricity made it to all the rural areas in the '30's. There is a whole side business of lamps and parts for them on E-Bay.

I have a couple decorative ones filled and ready, just in case I need heat and light in a hurry.

[X_Digger]

21. My mom still has the oil lamps my great grandmother used.

They didn't get electricity until the early 50's, so these were 'working' lamps.

I still see them occasionally in thrift stores and flea markets.

[DonP]

23. They're practrical for me

I live out in the boonies now, at the end of a dead end street. Excuse me, as the realtor told me, "a desirable Cul de Sac location".

I'm at the complete end of the electrical "hose" so if anything happens anywhere along the power line, my lights go bye bye. The house is well insulated and holds the heat pretty well, but having a few of those lamps, a cast iron Franklin stove and a box or two of Blue Tips makes it a whole lot more comfortable for even the short outages.

With my own well and septic and a generator with plenty of gas I'm pretty well set up for a few days, or even more in a pinch. But the lamps are pretty always remind me of my mom and light right up when I need them.

I keep my eyes open for them when I'm looking through an antique or second hand store in the small town in Central Illinois. The original Alladin's can be way overpriced, but once in a while you can come across a deal.

[X_Digger]

24. Might have to check em out.

The only thing I don't like about the colemans is the pumping. If these ones with a mantle are brighter than a well-pumped coleman, I might have to switch.

[DonP]

25. Alladin's are very quiet too, none of that loud "hissing" you get with Coleman's

No pumping and no noise. You'll have to judge the brightness for yourself.

[BiggJawn]

36. About as bright as a 40W bulb.

I have no trouble reading by the light of an Aladdin. In the winter, they also put out enough heat to help warm the place. This is not a desired feature in the summer. I've picked the up at flea markets and get wicks, chimneys, and mantles on-line. I have 5 of them.

[oneshooter]

27. I have 3 "engine lights" that graced the front of steam engines

Got 2 under the front porch, and one on the barn. They each have 2 wicks and the tanks can hold over a gallon of oil! I had the reflectors resilvered and found a place to replace the missing glass. They shine 30-40ft and you can read a paper with them.

Found them in a box of parts at a estate sale 3-4 years ago, took a year to restore.

Oneshooter
Armed and Livin in Texas

[X_Digger]

37. Nice!

I have a 'smudge pot' that my great grandfather used when he was a watchman with the railroad.

[SteveW]

47. Well, not in Dublin, TX anymore. nt

[aikoaiko]

3. The "guns are evil death spewers" rhetoric has lost. It is a bankrupt stance with nothing to offer.

While the surge may have begun as a panic buying in reaction to an anti-RKBA president elect and a Democrat controlled congress, its not about that anymore.

More people are realizing that guns are not evil things (essentially the stance from many anti-RKBA proponents), but tools that can be used responsibly for recreation, sustenance, sport, and self-defense, and that individuals keeping and bearing firearms is an explicitly protected civil liberty.

[E6-B]

11. Gun ownwers not fooled.

People were not fooled by propaganda of the cop killer baby seeking exploding bullets. People saw through the misiformation of high capacity clips shot from the hip. People know the difference between right and wrong, insane and sane.

[burf]

7. I did like the part where they called Caroline Brewer

on her "fewer people buying more guns" statement. If Brady had numbers to back it up, one would think they would be releasing them. Maybe they have just gotta wait for the next Joyce Foundation or Soros check to clear to buy a research group to come up with the predetermined outcome.

[DonP]

8. They can just defer to several posters here

We have a few that insist that there are no, or very very few, "new" gun owners. Don't you just know it's just all of us stockpiling more "assault weapons".

I think if they had to admit that there are actually many more people are buying guns, including their families and neighbors, learning to shoot and enjoying it, their heads would explode like a mud plugged shotgun barrel.

The Brady bunch and friends are struggling and being purposefully fuzzy on their claims because they have nothing substantive to back them up. Usually they try and at least find a kernel of something, and then lie until it sounds scary, but they got nothin' on this one. And the falling crime rate must really piss them off.

[ileus]

17. Maybe it's just people have money again, and don't need another Ipad.

[Doctor_J]

26. For the same reason we have record poverty, bogus elections,

corporations deciding everything that happens, millions without health care, and so on...the country has become a right-wing hell hole.

What used to be a beacon to the world has become a world wide joke, for these reasons and a number of others, including the fact that it's a gun nut's paradise. If you can't see the connection between these issues, you need to read something besides right-wing rags like Forbes and the NRA propaganda. Frankly it's bizarre that a forum whose main concentration is cheerleading far right issues and politicians even exists at this site.

[ellisonz]

28. +1000

[hack89]

30. Still beating that militia horse I see. That battle is lost - time to move on. nt

[ellisonz]

31. Damn right. It's the truth...

[hack89]

34. Unfortunately history disagrees with you.

we know what the writers of the Constitution meant - that common people had the right to own weapons.

[ellisonz]

39. Right-wing Supreme Court Justices disagree with me...

...I can live with that.

[hack89]

42. Most of the US population disagrees with you as well - you have no choice but to live with that. nt

[Hoyt]

45. Not true. Population needs to understand what is going on with guns in public.

[friendly_iconoclast]

50. In this case, "understand" = "agree with me about"

[hack89]

53. They do understand that they have never been safer

that is why you see so many state liberalizing their gun laws - they realize that more guns does not represent a threat.

[Hoyt]

55. Safer? Not because of more guns. Besides, if you are safer, why do you want more guns?

If crime were a big ZERO, you'd still carry a gun or two when you venture out.

[hack89]

56. I like guns because they are fun.

I like to take my family shooting. I very seldom carry in public - but I still plan to increase my gun collection.

[ileus]

33. even though she's wrong the militia is still made up of the people.

[ellisonz]

40. he*

It's in the profile.

[X_Digger]

38. Who are 'the people'?

How are 'the people' in one amendment different than 'the people' in another?

See United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez

http://supreme.justia.com/us/494/259/case.html

[div class='excerpt']The Preamble declares that the Constitution is ordained and established by "the People of the United States." The Second Amendment protects "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms," and the Ninth and Tenth Amendments provide that certain rights and powers are retained by and reserved to "the people." See also U.S. Const., Amdt. 1, ("Congress shall make no law . . . abridging . . . the right of the people peaceably to assemble&quot ; Art. I, § 2, cl. 1 ("The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States&quot . "The people" protected by the Fourth Amendment, and by the First and Second Amendments, and to whom rights and powers are reserved in the Ninth and Tenth Amendments, refers to a class of persons who are part of a national community or who have otherwise developed sufficient connection with this country to be considered part of that community.

[hack89]

29. We also have historically low levels of violent crime - you have never been safer

what harm has come out of increased gun ownership?


Since when is supporting Constitutional rights a RW issue? I support all of the Constitution - not just the parts I agree with.

[Hoyt]

46. When it involves guns in public parks, churches, restaurants, government buildings, etc.

[hack89]

52. So lower levels of gun violence is a RW position? nt

is

[Hoyt]

54. More guns is a RW position. More guns have not caused gun crimes to decline. Give us a break.

[hack89]

57. But more guns have not decreased your safety so what's the big deal?

no one is saying that guns are responsible for the decrease in crime. We are saying that more guns did not lead to more violence. That being the case, more guns clearly do not represent a threat to you.

[PavePusher]

32. Are you the appointed arbiter of determining "cheerleading far right issues and politicians"?

Please present your credentials and proof of training and licensing.

[BiggJawn]

35. What is this?

Another variation on the "No good Liberal would even LOOK at a gun, lest own one" truism?
Horseshit.

[gejohnston]

41. how does any of this follow?

I have lived in and been to more countries than most Americans have been in states. the "they laugh at us for our guns" is pure crap.
Those European "sane" gun laws? They came about after the first world war when governments saw leftist revolutions in Germany and Russia that made OWC look like a kid's tea party. Had nothing to do with crime (even with Vermont like gun laws, the murder rate was as low as now), making a better civil society or any of that other bullshit.

Raymond G. Kessler, a lawyer-sociologist who has provided some of the most sociologically sophisticated insights into the gun control issue, suggests in a Law and Policy Quarterly gun laws are fundamentally conservative or reactionary, having in times and places served a variety of conservative political functions beyond simple crime control. They &quot 1) increase citizen reliance on government and tolerance of increased police powers and abuse; (2) help prevent opposition to the government; (3) facilitate repressive action by government and its allies; (4) lesson the pressure for major or radical reform; and (5) can be selectively enforced against those perceived to be a threat to government."

You mean read Crooks and Liars and Media Matters (free republic left, read the comments there is no difference) where Bush's list went from being a random list of names to a roster of real terrorists? Who write dishonest scribblings about Al Qaida being able to buy machine guns at gun shows and Wal Mart without having to jump through NFA hoops? Sorry, the truth is the truth regardless of where it comes from. I frankly find it bazzare how one can claim to be progressive and part of the "reality based" community while tolerating such dishonesty and hypocrisy.

[Hoyt]

44. Yep.

[SteveW]

48. Unfortunately, your views are rather high-strung...

With regards the U.S. being a "right-wing hell hole," this is because, as a liberal commentator said on C-Span the other day, we have 2 parties: one powerful and right-wing; the other, "ineffective."

It is easy to make a "hell hole" where there is no opposition.

Your use of "gun nut" (apparently okay by the mods, now) is unsupported in terms of crime rate trends or any other measures of social ills, and in any case, is not linked to such purported ills. You chastise others for not "see[ing] the connection between these issues" when you have wholly ignored them yourself.

"Frankly it's bizarre that a forum whose main concentration is cheerleading far right issues and politicians even exists at this site."

Again, you do not explain "...cheerleading far right issues and politicians" (or even list such), but miss-read your fellow liberal progressives, or merely seek to morally condemn them.

You seemed perplexed that this 'forum' exists at this site. You need to re-educate yourself on the Second Amendment. It is (and always has been) a liberal issue to extend and expand ALL rights in the Constitution, including the Second. This has been done with regards the Second, coming as it has right along with the extension and expansion of other civil rights since the 1960s. THAT is why this 'forum' exists -- and why it has a powerful effect -- at this site.

[friendly_iconoclast]

51. "No true Scotsman", eh?