One would have thought there would have been a backing off assault-style weapons following the slaughter of 20 students and six school officials in Connecticut. One certainly could have drawn that conclusion based on all of the rhetoric heating up Washington, D.C.
Since Barack Obama was re-elected to a second term as president of the United States, gun sales have sky-rocketed. Nationwide more than 2.7 million Federal Bureau of Investigation background checks for gun buyers were conducted in December 2012.
Keep in mind that the FBI’s background checks do not include those guns sold at a gun show or from individual private party sales.
While the FBI checks do not represent the actual number of firearms sold, experts say the background check requests do provide the best measure of firearms sales in the United States.
What’s caused the surge?
Citizens are buying guns, large capacity magazines, ammunition and accessories which are targets of the anti-gun crowd. Simply stated, they are exercising their Second Amendment right while the right to buy and own a gun, including the much maligned assault-style rifle, is still on the books. Bottom line: Many Americans fear this Congress and administration will blunt the breadth of the Second Amendment.
Based on FBI background checks, 2012 was a record-setting year for gun sales in the country with more than 19 million background checks conducted.
Local gun retailers say the year-end surge has continued right on into 2013. Dealers say the only thing putting a damper on sales is that demand is outstripping the supply.
New gun laws were tossed around on the Sunday morning news panels, with most suggesting an assault rifle ban. No one is talking about other, more obvious issues, such as video and movie violence, or guns in the hands of mentally unstable citizens.
Keith Hansen
Comments (17)
Add commentBiden is making his list and checking it twice , are you nice ?
Better hide all those guns & ammo deep in your bunker.
Those that aspire to die in a large pile of brass may just NOT get their wish.
I must admit that a doped
up Lil'Cappy would be a, or an, Anto-Gun Person!
How was the Jeep ride Pal?
The last sentence is
The last sentence is blatantly false.
V.P. Hansen is in an editorial rut? Writer's block, perhaps?
As Dr. Peterson pointed out in his excellent examination of your many editorials that have flirted with this subject, V.P. Hansen, you're becoming a bit of a broken, skipping record. Not much new from you, sir, in this opinion piece. And the so-called "anti-gun crowd" isn't, by and large, anti-gun in most circumstances at all (but of course you know this. It's just more fun to incite the masses by saying "anti-gun crowd", right?) There's a new Wash. Post/ABC News Poll that does show some shift in public opinion (in a direction you won't like, Mr. Hansen), even since late Dec. (http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/01/on-eve-of-newtown-recommend...).
Your closing statement is also pretty absurd and inaccurate: "No one is talking about other, more obvious issues, such as video and movie violence, or guns in the hands of mentally unstable citizens." Of course, lots of Americans are talking about the multiple issues involved with our national shame of off-the-charts (compared to the rest of the world) gun deaths and violence. We're talking about ALL of the issues, and, unlike the NRA and the gun-lunatic fringe (small within the NRA), we don't think discussion of certain guns, ammo, and regulations thereof are necessarily off the table. Most Americans are also unmoved by the increasingly silly notion that "guns don't kill people, people kill people." Here's a thought-provoking article that posits the ridiculousness of such a notion: "The Grammar of Gun Control" http://www.redletterchristians.org/the-grammar-of-gun-control/
Speaking of Dr. Peterson's recent letter, what happened to it since last evening, Denton? There were one or two comments on it when I read it, and now it's . . . ?? . . . gone?
I wonder
what ever happened to the economy, high unemployment, foreign affairs etc. as issues facing this country? It seems that guns are the ONLY thing that matters now to the administration. Nice distraction for the President to avoid the real issues facing the country.
Questions for the President
As a Senator, he voted against raising the debt limit, now
not so much. Please explain the difference as it is worse now.
As a State Senator, he voted against being able to have a gun in your home to protect yourself. Why?
I don't think he knows anymore about assault rifles and magazine clips than I do. Does he know anything about mental illness and how hard it is to get help for a family member? Does the ACLU have anything to do with how the rights of the mentally ill have become more important than their threat to other people?
the differences
Between Obama and Putin. LOL
http://www.tomatobubble.com/putin_obama.html
My father
used to bring his shotgun to school to go hunting after. They did have semi-automatic rifles, shotguns, revolvers and semi-auto pistols. Heck, they even had gun racks in the rear pick-up truck windows. There were no mass shootings in schools or anywhere for that matter. So, what changed?
During that time they were not giving out psychotropic drugs like it was candy. They were not mass fluoridated. Nor did they have extremely violent video games or movies. Their video games were going to the park to play baseball/football, or building snow forts during the winter. Most during that time didn't have a TV, so they played card / board games to pass the time.
They did not have 24/7 news that would flash then rehash violent imagery all day long. No talking heads who gave their scripted opinion. They got a news paper and heard about the news the next day.
Hey Mav.
You actually said something good. You forgot about the push carts and hop-scotch though. Also, you mentioned gun racks in the rear windows. We also had racks sitting next to us in the front seat every once in a while also. LOL.
Purposed
Shame on you. I'll never tell. Ahh, the good old days. They just don't make em the same any more. I can remember when a guy was happy with a big two pointer, now they aren't happy unless they get at least a 10 pointer. LOLOLOLOL
Hey Purposed
Heading North for some eyes on LOW onThursday. They're supposed to be biting.
Purp, Just Hangin it up
Did that at 55. Set that goal a long time ago. So far it's working, 9 years later. Put in some long hours in my earlier days.
If the constitution is
If the constitution is "outdated" because back then people used muzzle loaders, then Marriage is outdated cause it was invented when people lived to the ripe old age of 30.