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Saturday, April 11, 2009
Bad news is good news for U.S. gun dealers
Scott's firearms store in Portsmouth, Ohio, an economically stressed river town on the edge of Appalachia, has seen a 40 to 50 per cent spike in sales over the past five months, reflecting a national surge in demand for personal- use weapons that dates to just before the Nov. 4 election.
``I would say that President Obama has done more to mobilize gun owners today than Paul Revere did to mobilize the patriots 200 years ago,'' says Erich Pratt, a spokesman for Gun Owners of America, a Virginia-based lobby group. ``He's been an incredible motivator, not just in terms of people becoming politically aware, but also actually going to the store and buying guns and ammunition.''
I've seen this around; the latest posting at Theo Spark's.
Firearms retailers and gun rights lobbyists say two factors are compelling Americans to stock up on guns - worries Obama will push for stricter gun control, and fear of rising crime as the economic recession deepens.
``The economy has something to do with it, because I think a lot of people here are afraid of the disintegration of society and things turning into anarchy,'' says Scott. ``People are starting to take responsibility for their own safety. They realize the police can't be everywhere at once.''
Under Obama, he adds, ``the economy is getting progressively worse.''
The top seller? My guess is this perennial favorite, the original show-stopper, the venerable Colt .45 ACP (with hundreds of variants); seen here in original WW I battle garb.
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