Friday, April 3, 2009

Gun Sales Continue to Rise

Maybe its the tough economic times, but I think its more likely that the U.S. citizenry fears that its right to keep and bear arms may be taken away. I got this from the NSSF today.

Firearm sales continued to surge across the country for the fifth straight month, extending a trend that began after the November elections. The increase also follows recent comments by several high-profile members of the Obama administration about re-imposing permanently and expanding the ban on modern sporting rifles.

Data from the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) show background checks on the sale of firearms jumped 29.2 percent in March when compared to March 2008 and were up 27.1 percent for the first quarter of 2009 over the same quarter last year.

The increase follows a 23 percent rise in February, a 28 percent rise in January, a 24 percent rise in December and a 42 percent jump in November, when a record 1,529,635 background checks were performed

Thats a lot of guns. I wonder which ones were the most popular.

14 comments:

cnick said...

I wonder what percentage of the people buying also believe that the "NAFTA superhighway" is the first step towards the US merging with Mexico and Canada, and replacing the US dollar with the "Amero"?

I'm willing to bet its larger than among the population as a whole.

MeatAxe said...

I dunno. Thats a new one on me. Ive never heard of the Amero. But, given that Eric Holder's never seen a gun control law he didn't like (and has already proposed bringing back the AWB) and that goes double for Barack, I'm not sure some conspiracy about the "Amero" really enters into it.

Atom Smasher said...

The difference being, of course, cnick, that no one in the Obama administration has made any statements regarding the Amero or NAFTA superhighways, whereas about private firearm ownership...

Not so much.

cnick said...

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4191/is_19991230/ai_n9963851/

MeatAxe said...

So? I don't understand the relevance. Maybe people were wrong to be scared of Y2k, but the politicians in power right now have a deep, rich and long history of opposing gun possession.

You could wallpaper your house with their speeches on the topic and not have to print anything out twice. It's reasonable to assume people want to buy guns now if they think they may not be able to later. Hell, I'm buying an M-1 Garand myself for pretty much the same reason. And I had the money, and I always wanted one. Ill post pics when it shows up... Should be beautiful. The CMP is selling a version called a Springfield Special -- rebuild Springfield Armory receiver, new stock, new sling, new barrel. I can't wait!

cnick said...

All I'm saying is that I'm sure gun dealers are more than happy to come up with and/or exaggerate reasons why you need to buy more guns now.

cnick said...

P.S. Sounds like a nice piece of equipment. While I'm not a gun owner, I do appreciate well-made items, especially if they're metal and heavy. I have a bunch of antique cameras that I like for the same reason.

MeatAxe said...

Dude. Having been in more gun stores than I'm comfortable admitting, let me be the first to tell you -- gun store countermen are ALWAYS coming up with or exaggerating reasons why you need to buy guns now. Usually both at once.

Looking at a revolver? Oh my, revolvers are staggeringly popular at this moment, you better buy that fine firearm at once. Why, there was a young couple in here not 30 minutes ago drooling over that very same Smith and Wesson 686. You better hit the cash machine darn skippy and don't bother calling your wife.

Perhaps you were eyeing a Mossberg 500 pump action shotgun. Why, son, thats the finest shotgun ever made by human hands. In fact it's long been rumored that when the technicians go home, tiny elves flitter into the Mossberg factory and magick up the choke tubes in all the shotguns there to make them extra specially accurate. You better not pass up a chance to own a fine piece of American craftsmanship like that.

Or maybe you paused near a busted-down piece-of-shit Romanian SKS, but only because some fatass was blocking the aisle. Well, you know my buddy Charlie who was a Double Suooper Seeekret Command Master Chief in the Marine Force Recon Special Delta Force Sniper Group says they can use any weapon they like, and he wouldn't use anything but this astonishingly lethal 50-year old commie carbine. Yeah, its supposed to rattle like that. It was modified by the Green Berets who owned it so that it would still function even if they got sand in it. You betcha. Nothing terrifies the enemy like 7.62 rounds that are about as accurate as a pitched baseball.

Trust me, Nick. Gun dealers coming up with reasons why you should buy guns is more like a ... (pausing for thought) ... a universal constant, like the speed of light or the force of gravity or pi, or even the likelihood that your bread falls peanut-butter-side down.

What's driving this sales boom is something else, and that something is people coming in to gun stores with the definite feeling that they need to buy guns now.

Maybe you think they're wrong, but I guarantee you that with only slightly more effort than lifting a finger I could find extensive evidence that many prominent Democrats from the President on down are downright hostile to civilian gun ownership, and that this verifiable truth has not escaped the population's notice. And not because they are stupid or credulous but because it is blindingly obvious and profoundly unambiguous.

I now pause for a large glass of bourbon.

Bitterly clinging,

TN

Atom Smasher said...

Yeah nick, I have to agree with my co-host here. On this one, you're just full of shit. I know guns, I know gun sales, I know gun laws, and I know pols and their efforts to crush private ownership or expand it, and I'm willing to say that I know all of these things far, far better than you do.

So are salesmen trying to sell more guns? You betcha. Is the Obama administration stocked with people who have made no secret about their desire to eliminate or restrict private ownership? You betcha. Are shooters well aware of both of these facts? You betcha.

cnick said...

Well, I guess if people know that Democrats are hostile to private gun ownership, and those same people voted a Democrat president AND congress into office at the same, then all you can really say is that the people have spoken. Like it or not. My own personal feelings on the matter are actually fairly indifferent, meaning, I don't really care very much whether private gun ownership is legal or illegal - I think there are much more important matters facing our nation. Same goes for abortion, gay marriage, and a host of other "social" issues. If the Republicans would drop that half of their agenda, they'd stand a chance of getting votes from people like me.

Atom Smasher said...

So, you admit that the current spike in gun sales is based in a real concern with the current administration's likely direction on private firearm ownership?

cnick said...

I can't really admit something I have no way of knowing. It certainly seems possible that the spike in gun sales is based on a perception of a certain segment of society. As the Y2K article demonstrates, those perceptions may or may not be grounded in reality.

Anonymous said...

Maybe gun sales are up because there have been a rash of gun rampages in america over the past year and the citizenry realizes that law enforcement reacts to crimes and doesn't prevent them and they don't want to be powerless victims?

Atom Smasher said...

Maybe a factor but the noises I've read from the gun community all started with Obama's nomination/election.

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