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Gun Digest magazine is reporting gun sales are soaring in anticipation of gun bans under an Obama administration.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation reports that gun sales in Oct. were 15 percent over Oct. 2007 figures. They also attribute this to an (at the time, pending) Obama administration.
The National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of America and Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership have all started alerting members to what is foreseen under Obama: further degradation of the Second Amendment. The NSSF points to Obama’s transition website as proof:
“Last week, President-elect Obama's transition Web site, change.gov, posted the administation's (sic) agenda for curtailing Americans' Second Amendment rights and then, oddly, took down the information after just two days. An NSSF news release responded to the Obama agenda and pointed out that gun owners were right to be concerned about the Obama-Biden team, given their past anti-gun records. The Web site's original statement on semiautomatic rifles intentionally misled readers by referring to these commonplace firearms as "weapons that belong on foreign battlefields." Interestingly, that reference has been eliminated in the agenda that has been re-posted to the site under Urban Policy, although the intention to make permanent the expired 1994 Assault Weapons Ban remains, among other troubling gun-control measures. NSSF encourages readers to read its release to stay vigilant on the President-elect's agenda.”
Apparently gun owners are taking all this to heart and not taking chances, considering the sales of guns. They remember what transpired under the Clinton administration and are not willing to have their gun and semi-auto magazine purchases curtailed.
For those of us hunting this fall season (Wisconsin’s gun deer season starts Saturday, Nov. 22), we know there are as many models of guns that will be used as there are numbers of pickup trucks and ATVs to transport us into the woods. From collectible, vintage military surplus firearms to single shot shotguns and various high caliber pistols, many will be in service. Taking away any of these or outlawing the manufacture of these does absolutely no good to anyone.
Myself, I learned to hunt deer with a single shot 20 gauge H&R shotgun that I bought for $65 at my local Coast-to-Coast store back in the 1980s. My dad made sure I was enrolled in a hunter’s education course and also made sure I knew how to shoot my gun safely and accurately. I remember a number of visits were made to the woods to also make sure that I could find my way around and choose a tree (within shouting distance of Dad as was the law in Wisconsin at that time for 14 year-old hunters) to build a tree stand. Dad wouldn’t let me have anything that held more than one shell as a starting hunter. It actually turns out that I didn’t need it that first year either, after bagging an 8-point buck at 3 pm opening day with just that one shot at no more than 40 yards. Of course, it also spoiled me as I remember thinking, “hey, this is pretty easy!” I paid for that thinking by not shooting anything during the next four seasons!
I eventually “graduated” into using a rifle, which was a Remington 770 bolt action in .308 that I bought used. That held 3 cartridges in the magazine and an additional one in the chamber. That rifle accompanied me into the woods for more than a decade and a half before adding a couple of lever action Winchester Model 94s. Eventually I settled on a semi-auto .308 G3 Sporter and a lever action .450 Marlin. The G3 works great in areas for long shots while the Marlin muscles its way through the brush in thick cover areas. I’ve learned that there isn’t a universal hunting gun or cartridge for all game or situations, and hunters should not be limited to choosing from a handful of options.
We should heed the warnings of the aforementioned Second Amendment groups and be especially vigilant during the next four years, as well as exercising the Second Amendment often.
If you’re off hunting this weekend, I wish you a safe and successful hunt. I heard on the radio this morning that hunters from all 50 states have purchased Wisconsin gun deer hunting licenses. If you’re one of them, welcome aboard! If you do get a deer or have hunted something else in other states this year,
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. We'll publish some of those. With that, I’m off for some ammo!
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