by Rich Grassi
A lot of the SHOT Show is consumed in catching up on the year past with old friends in the industry. We cover the ground by discussing family goings-on, what's new with others in the outdoors industry - you know, gossip - as well as world issues including economics and politics.
There's considerable trepidation about the coming year as it's an Election Year. As our majority usually hangs on a thread with hardcore, absolute gun folks, true Constitutionalists, "weekend warriors," mall ninjas, and other assorted groups, it seems that every election creates in us some concern.
It wasn't so long ago that an oppressive government tried to eradicate an entire social group in an unofficial genocide - Hitler's Final Solution. That wasn't hypothetical. It happened. Now the release of a government report from the Department of Homeland Security Theater indicates that a number of people we include in our group of associates are considered "right wing extremists."
These aren't people who will saw off a shotgun barrel for some clown who turns out to be an undercover Fed. Most of them don't even get overtime parking tickets. They are so-labeled because of what they own and a predilection for collecting.
"No one ever needs a thousand bullets," I was once told. Knowing the dope mean loaded rounds of ammunition, he also didn't know that it takes about 2 ½ times that amount to do the 2 ½ days at Mid-South or some other training institution in the run-up to a deployment.
Our enemy believes in legislating against the thing: malum prohibitum -- loosely translated, "it's bad because I say it is." We believe in legislating against behaviors, malum en se. "It's bad because it's bad," e.g., murder (killing with evil intent).
Consider our recent converts. It's said that Gallup did a poll and found that 26% of Americans favor a ban on the possession of handguns. It's disconcerting that we have so many thoughtless idiots in the Republic, but someone has to watch "reality" TV. The same source asked the same poll question around fifty years ago and nearly 60% favored a ban!
Did someone say we got smarter?
Without going into social research, random sampling, and various research errors, it seems we have a net gain. But look at the year Gallup referred to as "nearly fifty years ago": 1959. It was "I like Ike," they were moving into the contest between Nixon and JFK. It was the Cold War and kids were getting under their desks practicing for the nuclear apocalypse.
Against megatons of destruction, handguns were nothing. There was no concern of invasion, only annihilation.
In response to a discussion held within the past few years, I made the following statement: "Firearms ownership is more mainstream now than it's been since the 1950s."
According to Gallup, it's more so. One in three Americans own a firearm.
What's gotten us to this point? It's getting the hell off defense and onto offense. It's aggressive moves in the legislatures and the courts. It's NSSF and First Shots. It's a ten-year (plus) war in SW Asia, a large military veteran population - people whose lives depended on access to a firearm and an ability to use it in battle.
These are our best and our brightest. They know it's a hard world and that you need to be up to it. Remember, "It's a great life, if you don't weaken."
