- Gun retailers and industry analysts have attributed the pandemic increase to new buyers seeking guns for self-protection. This is being fueled by a climate of economic instability, with tens of millions of jobs lost and a dramatic slump in gross domestic product. They also attribute the strong gun sales to fears of rising crime and images of civil unrest and police brutality dominating the media.
When asked about the dip in September background checks compared to earlier in the pandemic, Oliva said it’s “plausible that this number could actually have been higher, but inventory is low due to the sustained high demand.”
That’s also the view of Larry Hyatt, owner of Hyatt Guns in Charlotte, N.C. He said an influx of urban customers, including women and senior citizens, have been buying up his stock of compact polymer semiautomatic handguns and other guns designed for self defense.
“One reason September dropped off is that the supply of guns is not available,” said Hyatt. “The Smith & Wessons are sold out, the Springfields are sold out, the Rugers are sold out. All that’s left are the real expensive exotic guns, the rare guns.”
- sees foreigner posting about US guns - prepares to write anecdote about the local gun shop, which has had a line at least six deep of emasculated 30-something MAGAheads waiting to buy Smith & Wesson teddy bears every day, all day, rain or shine, since March - Clicks link, sees local gun shop directly below the byline Note that during the Clinton Era, this was "Lynnwood Pawn." During the George W Bush era, this was "Lynnwood Gun & Pawn." During the Obama era it became "Lynnwood Guns, Ammo & Pawn." Now? Now they're "Lynnwood Gun." They're worth checking out on Street View so you can really capture the scene. Toshi's Teriyaki, an Ethiopian market and across the street, a trailer park. They love the press. Note that all this kerfuffle is because them dreaded libruls passed a law saying assault rifles are drinking-age, not cigarette-age (come at me on the "assault rifle" verbiage, I will block you immediately) and all the Chuds immediately started tooting the Star Spangled Banner out of their pilonidal sphincters. Our Republican candidate for Governor is a nothingburger redneck from a nothingburger hamlet out in the back of beyond who decided that upholding the law isn't what sheriffs do so now, of course, he's a hero of the right. Our own county's sheriff is equally Chud-like.
That Street View is amazing, and then I turned around and had to Google "palm trees Seattle". For some reason I keep thinking it's so much further north. I actually did a Google News search for that article, the one I first read was in Swedish and foreign correspondents rarely seem to leave New York. It's also hilarious how Google translates "ammunitionstorka" (literally "ammunition drought") to "drone strikes".
I think it's worth noting that seeing the phrase "arms dealer" gave me pause. Acceptable phrasing includes "gun dealer" "gun shop" "sporting arms dealer" and I've even seen "broker in sporting weapons." "Arms dealers" are guys like Adnan Khashoggi and Viktor Bout, not Lynnwood Gun. No, no. Those aren't "Arms dealers", what is this a third world country? I'll bet Google Translate is region sensitive. Here the phrase isArms dealer Cliff Pfleger (right) shows off one of the most popular weapons: a Mossberg 500.
Store owners testify to empty warehouses and ammunition droughts in the wake of the pandemic and the violent protests - and more Americans are arming themselves for the very first time.