In the wake of the Orlando attack, gun sales are spiking across the country. Hunter’s Warehouse, a Pennsylvania-based online gun store, has sold 30,000 AR-15 rifles since the shooting. In Oklahoma, gun sales have spiked due to security concerns, with locals buying firearms to protect themselves and their families (via The Oklahoman):
Oklahomans typically buy more guns after mass shootings, said Miles Hall, owner of H&H Gun Range. Hall said one day last week his store had a more than 90 percent increase in sales from the same time the previous year.Gun sales followed a similar trend in the days and weeks after 20 children and six adults were killed in the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., Hall said. He said sales skyrocketed after President Barack Obama weighed in on gun control. This time, customers more often cite safety concerns as the reason for their purchases.
“The reality for Oklahomans, by the way, is not because they think the government is going to mess with (their gun rights),” Hall said. “What we're hearing this time is they are wanting to protect their families and themselves. After Sandy Hook it was more of the government says I can't have it.”
Of course, the Sunshine State saw an increase in firearms sales (via CBS Miami):
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement ran 9,854 background checks Sunday, Monday and Tuesday on people hoping to buy firearms, more than double the 4,468 during the same time frame in 2015.Another 3,956 background checks were conducted Wednesday, according to state numbers.
Also, gun ranges and businesses offering concealed-weapons classes said they are seeing a spike in business.
[…]
The state is on track to break that record in 2016, as month-to-month background check comparisons show an increase for every month when compared to the same time in 2015.
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In Atlanta, AR-15 rifles are also “flying off the shelves” (via Atlanta Journal-Constitution):
A gun store in Cobb County says they have to restock military-style rifles by the dozens.Adventure Outdoors in Smyrna reports selling 15 AR-15s an hour. The gun retailer says their norm is about four or five a day.
The store owner told Channel 2 Action News the current boost in sales is not just due to people seeking protection, but a fear that the AR-15 could soon be banned.
So, we have fears of terrorism driving Americans to gun stores, but there’s also the Washington factor, where Democrats wanting to curb Second Amendment freedoms always provides a nice jolt to gun rights supporters. Senate Democrats recently tried and failed to adopt two gun control measures. President Obama and Hillary Clinton want to reinstate the so-called assault weapons ban. Liberals wrongly view the AR-15 as such imaginary weapons, but as you can see—it’s a fool’s errand. The more Democrats discuss gun control, the more AR-15s, and other firearms, end up in civilian hands.
Last Note: Firearm ownership has spiked among those in the LGBT community as well.
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