Hard Times Ahead For Gun Owners And Ammunition Buyers
BY Herschel Smith
6 years ago
I am neither a prophet nor son of a prophet (2 Kings 2:3). If I’m wrong, no one stands to lose anything. But if I’m right, we might all be headed for rough times ahead.
There is such a proliferation of gun control and ammunition control articles, commentaries, editorials and laws that it would be impossible to mention them all, let along discuss them. Boulder has just announced a new assault weapons ban. The LA Times advocates ammunition regulation, Smith & Wesson will soon be under pressure from its parent company, Black Rock Investment is pimping gun free investments, a recent challenge to the Massachusetts assault weapons ban has fallen, bump stocks will soon be illegal, the Las Vegas Sun is publishing letters advocating the confiscation of ammunition, and the News Tribune published a reader who wants to tax ammunition more heavily.
I was in the Bass Pro Shop recently and looked at ammunition. I noticed that a box of 9mm bullets, 50 rounds, cost exactly the same as I paid for it in high school in the early 1990s — $10 to $15.
How is it that ammunition has totally escaped inflation? Perhaps state officials should add a 10-cents per round tax that would go to fund school security and mental health services.
I have made this suggestion to all 27 local legislators as well as Congressman Derek Kilmer but have received no substantive response, just a form letter.
Note that to the reader, if ammunition makers have held costs in check (although I doubt he remembers it correctly), that’s a reason to tax them more, not celebrate the free market.
We could go on for hours and hours over this. The point is that something has snapped in American culture, and we are being put in a pincer movement. Consider this thought experiment.
Suppose that an assault weapons ban happens in your AO, or suppose it’s just standard capacity magazines. Are you stocked like you would want to be? Suppose that it requires a background check to purchase ammunition in the future in your AO. Is your stock where you want it to be?
Now let’s turn to gun manufacturers. Suppose that Ruger needs to spend $500,000 buying to tooling to replace old and worn tooling machinery, or to retool a line to fabricate a new product. Suppose that none of the banks will do business with Ruger. How does Ruger pay for the tooling machinery? They can’t go through the bank. They can’t hand cash to the machinery manufacturer – their accountant would reject it as making them look like they’re doing business with Iran. No bank in their right mind will allow a company to deposit $500,000 cash without knowing where it came from.
This could all happen to Ruger without a new law being passed, since CEOs can do what they want, and corporations are in the main controlled by progressives and lawyers. Furthermore, when bans happen, we’ll all have to decide where we stand, and some of us will have to turn “gray man” in order to live and work in our communities and continue to have a job. Not everyone can be a very public figure like Mike Vanderboegh was.
Unless the culture makes a U-turn very quickly – and I don’t think it will – we are in for some hard times ahead and we will all have to make difficult choices. Put on your thinking caps, stock your supplies, watch your six, consider your options, and make sure of your friends.
On April 8, 2018 at 10:51 pm, bubba said:
Six thousand rounds per year per caliber minimum is a good start.
On April 9, 2018 at 9:09 am, John Galt said:
Since when would a $500k …..or $5mil bank deposit from Ruger be questioned?
They clearly have money and cash flow. It’s time companies like Ruger and others told blackcock and .gov to get publicly screwed
On April 9, 2018 at 9:23 am, ragman said:
The election of President Trump bought us some time, that is about it. The left will not quit until they have total confiscation. Of everything. And then they will attack other freedoms and liberties until there is nothing left but serfdom.
On April 9, 2018 at 9:34 am, Herschel Smith said:
@Galt,
No bank takes cash deposits of a million dollars. No one walks up and hands a bank teller a million dollars in cash.
On April 9, 2018 at 10:34 am, JoeFour said:
“No bank takes cash deposits of a million dollars. No one walks up and hands a bank teller a million dollars in cash.”
Apparently no one except maybe Mexican drug cartels in cahoots with major banks …
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/apr/03/us-bank-mexico-drug-gangs
On April 9, 2018 at 10:55 am, Gryphon said:
The Connecticut, New York and Maryland “Bans” on Semis have been met with massive Non-Compliance, and only ‘incidental’ prosecution, i.e. Arrested for something (randomly) and Gun Charges brought. The Question will be, When (not if) a Ban goes Nationwide, do they actually think they can Move to Enforce it?
The Numbers say “Unpossible”, but Never Underestimate the Stupidity of the political class and their Idiot (p)Orcs….
I think it is now Prudent to Hide (Bury, or Not Located a Home) at least one Rifle and 1- 2,000 Rounds, in case your Guns are the target of a Raid when You are Not Home.
On April 9, 2018 at 11:02 am, Pat Hines said:
Here’s the co-sponsor list for H.R. 5087, an AWB. All 175 co-sponsors are Democrats of the usual types.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/5087/cosponsors
Yet, a black female congresswoman has proposed yet another AWB that is virtually identical to the above. It’s H. R. 5410, it has no co-sponsors.
The various ammunition bans or tax bills are much the same. Lot’s of smoke and mirrors, but no fire.
On April 9, 2018 at 11:08 am, Herschel Smith said:
@Pat,
For now. Feel the winds, friend. They’re cold.
On April 9, 2018 at 12:11 pm, TheOtherGeorge said:
@Gryphon;
“When (not if) a Ban goes Nationwide, do they actually think they can Move to Enforce it?
The Numbers say “Unpossible”, but Never Underestimate the Stupidity of the political class and their Idiot (p)Orcs….”
Of course they think they can enforce it. They know it will probably take years to accomplish, but we know that they aren’t going to give up on that goal. That is why so many government entities have been militarized and have their own “police”. Per this article in National Review:
“Dozens of federal agencies now have Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams to further an expanding definition of their missions. It’s not controversial that the Secret Service and the Bureau of Prisons have them. But what about the Department of Agriculture, the Railroad Retirement Board, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Office of Personnel Management, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service? All of these have their own SWAT units and are part of a worrying trend towards the militarization of federal agencies — not to mention local police forces.” (https://www.nationalreview.com/2014/04/united-states-swat-john-fund/) .
And that article (from 2014) doesn’t even include ALL the agencies that have been militarized. They don’t mention that the Dept. of Education (yes, no kidding!) also has a swat team. We all know that the Fedgov has ordered the purchase of hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammo for these various agencies and we know there is no way they could be “training” with all that ammo.
In that article of 2014 National Review goes on to say; “Brian Walsh, a senior legal analyst with the Heritage Foundation, says “it is inexplicable why so many federal agencies need to be battle-ready…” Well, it may not have been obvious in 2014, but it is becoming clear at this point, isn’t it? When .gov feels the time is right, local cops will most likely be the primary enforcement tool for rounding up these weapons. But local police will not be able to handle the load everywhere, and the Fedgov stands ready to provide “help”.
@ Herschel; There is another guy that posts here with the same handle “George”, a common name after all, so I decided to go with a new one. I have posted here previously.
On April 9, 2018 at 12:22 pm, lineman said:
I found a deal on primed 223 brass and 55, 62 grain bullets if anyone reloads and doesn’t have enough stockpiled…Let me know…
On April 9, 2018 at 12:23 pm, Bill Robbins said:
Hard times can also be good times. Hard times are when good people stand up and take effecitve and responsible action. Being nice does not work. Appeasment does not work.
When America’s largest and most influential corporations and institutional investors single-out lawful owners of firearms (people who are customers, for crying out loud!) and use market power inappropriately to undermine a constitutional right (2A) and chip-away at bedrock principles of American-style freedom, it’s time to fight back.
On April 9, 2018 at 2:07 pm, Gryphon said:
The Other George – Yeah, I agree they “Think they Can” and will make an Attempt, but what I see happening still falls back on the Fact the .gov Forces are A) Outnumbered, massively,
B) a certain number of the (p)Orcs (and .Mil) won’t Show up for Work,
C) It only takes a couple of Snipers to cause Chaos in a City, and
D) Unlike in the ‘Stans, the Leadership is Accessible to the Patriots.
I believe that they CAN intimidate a certain number of Fudds with the Threat of “Becoming a Felon” but on the other hand, they Will Infuriate enough Others to begin to Actively Resist. Then it’s ‘Game On’, and nobody in .gov really Knows what will happen then.
I also Think that many in .gov believe that because at a 30-50 : 1 advantage in a ‘SWAT Raid’ that they will ‘Win’. But up until it Starts, .gov has no Clue as to what Happens when the ‘Teams’ start taking Fire from their Rear….
Once, I asked a couple of local (p)Orcs who were filling up their MRAP at a Gas Station, “Hey, What’s Your Plan when a Raid takes Sniper Fire from Behind?” and the look of Confusion and Fear on their Faces was >Priceless<. Didn't bother to Ask if the MRAP was Resistant to Plain .50 Ball Ammo, or if We would need to use Blue-Tips..
It's going to be Uglier than We can (now ) Imagine.
On April 9, 2018 at 2:23 pm, ghostsniper said:
When you try to enroll your child in school you will be required to sign form 7734.
You will also be required to sign form 7734 when you renew your drivers license or any other state issued license, renew any form of insurance, or register to any school. You will also be required to sign form 7734 when you try to get a medical prescription filled.
Form 7734 states that, under penalty of perjury resulting in no less than 10 years in a federal penitentiary, that you do not possess any type of firearm or ammunition.
If you do not sign the form 7734 you will not be allowed to renew licenses or insurances, enroll in schools, have any medical prescriptions filled.
Form 7734 will be your new hell, upside down and backwards.
For the slow learners, you have been living in a communist country for some time now and it is filled with criminals and wanna be’s. The worst part is you don’t know who all the criminals are, nor the wanna be’s. Under the right pressure anybody can become a willing criminal.
Remus say’s, “Avoid crowds”.
ghostsniper say’s: “Trust no one”.
On April 9, 2018 at 4:18 pm, Chris Mallory said:
“If you do not sign the form 7734 you will not be allowed to renew licenses or insurances, enroll in schools, have any medical prescriptions filled.”
Lord knows I wouldn’t lie to the government. They always tell me the truth.
On April 9, 2018 at 5:10 pm, Keith said:
New bans may not rely on compliance from the current generation. They are teaching our kids and grandkids the false narrative that guns are nothing but bad so that in time no one will be buying the very few that are legal, if any are.
On April 9, 2018 at 6:26 pm, Gator said:
As far as the low compliance thing goes, thats a fact. There has been very low compliance with these laws in states that recently passed them. But, there have been arrests and prosecutions of people for possessing what was until recently a perfectly legal item. Something many people on sites like this seem to forget is that the left is playing the long game. On its face, its seems absurd to us that the very group that says trump and his supporters are all nazis and fascists and that cops are all racists who hunt negroes for sport are the same ones that want “Hitler” and his government to be the only ones with guns, since none of these measures call for taking them from police/government forces. But, they think (probably correctly) that trump will be gone in a little over 2 years, they will win back the house and senate, and some state gov mansions, and be in control again, likely forever, since immigration will likely guarantee it. They are just getting things moving in their direction.
Another aspect of the long game is the low compliance in places like Conn. They didn’t really expect much compliance. But they slowly arret people for possessing these items. THose that fear getting caught with them can’t really shoot them, since ranges won’t let you on with banned items, and even in the woods you risk getting caught in the act, or transporting the items from your house, so people get rusty and out of practice. Newer generations are less and less interested in any of this, and aren’t getting taken out to shoot them in the newly banned states, etc. The real problem people are mostly older, mostly live outside of cities, and are starting to die off due to natural causes anyways. Ammo stockpiles are slowly shot up, guns wear out due to lack of parts, etc. They country has been steadily shifting in their direction for years, they are winning. Why risk that slow and steady progress with a sudden confiscation type scenario that they know may not go in their favor when all they have to do is whats been successful so far and play the slow game. There will be plenty of time for the iron fist later.
TL/DR: they don’t need to go door to door, they just have to wait people out.
On April 9, 2018 at 6:35 pm, Dave Albertson said:
How come no one is pushing for prosecution of the lefties for violation of constitutional rights. Or firing them for same? The useful idiots don’t hesitate to arrest, prosecute, or fire we the people law enfocement or the exact same malfunctions?
On April 9, 2018 at 10:11 pm, SGT.BAG said:
If you are not buying it cheap and stacking it deep you are not paying attention.
When the government makes you a criminal, become the best one you can possibly be.
On April 10, 2018 at 1:03 am, brad said:
As long as I have my guns (and as long as I’m alive, I always will have my guns), they can pass whatever laws they think will keep them safe, or whatever.
I will still have ALL MY GUNS to keep me and mine safe, regardless.
“They” are welcome to come try to take them away from me any time the feel like it.
Just like millions of others, I’m waiting.
On April 10, 2018 at 1:21 am, skybill said:
Hi Mr. Smith,
‘Old Sayin’ from my younger daze,”Make Hay while the Sun Shines!!!” That is all!! For if you have Hay when the rains come, you will survive the times….
Granted the “LEFT” is “HELL BENT!!” (in more way’s than one) and our “destruction” is cardinal on their list…… BUT!!!!, remberin’ the story, and I have to tell it because too many reading this did not hear it, as told by the late Mike Vanderboegh about a memory of a time with his grand parents when Grandpa got into an argument with Grandma and it got pretty heated!! Grandpa somehow got out of there with out causing any damage but it was still grim…. Mike saw Grandpa sitin’ with a cup of coffee lookin’ dejected and asked what’s wrong??, Grandpa said,”Son, ya’ don’t go an poke a wolverine (or was it a badger???) with a sharp stick!!!! Mr. Smith, “THAT” is what the “LEFT” is doin’ and boy, oh, Boy!!…are they in for it!!!!!
Audentes, Fortuna, Juvat!!!,
III%,
skybill-out
PS I don’t know about other parts of this DIRT but down here in S/E La. I have a lot of friends that do battle with 1200 pound alligators and 60 pound alligator Gar fish and a few “commies” I doubt will be much hassle!!!! (How do you think these ‘Gators get this big???)
PPS, I knew MIKE and had the good fortune to meet with him a few times before he got really sick… and I thank you Jesus for letting me!! I am proud to say that MIKE was, Really still is, “MY GOOD FRIEND!!”
On April 10, 2018 at 11:08 am, Gryphon said:
Ghostsniper – Those types of ‘leverage’ against Gun Owners are predicated on the .gov retaining enough ‘legitimacy’ that significant numbers of Fudds comply- on the other hand, it could become a ‘Trigger Point’ for Refusal. I believe that “At Some Point” the intolerability of Encroachments on our Rights will reach the Trigger Point that the (((bolsheviks))) Fear.
What’s YOUR “Trigger Point” (s)? Make Sure you Have one, or Get on the Boxcar before it gets Crowded….
On April 10, 2018 at 4:14 pm, moe mensale said:
@Herschel,
Cash deposits. Obviously you never lived in south Florida in the 80s and 90s! Ha!