Local Gun Shop Mentioned in Time
April 11th, 2009
Doug VanderWoude, owner of Silver Bullet Firearms here in Wyoming, Michigan, was quoted in an article on gun ownership in Time.com:
In a December survey by the research firm Southwick Associates, nearly 80% of active hunters and target shooters said they believed firearm purchases would “become more difficult” under the new Administration and a Democratic Congress. “Everybody is waiting for when the next foot is going to fall in taking away the right to bear arms,” says Doug VanderWoude, owner of Silver Bullet Firearms in Wyoming, Mich., near Grand Rapids. He estimates that business is up 50% in 2009.
Very cool. Doug’s a great guy and he’s right on the money with this comment. A lot of experts and pundits are just about bending over backwards to pretend the rush to buy guns is fueled by the economic situation, but the rush picked up right about when it became clear that Obama was almost certain to win the election.
I’ve got no doubt the economy is part of it, and the main reason for some buyers, but it’s odd that with so many people out of work and with sales of virtually everything dropping like a rock, sales of firearms and ammunition are through the roof.
No one has any money, but they’ve got enough to buy all the guns and ammo?
I’m thinking it’s a lot more than the economy.
Tags: MI
April 11th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
i’ve been buying guns at a greater rate due to Obamallama. no doubt about it.
April 11th, 2009 at 8:09 pm
A lot of experts and pundits are just about bending over backwards to pretend the rush to buy guns is fueled by the economic situation, but the rush picked up right about when it became clear that Obama was almost certain to win the election.
I don’t think it’s fair to discount the role of the economy, either. The point when it became “almost certain” he was going to win was when the banks started failing left and right. If you matched the polls up to the October decline in the markets and bank failures, that’s when McCain’s numbers started dropping and Obama’s really started rising.
I suspect that like anything, it’s a mix of the two factors. Informed folks knew it was time to start buying because of politics, and folks who weren’t as informed started buying because of the economy. Without doing a formal poll of people who are buying, it’s hard to say. There are too many factors at work in such a short period of time (economy, crime, politics). In other words, if someone asked me if it was an Obama rush or an economy rush, I would say, “Yes.”
April 12th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
Oh, I’m not discounting the role of the economy. I’m discounting the coverage that generally seems to imply that except for a few backwoods hillbilly types, the people buying guns are all doing it because of the economy.
I’d say it’s 70-30 Obama-Economy on the driving force. YMMV.
April 15th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
I’ll add to your theory:
Before November 2008 I did not own any firearms. I didn’t have an opinion about firearms. They were for the other folks. I was a sheep.
Since then I have purchased a few, Earned my Concealed Weapons License, Taken several hours of firearms and defensive handgun training and go to the range almost once a week to improve.
I’ve also taken the liberty to show and train my children. They have a good ways to go, but the seeds are sown.
We’re becoming sheepdogs.
Emergency preparedness has also gone up – thank you Boy Scouts.