Gun Salesman Of The Year!

I think this post from Gateway Pundit is priceless:

Barack Obama wins another prestigious honor...
Due to unprecedented demand in firearms since the November election, Barack Obama was awarded the “Gun Salesman of the Year” by Outdoor Wire.
Congratulations!

A poster showing Barack Obama is seen in the background as customers line up to look at firearms at a gun shop in Fort Worth, Texas, Thursday, Nov. 6, 2008. The Cheaper Than Dirt gun store recorded a record day of gun sales the day after the election of President-elect Barack Obama and is having trouble keeping up with the demand for assault riffles. (Flickr)

Ammoland.com and Free Republic reported:

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — In recognition of the unprece?dented demand for firearms by nervous consumers, The Outdoor Wire, the nation’s largest daily electronic news service for the outdoor industry, has named President-elect Barack Obama its “Gun Salesman of the Year”. With the selection, Outdoor Wire publisher Jim Shepherd says it is time the firearms industry recognizes the fact that without President-elect Obama’s frightening consumers into action, the firearms industry might be suffering the same sort of business slumps that have befallen the automotive and housing industries.

“It’s credit where credit is due,” says Shepherd, “Mr. Obama has consistently voted against individual rights to firearms, appointed a re-tread Clinton administration full of gun banners, and made it plain to anti-gun groups that despite what he might say to the contrary, he’s on their side.” That history, along with the unquestioned support of anti-gun organizations, Shepherd says, has spooked consumers into a buying frenzy for firearms that could be outlawed in another Assault Weapons Ban.

“Manufacturers are months behind on orders for semi-automatic pistols, AR-style rifles, and anything with so-called ‘high-capacity magazines’,” Shepherd says, “buyers we’ve surveyed across the country seem to have a single explanation for their rush to purchase firearms – Obama.”

“The buying panic is not limited to people you might be described as aficionados or even ‘gun nuts’. Recently, I was in a gun store when a gentleman came and said he’d never wanted to own a gun before, but wanted to get one while he still could.”

Since the November Presidential election, firearms sales have been at unprecedented levels. For December 2008 the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) recorded a twenty-four percent increase in background checks for 2008 (1,523,426) over December 2007 (1,230,525).

This follows a forty-two percent (42%) increase in November 2008, the highest number of NICS checks in the system’s history. Those FBI background checks are required under federal law for all individuals purchasing firearms from federally licensed firearms retailers. In other words, gun sales have never been better.

Sales are so good that on Tuesday, January 6, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) issued a notice to all federal firearms licensees that “an unprecedented increase in demand for ATF Form 4473” had run supplies low enough that dealers were temporarily given permission to photocopy the form until supplies caught up with demand. Completion of a form 4473 is required whenever a federal firearms licensee sells a fire?arm.?

Unlike some of his other honors, this one was well-deserved.

This has been happening for several months now. The consensus view that I've seen/heard/read is that Obama won't try to take away guns - he will instead implement some severe restrictions on the ammo for those guns (i.e. a 1000% tax increase, tagging and registering bullets in addition to guns, etc.). It will have the same net effect, though, so if this is important to you (for whatever reason), you need to call your Senators and Rep to let them know. Fortunately, the NRA is just about the most capable right-wing lobbyist organization, and they know how to fight (to win). I hope Obama takes this on first, because I don't see how he'll be able to swing it.

Americans love their guns, after all, and there's also that little thing called the 2nd Amendment which the Supreme Court recently upheld in a major decision. Without ammo they're useless paper weights just gathering dust. I recently bought a few hundred shells myself, just in case...

There's my two cents.