The Economic Cost of Attacking the 2nd Amendment

As the Second Amendment debate heats up, it's the red states vs. the blue states. The blue states are aggressively introducing and/or passing legislation to restrict gun rights while the red states are considering strong legislation to protect the 2nd and even nullify any federal legislation that weakens and restricts gun rights. None of this is surprising. However, there will be a considerable economic impact on any states that pass anti-gun bills as it relates to the firearms and ammunition industry.

Colorado Company Threatens To Leave State If Gun Bill Passes

A package of gun control measures that won initial approval in Colorado’s Democratic-controlled House Friday night could result in several hundred jobs lost at the state’s largest manufacturer of high-capacity ammunition magazines.

Erie-based Magpul Industries has threatened to leave the state if lawmakers are successful in passing the sweeping gun-control package, which limits the number of rounds a magazine can hold, according to The Denver Post....

Magpul, which employs some 200 people directly and supports about 400 jobs through subcontractors, expects to contribute nearly $85 million to Colorado’s economy this year, according to The Post.

In New York, a gun manufacturer is threatening to leave over the draconian anti-gun bill passed by the NY legislature and signed into law by the governor.

Remington Arms Company threatens to pull plant out of New York in response to Bloomy-backed gun bill

ALBANY — One of the world’s major gun manufacturers is threatening to pull its plant out of New York over a gun bill pushed by Mayor Bloomberg.

Remington Arms Company, in a recent letter to Gov. Cuomo, said it may be forced to bail on the Empire State if a law requiring bullet casings to carry unique markings is enacted.

Supporters argue the technology, known as microstamping, would help solve gun crimes. Detractors say it’s unreliable, easily tampered with and costly.

Remington has a manufacturing plant that employs more than 1,000 workers in the village of Ilion, about 90 miles west of Albany.

If the economic impact of the proposed anti-gun laws in Colorado is estimated at $85 million for a small operation with 200 employees, the economic impact on larger firearms business will be very significant.

The firearms industry is a huge business in America.  According to the Washington Post "This year, the industry is expected to rack up a steady $11.7 billion in sales and $993 million in profits..", here.

If the blue states persist in hacking away at gun rights, this will translate to an economic boom in the welcoming red states as firearms manufacturers relocate to friendlier red state turf that isn't hostile to its business.

The red states are already outperforming the blue states economically as a result of lower taxes, less regulation and a business friendly environment.  Meanwhile, the blue states continue to strangle themselves economically.

The irony here is truly priceless: nothing like shooting your economy to death.

When it Comes to Firearms, Stupid it as Stupid Does

Without the 2nd amendment, there can be no other rights because the most basic of natural rights is the right to defend oneself and family against violent predators and criminals.  Without the 2nd amendment and the right of citizens to own firearms, peaceful law abiding citizens become sitting ducks and victims.  When the government interferes with 2nd amendment rights, the government is effectively saying:  you have a duty to die, you have a duty to be raped, you have a duty to be violently assaulted, you have a duty to be robbed of your property and you DO NOT have the right to defend yourself, your family or you property because you, your family and your property are indeed public property for anybody to feast upon at will.

The Sandy Hook school massacre by a lunatic on the loose has resulted in massively mobilized opinions from all sides of the 2nd amendment debate.  One anti-2nd amendment columnist actually called for the repeal of the 2nd amendment and the execution of all owners of firearms who refuse to relinquish their guns.

Des Moines columnist calls for repeal of Second Amendment, death of gun owners

One New York newspaper released the names and locations of all firearm owners in New York’s Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam counties, here.  However, CBS is reporting that that Putnam County is refusing to release the names and locations of firearms owners, here.  Exactly what information has been released by counties that control firearms registration isn't exactly clear but what is clear is that some information has definitely been released to the public and plastered on websites.

It's really stupid as well as exceedingly dangerous to publish the names and addresses of firearm owners. One of two really nasty things will happen:

1. criminals will pass on entering an armed property and find a softer target - the unarmed.  Or,

2. criminals will outgun their potential armed victims because they already know what they have.

Either way, it's an invitation for more crime to be committed against the armed and unarmed. It's also a strategy to promote more crime and more gun violence. Interestingly, Fox News reported that ex-burglars disclosed how publishing firearm registration lists will actually make crime easier and safer.

Ex-Burglars Say Newspaper’s Gun Map Would’ve Made the Job Easier, Safer

Reformed crooks say the New York newspaper that published a map of names and addresses of gun owners did a great service – to their old cronies in the burglary trade.

The information published online by the Journal-News, a daily paper serving the New York suburbs of Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties, could be highly useful to thieves in two ways, former burglars told FoxNews.com. Crooks looking to avoid getting shot now know which targets are soft and those who need weapons know where they can steal them.

“That was the most asinine article I’ve ever seen,” said Walter T. Shaw, 65, a former burglar and jewel thief who the FBI blames for more than 3,000 break-ins that netted some $70 million in the 1960s and 1970s. “Having a list of who has a gun is like gold - why rob that house when you can hit the one next door, where there are no guns?

"What they did was insanity," added Shaw, author of "License to Steal," a book about his criminal career.

Among the criminal class, there is great rejoicing over the release of county firearms registrations. More horrifying is that criminals in jail are using this information to threaten and or intimidate the police and prison guards.

Inmates using newspaper's gun owner map to threaten guards, sheriff says

Law enforcement officials from a New York region where a local paper published a map identifying gun owners say prisoners are using the information to intimidate guards.

Rockland County Sheriff Louis Falco, who spoke at a news conference flanked by other county officials, said the Journal News' decision to post an online map of names and addresses of handgun owners Dec. 23 has put law enforcement officers in danger.

"They have inmates coming up to them and telling them exactly where they live. That's not acceptable to me," Falco said, according to Newsday....

"You have guys who work in New York City who live up here. Now their names and addresses are out there, too," he said adding that there are 8,000 active and retired NYPD officers currently living in Rockland County.

Local lawmakers also say that they intend to introduce legislation that prevents information about legal gun owners from being released to the public.

One of the best crime deterrents is the element of surprise as a criminal calculates the risk of his mission.  Is is victim armed, unarmed or easy?  For the criminals, it's all about getting what they want with minimal risk of being caught or injured by law enforcement or the victim.

As the government and the media continue to pursue polices that make crime easy and effectively a de facto legal right, the innocent victims of crime will escalate along with an exploding body count.  The hands of government and the media will be dripping in victim blood.