Run on Ammunition?

[The Mutha]

So, The Boy was out yesterday trying to buy some ammunition for one of his target pistols and discovered that there appears to be some huge run on ammo here in the Houston area. He went to three Academys and two Wal-Marts on Friday and none of them had any stock on the shelves of any handgun ammunition and very little left of rifle ammo.

A clerk at Academy told him that California and Illinois have recently enacted a large tax increase on ammo and "everyone" was sure that it was going to come to Texas, so "everyone" is stocking up on ammo.

The Boy called me in a dither (as he often does given that he tends to believe practically anything told to him by anybody) claiming that he was going to go on a search today for ammo before it's all gone! I told him that I thought this was a hysterical reaction caused by rumours floated around probably by the ammo and gun manufacturers and the reason that there was no ammo was the result of people (like him) freaking out and buying everything they could get their hands on. I also pointed out to him that if California and Illinois had enacted new tax laws which I understand they really did, that was at a State level, not a Federal level. Governor Perry wouldn't have a chance at re-election if he suddenly increased the price of ammo by 500%, as reported by the Academy Clerk.

I was driving through El Campo this weekend and saw a huge sign outside a gun shop stating "last chance to get your guns before the Obama ban!" I saw emails from the Reps before the election declaring that Obama was going to ban guns and force the Catholics to fund abortions, and apparently the thought is still alive and well...

Anybody else heard anything about this ammo shortage? (In the interest of full disclosure, I have a suitcase full of ammo for my handgun, but I bought it last year when I was going to the gun range often.) While The Boy usually listens when I try to interject some logic into conversations, on this one, he's freaking -- he's out buying ammo for his Russian rifle that he's never fired because "it might not be available anymore!"

 

[BPSCG]

There was a gun show here recently whose promos advised you to come and buy guns while you still could.

I went to the firing range at the NRA national headquarters here in suburban Virginia with my nephew last weekend and there was nothing remotely like that there - just a lot of gun owners firing in a very calm, safety-conscious environment.

But there are people - like The Boy - who'll believe every wild rumor. And as long as there are people like that, there will be people to prey on them and their gullibility.

 

[Kthulhut Fhtagn]

I think you hit the nail on the head about what the problem is, mass hysteria. Hardcore gun enthusiasts always seem to think the government is just out to take their guns away and naturally they look for whatever verifies this. So if the gun stores can make some quick cash off hyping rumors they will, and the gun enthusiasts will naturally buy into it. I haven’t seen anything locally, but I haven’t been out in a long while either. I think I’ll go check things out here soon to see if we’ve got our own ammunition panic going on.

 

[Bikewer]

I'm on a forum which discusses firearms frequently, and the general tone before the election was "go out and buy guns now because Obama is going to enact anti-gun legislation!"
Also, there is a furor over proposed legislation (I think in Illinois) to require gun owners to carry large insurance policies (silly fringe legislation bound to fail) and other states tossing around the idea of a large tax on ammunition.
This sort of thing has been floated many times, always doomed to fail.

The main reason it took so long for us to issue our "patrol" rifles was that we couldn't get the necessary training ammunition. Reason for that was simple, it was pre-"surge" and every .223 round being made was going to Iraq...

Maybe it's the merchants that spread these rumors.

 

[FlamingMoe]

he's out buying ammo for his Russian rifle that he's never fired because "it might not be available anymore!"

This is the real issue. There's been talk of some variety of emabrgo that's been driving up prices on 7.62x39 rounds manufactured in Russia. What used to cost less than $200 (1,000 rounds) is now going for almost $300. American manufacturers are tooling some lines to produce more, but that's at least six months out so x39mm rounds are scarce for now. Which makes me a sad panda because 7.62x39 is what my RPK eats.

 

[roger]

Well, there's a war going on. That has chewed up a lot of the capacity of the ammunition makers.

 

[The Mutha]

Thanks for all the replies. I figured the wars would be using up a lot of the supply as well. The Boy is pretty gullible, but I'll keep him around. He's good for a couple of things..

 

[Autolite]

I think you hit the nail on the head about what the problem is, mass hysteria. Hardcore gun enthusiasts always seem to think the government is just out to take their guns away and naturally they look for whatever verifies this.

OTOH, Canadians have reason "to think that the government is just out to take their guns away".

After the AWB in the U.S. in the mid nineties, the Canadian Federal Liberal government enacted an 'across the board' gun registry. They pacified the 'hysterical' gun owners by claiming that in no way was the registration a precursor to wholesale firearms confiscation.

In January 2006 a General Election was held and the then Federal Liberal Prime Minister, Paul Martin, who in a bid for re-election vowed that he would push for the WHOLESALE BAN AND CONFISCATION OF ALL LEGALLY OWNED AND REGISTERED HANDGUNS within the province of Ontario. He and his party lost the election.

The government wanted everyone to register their guns. They assured gun owners that their would be no wholesale gun confiscation. They lied.

Don't blame gun owners for being paranoid or 'hysterical'. They have justifiable reasons to be...

 

[Springfork]

No shortage here...I reload my own.

 

[UnrepentantSinner]

OTOH, Canadians have reason "to think that the government is just out to take their guns away". {snip hysteria}

Is there a 2nd amendmentish section in the Canadian Constitution? If not, then your argument is a non-sequitor.

 

[Beerina]

Its ironic that extra taxes would have no effect on criminal violence as it's just part of the cost of doing business. So, too, for nutjobs going postal.

But don't rule out good old-fashioned greed by officials who will lose more votes trimming 3 cents a week from a social security check than they will lining up a bunch of gypsies or jews to execute.

Guns are just one more "sin tax" to go after.

 

[Bob Blaylock]

OTOH, Canadians have reason "to think that the government is just out to take their guns away".

After the AWB in the U.S. in the mid nineties, the Canadian Federal Liberal government enacted an 'across the board' gun registry. They pacified the 'hysterical' gun owners by claiming that in no way was the registration a precursor to wholesale firearms confiscation.

In January 2006 a General Election was held and the then Federal Liberal Prime Minister, Paul Martin, who in a bid for re-election vowed that he would push for the WHOLESALE BAN AND CONFISCATION OF ALL LEGALLY OWNED AND REGISTERED HANDGUNS within the province of Ontario. He and his party lost the election.

The government wanted everyone to register their guns. They assured gun owners that their would be no wholesale gun confiscation. They lied.

Don't blame gun owners for being paranoid or 'hysterical'. They have justifiable reasons to be...

The same thing has happened in at least two states in the U.S. In both New Jersey and California, certain firearms were defined fraudulently as “assault weapons”, and subject to registration requirements, with the promise that the records created by this registration were not going to be used to later confiscate them. In both these states, these “assault weapons” were later banned altogether, and registration records were, in fact, used to track down and confiscate these weapons.

 

[Yjacket]

I do not recall much talk on the part of the politicians in California to slap a large tax on ammo, recently that is. But there has been lots of effort to pass legislation that would require ammo purchasers to register that purchase. Also the idea of serialized ammo by marking the bullet itself shows little sign of permanently residing in the trash can.

Seems that few politicians and do gooders are able to grasp the concept that as a society we could not stop the production, importation and use of alcoholic beverages, refer to the prohibition fiasco. Nor have we done much to stop the illegal manufacture, importation and use of controlled substances, narcotics, in spite of the billions of dollars poured into the effort. Refer to the War on Drugs. So what makes these folks think that they can stop the criminal from acquiring a firearm and ammo for that firearm?

 

[Kthulhut Fhtagn]

Don't blame gun owners for being paranoid or 'hysterical'. They have justifiable reasons to be...

Actually I do and can blame them for going hysterical rather than simply settling down and checking out the facts. I'm pro-gun myself but often times I can't help but sit down and look at others who share my views on handguns and wonder at what a bunch loons these people are. One of the major justifcations I keep hearing from these people is the necessity of their guns to help fend off the government. Every single attempt a liberal makes at controlling firearms, even uncessary firearms such as high-powered fully automatic weapons, is instantly interpreted as a threat to their constitutional rights even if it makes some of sense. It isn't even so much as that as the fact that the gun industry seems to perpetuate these myths in order to boost sales.

Somewhat related anecdote on that last note; during the election an ex-girlfriend told me she was having her boyfriend buy a gun before Obama took them all away. Silly statement to make, IMO. (I Suppose she didn't want to feel left out when she realized she didn't have anything to give Obama)

 

[Roma]

That just reminded me of something a CNN financial reporter said last year:
"when things get really bad the only stock that will be a safe bet is ammunitions"

 

[Springfork]

...Every single attempt a liberal makes at controlling firearms, even uncessary firearms such as high-powered fully automatic weapons, is instantly interpreted as a threat to their constitutional rights even if it makes some of sense...

You may be pro gun but you are uninformed. Fully automaic weapons have been tightly controlled since 1934 with the passage of the National Firearms Act.

 

[gdnp]

The government wanted everyone to register their guns. They assured gun owners that their would be no wholesale gun confiscation. They lied.

Ah, the standard gun rights slippery slope fallacy.

If I'm not mistaken, you just stated that the party advocating wholesale gun confiscation was defeated. And even if they had won, it does not immediately follow that they would have been able to pass a piece of legislation confiscating guns. And as of today, no gun has been confiscated. So there was no lie. Meanwhile, since guns are registered, they are easier to track if used in the commission of a crime.

In fact, the entire premise that a legislature that passes a bill is somehow responsible for the bills that some future legislature may pass is nonsensical. "The government" is not some monolithic single-minded entity. It is made up of a changing mix of politicians from different parties. This party may have attempted to confiscate guns with or without gun registration.

 

[BPSCG]

So what makes these folks think that they can stop the criminal from acquiring a firearm and ammo for that firearm?

It's a phenomenon that Oscar Wilde called, "The triumph of hope over experience."

 

[ponderingturtle]

Actually I do and can blame them for going hysterical rather than simply settling down and checking out the facts. I'm pro-gun myself but often times I can't help but sit down and look at others who share my views on handguns and wonder at what a bunch loons these people are. One of the major justifcations I keep hearing from these people is the necessity of their guns to help fend off the government.

No Iraq shows that IED's are what need to be legalized for that justification for private ownership of weapons.

I often wonder when people start on about that especialy when they start quoteing founding fathers about the importance of civil insurection, if Timmothy McVeigh was really the greatest modern patriot by their definitions.

 

[ponderingturtle]

Ah, the standard gun rights slippery slope fallacy.

If I'm not mistaken, you just stated that the party advocating wholesale gun confiscation was defeated. And even if they had won, it does not immediately follow that they would have been able to pass a piece of legislation confiscating guns. And as of today, no gun has been confiscated. So there was no lie. Meanwhile, since guns are registered, they are easier to track if used in the commission of a crime.

In fact, the entire premise that a legislature that passes a bill is somehow responsible for the bills that some future legislature may pass is nonsensical. "The government" is not some monolithic single-minded entity. It is made up of a changing mix of politicians from different parties. This party may have attempted to confiscate guns with or without gun registration.

Wait you mean that Drivers liciences and other forms of ID are not just the goverments initial stages to round everyone up?