Posted on 01/23/2013 8:28:21 AM PST by marktwain
Did you have plans for attending the grand-daddy of sports and outdoor shows, the Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show held in Harrisburg, PA in February?
You might want to reconsider.
The show’s promoters have banned all references to America’s favorite rifle, the AR-15 and those like it. This is the announcement from their website (you can Google it, but we’re not putting any links, hot or not, to the ESOS website):
As a hunting-focused event, we welcome exhibitors who wish to showcase products and firearms that serve the traditional needs of the sport. Clearly, we strongly support the 2nd Amendment. However, this year we have made the decision not to include certain products that in the current climate may attract negative attention that would distract from the strong focus on hunting and fishing at this family-oriented event and possibly disrupt the broader positive experience of our guests.
Gun owners are not amused.
They’ve made their voices heard and vendors are pulling out left and right. Literally every hour, big names in the shooting world are pulling out.
(OF Mossberg pulled out as I was typing this report).
They are listed at a Facebook Page entitled, “Boycott the Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show”.
The show had about 1200 vendors, according to media reports, and nearly 20% of them have cancelled plans to attend, including big names like Cabelas and the NRA.
So, if you were considering attending, and paying $14 a day for the privilege to walk around and see a bunch of vacant floor space, go ahead and knock yourself out.
You’ll have plenty of room to navigate this year, we guarantee it.
I don’t attend gun-shows, but fully support and understand those that do.
I couldn’t understand why a gun show wouldn’t allow “assault” rifles to be shown, until I saw that it was a British Exhibition Management company that was involved, and then it all made sense.
They need to be dumped ASAP.
Soon I expect to see the demonization of this industry to the point where it relocates overseas....more loss of American jobs, more stress on the economy, one more step to de-industrialize America, one step closer to Obama's goal of tyrannical communism for the disarmed American people.
I gather that it’s a British company of some kind that was sponsoring the show. It seems to be a case of ideology trumping common sense, given the type of people who would usually attend.
Is there some other audience to the extreme left whom they are worried about offending? Because this sure seems dumb to me. Stupid and dumb. You aren’t going to get a lot of effete metrosexuals attending such a show, I wouldn’t have thought.
Soon I expect to see the demonization of this industry to the point where it relocates overseas....more loss of American jobs, more stress on the economy, one more step to de-industrialize America, one step closer to Obama's goal of tyrannical communism for the disarmed American people.
I know I won’t be going.
This is not a Gun Show per se. Maybe about 20% is guns, the rest is outdoors, Camping, fishing,hunting trips, cloting,log cabins,Gear,timber crusers,food, all sorts of stuff. I will not go this year.
My brother in law used to go every year to see how many of his employees that called in sick were at the show-always got a good laugh whnen they ssaw him.
This is not a Gun Show per se. Maybe about 20% is guns, the rest is outdoors, Camping, fishing,hunting trips, cloting,log cabins,Gear,timber crusers,food, all sorts of stuff. I will not go this year.
My brother in law used to go every year to see how many of his employees that called in sick were at the show-always got a good laugh when they saw him.
British, guess they haven’t gotten over that guns and personnel freedom thing from 1776 or 1812 yet.
The show organizer already has their money for the booth fees.
Good short term for Reed. Long term future business doesn’t look so good.
As Ben Franklin noted years ago, American gun owners better hang together or they will be hanged separately.
It may not be a gun show per-se but a show like this as like a shopping center, Anchor Tenants that are the real draw. This is especially true here following on the heels of the 2013 Shot Show.
“Clearly, we strongly support the 2nd Amendment. “
Clearly they would make Goebbels proud with their lies, damned lies, and baldfaced lies.
IF they supported the 2nd Amendment, they would not have changed a darn thing!
So CLEARLY they are baldfaced lying in an effort to promote the current propaganda against the AR-15 platform.
“The show organizer already has their money for the booth fees.”
That’s chickenfeed! The gate is where the money is made. Reed is going to take a bath on this show. And that’s a good thing!
I fully expect a class action to recover those + damages. You cannot sell exhibitor spots to a car show and then decide, after taking the money, that no "fast cars" will be allowed on the floor.
Reed did irreparable harm to the interests of the exhibitors.
The promoters should bill this as:
“THE LAST EASTERN SPORTS AND OUTDOOR SHOW”
In most companies 20% of the merchandise generates 80% of the Sales.
Same is true with suppliers. The top 20% of the vendors account for 80% percent of sales.
Yes, Scotty, it is dead.
The NRA/GOA and others should picket outside too
Rumor has it that sponsors Progressive Insurance and Comcast pushed Reed into making this decision. Although if true, they probably didn’t have to push too hard.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.