Posted on 06/28/2022 3:46:10 PM PDT by Zhang Fei
For centuries, some of the biggest names in firearms — Colt, Winchester, Smith & Wesson — have made their homes in Western Massachusetts and Connecticut, a region that grew so rife with gunmakers it earned the nickname “Gun Valley.”
The signature weapons that powered America’s wars from the muskets of 1812 to the M1 Garand of World War II to the M16 in Vietnam were made by the millions here, as were the pistols on the hips of law enforcement officers across the land.
To many, it’s a surprising distinction for a region that reliably votes blue and sports some of the nation’s strictest gun laws. But you can thank General George Washington for that. He planted the seeds for Gun Valley even before he became the father of his country, choosing Springfield, Mass., as the place to store the fledgling Continental Army’s cannons, muskets, and other supplies — an inland trove safely out of reach of the British Navy.
Mass manufacture of weapons would follow, centered around the Springfield Armory and the many firms it spawned. In 2010, Massachusetts and Connecticut, along with New York and New Hampshire, produced nearly half the firearms for non-military sale in the entire country.
But what Washington long ago launched, the economy and politics are taking away. Gun Valley is rapidly declining as more conservative states lure gun manufacturers away with promises of cheaper labor and energy costs, generous incentives, and more favorable gun laws. Northeastern politicians, meanwhile, have increasingly targeted these companies for their roles in perpetuating gun violence — even as these same officials regret the erosion of the industrial workforce gun-making has sustained.
By 2020, the four Northeastern states’ share of non-military firearms production plummeted in a decade from nearly half to just 18 percent of the nation’s total.
(Excerpt) Read more at bostonglobe.com ...
I always wondered why they stayed in the rank grass this long.
I was listening to my 2A podcast and Alan Gottlieb believed said a lot of anti gun laws are about to be nullified because of last week’s 2A decision. There’s precedent now. Strict scrutiny.
Now if we could have aircraft made there as well...
... and spacecraft!
Thomas wrote strict scrutiny was too loose an interpretation.
Suppliers for gunmakers will be next etc etc etc
Move to Midwest Red States. Ramp up production. Embargo blue states and watch crime go up. Voters get mad at politicians, kick them out and want more guns.
Profit.
I forgot the name of the interpretation they used, but someone described it by saying that the court is requiring that the 2A be read the way Muslims read the Koran.
Departing is the first step. Cutting contracts with government and law enforcement in anti-gun states is the next. Let them buy their weapons from the Soviets.
(Weatherby)...Mead told the Casper, Wyoming, Star-Tribune that stricter gun laws in other states like California and Colorado have allowed Wyoming to “recruit some of these companies that may be not satisfied where they are.”
Read more at: https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/business/article196450909.html#storylink=cpy
The Prescott AZ area has been trying hard to get Ruger to move their headquarters here. Ruger’s handguns are made here.
Just one of many:
In 2006, Bushmaster was purchased by Freedom Group, parent company of Remington, Marlin/H&R, DPMS, Para USA and Dakota Arms. In 2011, Bushmaster plant in Maine was closed and production moved to Remington facility in Ilion, New York and later to Huntsville, Alabama.
Some of those gun companies have seen rapid growth and quite healthy profits.
Why stay in a region that hates you and wants to kill your business? That’s in addition to the high taxes, massive amounts of red tape, etc.
There was a few lines in the decision that stated the type of guns was not locked in the 18th century.
Historically, the gun production was mostly located in the industrial Northeast.
But, they are not welcomed there now.
If your landlord harasses you, the best way is to move!
Should moved to a red state decades ago 🤪
Kimber is now made in Alabama.
Glock is made in Smyrna, GA.
S&W is moving to Maryville, TN.
Beretta moved to Gallatin, TN.
Troy Industries moved to Clarksville, TN.
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