Posted on 10/17/2002 5:16:26 PM PDT by Tumbleweed_Connection
The Beltway killer has sparked a booming interest in guns in northern Virginia.
"In Spotsylvania, Stafford, Prince William and Fairfax counties - all at or near sniper attacks - officials report up to a 500 percent increase in applications for concealed-weapons permits, and gun sales are up nearly as much," the New York Post reported today.
Barbara Brinklow, deputy clerk of the Spotsylvania circuit court, said, "We're seeing a lot of women, which is a change from traditional permit applicants."
"I had an 81-year-old man come in this morning," said deputy clerk Kathy McAllister in Stafford County. "'It's just the way the world is now,' he told me."
The surge in demand has forced delays. The permits used to involve a three-week wait because of background checks. That time has doubled.
Sales of firearms have also soared. "The owner of Damage Inc., a gun shop in Stafford County, said gun sales at his store have increased 300 percent since the sniper's rampage began," the Post reported.
Fox News Channel reported tonight that gun rights groups and the police were warning people not to try to shoot it out with the sniper.
Maryland Cracks Down
In neighboring Maryland, controlled by leftist Democrats, the situation is different. Gov. Parris Glendening has banned recreational use of firearms, including hunting, in four counties near Washington.
"Maryland has some of the most draconian gun laws in the nation, and those laws have not kept the people of Maryland safe from this nut," said the group Seniors United Supporting the Second Amendment, referring to the killer, not the governor.
"SUSSA is disturbed that the elitist anti-civil-rights groups are using the blood shed by the people of Maryland and Virginia to advance their radical agenda."
Gays for Gun Rights
Meanwhile, in the Northwest, homosexuals are coming out for their Second Amendment rights, the Seattle Times reported Wednesday.
"I'm in sync with Democratic Party values, but their gun-control stance doesn't work," said gun rights activist Nicole Shounder of Lynnwood, Wash. "We stand out as possible targets, and we are not going to let harm come to ourselves or our loved ones."
Shounder, a transsexual lesbian who used to be an Air Force sergeant and who voted for President Bush, packs a Smith and Wesson .45 and "a discreet Kel-Tec .32 for formal dress."
Unfortunately, a large number of these people will shortly go back to grazing blissfully and voting for more gun control. I've never understood it, but it's true. I am endlessly annoyed at people who preach to me about the joys of gun control while they keep a hi-cap Glock in their nightstand.
Six weeks? By that time 20 more innocent people might be dead.
With respect, I think that you are misinformed about NJ gun laws. As a former resident of NJ (I escaped a bit less than 2 years ago), I am familiar with this topic.
The ID card should, by law, take no more than 30 days to obtain. You are then graciously permitted (/dripping sarcasm) to buy ammo for handguns and any long gun (though not hollowpoint handgun ammo). However, the 30 day limit specified in NJ law is routinely ignored (does this surprise anyone, given what just happened with the Senatorial ballot?), esp. in anti-gun jurisdictions (the majority in NJ, esp. in and near big cities). You also have to get a replacement (incl. new fingerprints and, of course a fee for the prints) every time you move to a different town.
As for handgun permits, you must be referring to permits to buy a handgun, which you do need every time you wish to purchase one. These must be signed by your local police chief, or you can't get one, and nothing requires them to sign off. You DO NOT have to renew them every 6 months, as it is a single-use document. As for CCW in NJ, there isn't any. Oh, in theory there is the possibility of getting a carry license, but you had better be a BIG contributor to some pol's campaign, or a good friend of some judge. No average person can get one.
All that said, I'm glad to be in Texas. It is good to be living in Free America, where I can carry a handgun (or 10, if I can conceal them all), where I can walk into a gun shop or go to a gun show (there are none in NJ) and buy any long gun and any ammo (including hollowpoint handgun, tracer, armor-piercing and AP incendiary) with no permit. Handguns I can buy instantly, as my CHL permit bypasses the Brady check.
Great advice! If you are shot at simply lie on the ground and wait for the authorities to show up. They can handle the problem. (/sarcasm)
There is just too much here! First of all, what is a transsexual lesbian? Is it someone who was once a man, changed to a woman and likes women? Well, at least Bush has the transsexual lesbian vote!
which tells me they're NOT used to firearms at all. Nor was the photographer, editor, publisher...
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