A local news report from Saint Lawrence, Pennsylvania shed some light last week on a phenomenon getting very little attention even in the pro-gun blogosphere. While the overall jump in gun sales has been widely reported, few have noticed the extraordinary way these sales have risen among senior citizens. And at a time when the Obama administration is trying to link the Social Security Administration with the FBI’s background check system, this demographic does not deserve to be overlooked.
The report, from 69 News, is anecdotal and specific to eastern Pennsylvania, but it does use a recent claim from the NRA to bolster the argument – that seniors are more interested than ever in arming themselves:
According to the National Rifle Association, there has been a 400 percent increase in the number of senior citizens taking a basic firearms course since 2010. Officials said the primary reason seniors are packing heat is for protection.
“I feel very secure. I know I have a concealed carry permit and I know if I needed to, I could defend myself and my family,” [71-year-old Joan] Eshelman said.
Reporters for 69 News also interviewed officials at Sensibly Armed, a local gun shop, who confirmed that they’d seen a spike in senior customers for the last three years.
Of course, you don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out what’s happening here. It’s the same as what’s happening across all gun-buying demographics. Under Obama’s failed presidency, Americans are more fearful about the future of this country than they have been in a long time. With economic warning signs on the horizon, civil unrest growing in our nation’s inner cities, and the global spread of Islamic terrorism, we have plenty to be nervous about. Put that together with the left’s constant “gun control” drumbeat, and it’s no wonder that Obama has been credited as one of the best gun salesmen of all time.
This proliferation is a good thing. The more people who buy guns, the less people there are who are afraid of them. More importantly, Democrats lose a little bit of political power in this arena every time a new customer buys a gun. At that moment, their efforts to disarm Americans become personal. If they shouldn’t have the right to ban you from owning one, why should they have the right to ban others?
