While the focus of anti-gun anger is on semi-auto "assault" style weapons and handguns, perhaps its worth wondering whether air guns might be low-hanging fruit in local jurisdictions seeking to "do something" about guns?
Just ask any YouTuber trying to put airgun content up what the climate is like. Hint: It's not good, Parkland tragedy notwithstanding.
Maybe I'm over thinking but remind yourself of this: Airguns are NOT protected by the Second Amendment because they are not regarded by the court as "arms" typically used for self-defense. Nor are they regulated by the Alphabet org, because they don't meet the definition of firearms.
This leaves the door wide open for states, counties and municipalities to ban them, or regulate them in all sorts of ways that they can't with firearms. Connecticut, Delaware, Rhode Island, New Jersey, San Francisco, New York City and the District of Columbia all provide vivid examples of how outrageously restrictive air gun regulation can become. Michigan and Illinois treat larger calibers as "firearms" for legal purposes.
Gabby Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, a leading advocate for gun control, has a page of its website dedicated to "non-powder guns". This suggests air gun regulation is not just a fringe issue for gun control forces who are undeniably gaining strength. Gifford's website advocates for "laws that threat non-powder guns like the potentially lethal weapons they are."
Popular airgun forums such as this are populated largely by responsible, adult hobbyists who enjoy shooting sports. For that reason perhaps we forget that unfortunately air guns are widely abused and misused by kids, criminals, animal abusers and all manner of other lowlifes whose misdeeds include everything from shooting neighborhood cats to vandalizing dozens of cars at a time (not to mention causing school lockdowns by bringing $20 Daisy pistols to school). The mayhem occasionally makes the local news and provides all the ammunition needed for a municipality to "crack down" with no fear of being hauled to the Supreme Court by the NRA.
With the explosion in popularity of PCPs and big bores, it goes without saying these are serious weapons designed to be used and enjoyed by responsible people. The first lethal accident (or God-forbid intentional incident) with big bore is likely to raise the curtain on a whole lot of scrutiny. When a kid got killed in Great Britain it sparked an ongoing government review of that country's already ridiculously restrictive air gun laws. People are people and there are more of these guns out there every day. Something bad is bound to happen.
I don't write all this to offer any sort of strategy for protecting our "right" to enjoy our sport without harsh regulation or worse. (I guess that right is non-existent anyway). Perhaps it’s just food for thought.
But if they are not already, I would certainly encourage the industry to collectively spend some time on this issue by monitoring developing legal and legislative challenges. They should also continue to create events such as the Pyramid Cup, EBR and FT rallies which successfully focus on the pure sport side of air gunning in friendly welcoming environments. Continued engagement with state natural resources agencies regarding the expansion of airgun hunting opportunities is another good thing to keep working on in organized fashion. As an observer, I think the industry does a good job of maintaining a largely responsible marketing posture focused on adult target use and legal hunting and pest control. The rest of us would do well to follow suit.
I got into airguns because I really enjoy shooting sports and I'm fascinated by the tinkering and physics that comes into play. Airguns give me all the challenge of powder-burning without all the noise, special trips to the range and regulatory hassles. Frankly, I can also do without all the gun politics. Airgunning allowed me to ignore that kind of noise too -- until now.
Just ask any YouTuber trying to put airgun content up what the climate is like. Hint: It's not good, Parkland tragedy notwithstanding.
Maybe I'm over thinking but remind yourself of this: Airguns are NOT protected by the Second Amendment because they are not regarded by the court as "arms" typically used for self-defense. Nor are they regulated by the Alphabet org, because they don't meet the definition of firearms.
This leaves the door wide open for states, counties and municipalities to ban them, or regulate them in all sorts of ways that they can't with firearms. Connecticut, Delaware, Rhode Island, New Jersey, San Francisco, New York City and the District of Columbia all provide vivid examples of how outrageously restrictive air gun regulation can become. Michigan and Illinois treat larger calibers as "firearms" for legal purposes.
Gabby Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, a leading advocate for gun control, has a page of its website dedicated to "non-powder guns". This suggests air gun regulation is not just a fringe issue for gun control forces who are undeniably gaining strength. Gifford's website advocates for "laws that threat non-powder guns like the potentially lethal weapons they are."
Popular airgun forums such as this are populated largely by responsible, adult hobbyists who enjoy shooting sports. For that reason perhaps we forget that unfortunately air guns are widely abused and misused by kids, criminals, animal abusers and all manner of other lowlifes whose misdeeds include everything from shooting neighborhood cats to vandalizing dozens of cars at a time (not to mention causing school lockdowns by bringing $20 Daisy pistols to school). The mayhem occasionally makes the local news and provides all the ammunition needed for a municipality to "crack down" with no fear of being hauled to the Supreme Court by the NRA.
With the explosion in popularity of PCPs and big bores, it goes without saying these are serious weapons designed to be used and enjoyed by responsible people. The first lethal accident (or God-forbid intentional incident) with big bore is likely to raise the curtain on a whole lot of scrutiny. When a kid got killed in Great Britain it sparked an ongoing government review of that country's already ridiculously restrictive air gun laws. People are people and there are more of these guns out there every day. Something bad is bound to happen.
I don't write all this to offer any sort of strategy for protecting our "right" to enjoy our sport without harsh regulation or worse. (I guess that right is non-existent anyway). Perhaps it’s just food for thought.
But if they are not already, I would certainly encourage the industry to collectively spend some time on this issue by monitoring developing legal and legislative challenges. They should also continue to create events such as the Pyramid Cup, EBR and FT rallies which successfully focus on the pure sport side of air gunning in friendly welcoming environments. Continued engagement with state natural resources agencies regarding the expansion of airgun hunting opportunities is another good thing to keep working on in organized fashion. As an observer, I think the industry does a good job of maintaining a largely responsible marketing posture focused on adult target use and legal hunting and pest control. The rest of us would do well to follow suit.
I got into airguns because I really enjoy shooting sports and I'm fascinated by the tinkering and physics that comes into play. Airguns give me all the challenge of powder-burning without all the noise, special trips to the range and regulatory hassles. Frankly, I can also do without all the gun politics. Airgunning allowed me to ignore that kind of noise too -- until now.