West Virginia Gun Sales Surge Amid Obama PresidencyConcerns

This story was written by David Ryan, The Daily AthenaeumWest Virginia University area gun saleshave surged over concerns that a Barack Obama presidency would mean tighter gun regulations,shop owners say.

Ben Peters, manager of the International Outdoor, Inc. pawn shop on High Street, said that businesshas increased nearly 40 percent in the period between Election Day and now, citing his customerswerent overly concerned that Obama would take away their guns but more that they wouldnt be ableto purchase the guns they want.Ive been watching elections the last four or five elections, Peterssaid. Every time, it stirs up a paranoia in people, and that leads to increased sales.Peters said thatthere has been an increase in demand for handguns, semiautomatic weapons and sporting guns,commonly referred to as assault weapons. Demand for ammunition is also up, he said.In the periodfrom Nov. 3 to Nov. 9, 374,000 background checks were conducted on persons wishing to purchasefirearms across the country, said Stephen Fischer, chief media representative of the Federal Bureauof Investigations Criminal Justice Information Services division. This is a 49 percent increase fromthe same time last year.According to FBI figures, a total of 243,717 background checks were carriedout during the same period after the 2000 election when Democratic Vice President Al Gore ranagainst current President George W. Bush.Greg Morrison, manager of Cashland Pawn on BeechurstAvenue, also noticed an increase in sales and is finding it hard to order some types of guns.Fearsamong gun owners include gun control and further legislation limiting their sales. This has helpedincrease prices of ammunition and maintaining supplies of guns difficult.Supplies for handguns andsemiautomatic weapons have fallen short, Morrison said.In his time at the store, Morrison said thereis a frenzy every time an election comes up. Morrison was selling guns at the store when formerPresident Bill Clinton took office in 1992 and said his customers had concerns then too.Theyre afraidObamas going to take guns away from people, Morrison said. We tell them theres no way he canchange the Constitution or take away the Second Amendment.Morrison said that the increase couldbe attributed to both candidates.Both candidates said they were going to institute some form of guncontrol, Morrison said.Despite those assurances, many still believe that Obama will restrict gunrights.For one organization, spreading that message is pivotal.The National Rifle Association hasdubbed Obama the most anti-gun candidate ever, sending out campaign pamphlets during thepresidential election with the candidates supposed 10 Point Plan to Change The SecondAmendment.Among them are banning the use of firearms for home defense, passing federal lawseliminating the right to carry firearms, closing down 90 percent of gun shops in the country andappointing judges to the United States Supreme Court who share his views on the SecondAmendment.In response, the Obama campaign released a fact sheet on its Web site stating that anObama presidency believes in the individual right to bear arms and that he will protect the rights ofhunters and other law-abiding Americans to purchase, own, transport and use guns for the purposesof hunting and target shooting.The likelihood of Obama tampering with the Second Amendment isvery slim, said Allan Hammock, associate professor emeritus of the West Virginia UniversityDepartment of Political Science.Currently, customers wishing to purchase guns are required to fillout an application form that checks for any arrest warrants, convictions or criminal record that mayprohibit a consumers legal right to a gun.Such background checks are required by the Brady Act, alegislation passed in 1993 that requires gun store owners to run background checks on everycustomer who wants to buy a gun.Its an instant check, Fischer said. By the time the data hs beenentered, the information is being checked against millions of computer records.If nothing is found,

the owner is allowed to pick up his or her firearm before the five days is over.Getting involved withthe Second Amendment isnt likely to be the president-elects biggest concern, Hammock said, addingthat political pressures are involved with the issue.Remember that the Congress has to passlegislation, Hammock said. Even then, legislation has to pass the constitutional test before theSupreme Court.