Silver and Lead
Profiting From The Insurrection
- Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show
The annual outdoors show held at the Harrisburg (PA) Farm Show Arena. - Pa. Farm Show Complex
". . . From the agricultural shows that gave the building its name, to the car shows, proms and other activities that take place here throughout the year, the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex & Expo Center is home to a host of exciting events. . . - Guns, Democracy and Freedom - Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
. . . Gun lobby extremists have been perfectly willing to trample on any freedom that gets in the way of their pursuit of unrestricted private access to firearms (i.e., property rights, access to justice, freedom of information, public safety, etc.)
Arming Our Rebels?
Almost every week or weekend, there is some event at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania's Farm Show Complex. Many of the events are agricultural in nature; the event that gives the facility its name for example. But there are other events; an equestrian show that has brought Olympians, an automotive exhibition that brings current models and a glimpse into what may be next on the highways, and even two professional sports teams.
One of the other major events is an outdoors show that brings hunters, fishermen and women, archers, campers, etc to see and even try the latest gear. In light of the Newtown Shooting, the organizers decided that weapons similar to those used in the massacre would not be exhibited. Several exhibitors, including the major outdoor outfitter Cabela's, have pulled out, seemingly under orders from the NRA.
Now I can understand that owners of weapons like AR-15s are a valuable niche market to the manufacturers that the NRA is essentially the voice of. But who are the people who make up this niche?
It would seem to me and others that this niche has one goal in mind from their rhetoric. They are not interested in hunting game, or even personal protection. I have no issue with someone having a rifle to hunt animals, or a pistol to target shoot or even protect themselves. These people seem to be reading for a revolt against what they see as a tyranical government. The results of this rhetoric have been seen in such places as Tuscon, Arizona.
But these manufacturers may not mind that they are, in effect, arming America's Insurgents. America has a tradition of doing that; Iran and Iraq, Nicaragua, and Afghanistan come to mind.