Record gun sales in New York

Gun sales are way up in New York in large part due to rioting:

“Area gun shop owners say that since they’ve been allowed to reopen, many have seen a spike in sales, while at the same time they can’t keep up their stock. It’s fueled by fears of socioeconomic uncertainty and the idea that civil unrest seen elsewhere in the state and the nation will soon come to their towns … Federal background checks for gun purchases in New York state totaled 61,324 in June, the biggest monthly tallies since 2000, according to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, run by the FBI. Jimmy Cosenza, owner of Cosenza’s Gun Shop in Monroe, said his business reopened in June starting with curbside pick up only. Normally, he serves 20-30 customers a week. But the number surged to 50-100 a week after the reopening … many customers say they want to buy a gun at this time for personal defense. “With everything going on, they’re afraid the riots may come up here,” Cosenza said …”

This matches what has been going on nationwide:

“… Firearms sales rose 94% for the March-to-July period from a year earlier, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the gun industry’s trade group. About 40% of those sales went to first-time gun owners. One of the nation’s largest gun makers, Smith & Wesson, said it will boost production after record-breaking sales. The company reported a 140% increase in gun sales from the beginning of May through the end of July …”

S&W stock is booming:

“… Smith & Wesson Brands reported 1Q earnings of $0.97, better than analysts’ estimates of $0.48 per share. Its revenue came in at $278 million, higher than the Street estimates of $195.03 million. Despite posting upbeat 1Q results (ending on July 31) Smith & Wesson stock fell 3.5% on Friday due to the broader market sell-off …”

Of course, the antis aren’t happy:

“… Scott Pappalardo of Middletown, who works as a volunteer leader for Everytown, a gun safety advocacy group, said owning a firearm is a personal decision but weapons need to be stored properly and purchasers must go through legal procedures. “During the pandemic, we have millions of school children and teenagers home from school that could access these firearms either for suicide or unintentional shooting,” said Pappalardo … “This ready access to guns is concerning given that nearly three in four firearm suicides by young people take place in or around a home, and over 80% of firearm suicides by children involve a gun belonging to a family member,” the report read. “The other concern is with the increase of gun sales, the background check system is being burdened,” Pappalardo said. “If the system isn’t working properly and domestic abusers get firearms and bring it home where they’re in quarantine with a loved one who is being abused, that could put them in a tremendous risk.” …”

That is complete bullshit:

“… “I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’ve been involved in hundreds of homicide investigations here in the city of Rochester,” the captain said. “Do you know how many of those homicide investigations involved individuals that owned legally-registered handguns? Honestly, I can’t remember one that wasn’t justified or ruled as justified by a grand jury in which a suspect committed a murder with a legally owned handgun.” “So again, if these politicians want to get up and spew that we need more gun laws, they’re just lying, they don’t want to answer the real questions that need to be answered,” [Rochester Police Department Captain Frank] Umbrino said …”