Rolling Stone may have just set a new standard for bad timing.
In a Monday report, also appearing at The Trace, the magazine rips the firearms industry for allegedly promoting concealed carry, less than 48 hours after an armed Michigan citizen heroically drew his concealed sidearm and stopped a bloody knife attack in Traverse City, and in the wake of reports that Washington residents have hit another new record for active concealed pistol licenses.
SEE: Legally Armed Civilian & Brave Bystanders End Michigan Walmart Stabbing Spree
According to the Rolling Stone article, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is “pushing the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, a federal bill that would bar states from fully enforcing their laws on gun carrying.”
“The bill has broad support among conservative lawmakers,” says Rolling Stone, “with 186 Republican co-sponsors in the House and 46 in the Senate. If the legislation arrives on President Donald Trump’s desk, he has pledged to sign it.”
The article is headlined, “Concealed Handguns Create a Climate of Fear, the Gun Industry’s Own Research Reveals.” It was published “in partnership with The Trace, a pro-gun control publication. The article laments about how concealed carry has expanded and licensing requirements have eased in many states to the level of “shall issue.”
Twenty-nine states have adopted laws eliminating the need for a license or permit to legally carry. While some 22-23 million Americans are licensed to carry, there may be no reliable way to estimate the number of law-abiding citizens in those states who carry without a license.
The argument that “more Americans feel less safe when it comes to people legally carrying concealed guns in public” might not register right now with Michiganders, especially those in Traverse City. An armed citizen and former U.S. Marine identified as Derrick Perry is being hailed a hero by local authorities and the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA).
Perry, backed by at least four other witnesses to the Saturday afternoon attack, drew his sidearm and held suspect Bradford James Gille at gunpoint until sheriff’s deputies and other law enforcement arrived to take him into custody. He faces possible charges of assault with intent to commit murder and terrorism.
Suddenly, concealed carry is not such a scary subject on the south shore of Lake Michigan’s Grand Traverse Bay.
The notion of citizens with guns also does not appear to be a problem out in Washington state, where the Department of Licensing reported a new record in the number of active concealed pistol licenses (CPLs), at 709,334 at the end of June. In a state known for its increasingly far-left political bent, the idea that roughly one-in-nine qualified adults is licensed to carry doesn’t seem to raise too many eyebrows. According to a report at Axios, about 20 percent of Evergreen State CPLs are held by women, and King County—the hub of liberal politics and anti-gun activism—also boasts the highest number of licenses at 113,756. The number of active CPLs has climbed more than 10,000 since the first of the year, according to TheGunMag.com.
The Axios report quoted Renée Hopkins, CEO of the Washington-based Alliance for Gun Responsibility, who stated, “While we acknowledge more guns pose a greater threat to our communities, CPL holders tend to be responsible gun owners.”
That’s a surprising admission from a gun control advocate, and it tends to raise questions about the Rolling Stone assertion that people are concerned about other people legally carrying firearms.
In a statement Monday, CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb applauded armed citizen Perry’s actions during the mayhem in Traverse City.
“Armed citizens have often intervened to stop deadly attacks,” said Gottlieb, who has co-authored several books dealing with the importance of the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. “When such incidents occur, we are often disappointed when the establishment media seems to quickly downplay, if not completely ignore, the use of a firearm by an armed citizen to intervene and stop the mayhem. This time, the incident was captured on video, so it cannot be ignored. Mister Perry’s courageous action deserves recognition, not just by his fellow Michigan residents, but by Americans everywhere.”
Among the Gottlieb books (co-authored by Dave Workman) are such titles as Good Guys with Guns, Right to Carry, and America Fights Back.
The Walmart stabbing suspect was reportedly armed with a folding knife, which authorities recovered.
About Dave Workman
Dave Workman is a senior editor at TheGunMag.com and Liberty Park Press, author of multiple books on the Right to Keep & Bear Arms, and formerly an NRA-certified firearms instructor.
