Well... I hate to be the realistic guy in the room... But all my prohibited firearms used to be legal...
- A valid FRT hasn't stop any politicians (or the horse-people) to change their mind and make it prohib.
I agree, feel your pain and I would think that, me having more than a few prohibs now, that I would be gun shy (no pun intended) to go out to my local gun store and look for something else. But nope, I am either stubborn, dumb or tenacious. Maybe all three - was just at a LGS this past weekend and bought another addition.
Now, I totally get it - I really do. Once bitten, twice shy (or in many of our case, many times bitten, perpetually shy). Well, I would like to think that I have the long game in mind - if I do what a few people I have encountered (mostly on GP) have started doing and packing up and selling everything and conceding to the government that they win...well, what kind of man would I be and what kind of example I would show my kids, the same ones that I told them never let anyone bully you, always go down fighting...and those aren't just platitudes - my parents came to this country, experienced real racism and yet had the resilience and determination, and again, tenacity to make the best of each situation, pivot their expectations and not let bad things get the better of them. I have, I am pleased to say, adopted and inherited their values of self-reliance, independence, and not letting someone else tell me how I should live.
So I was in the gun store last Saturday, and despite a wedding I am contributing to financially, in 70 something days, I continue to not let fear drive my decisions and I picked up something else at the LGS, something else that I never thought I would pickup...it wasn't my thing years ago...it may not be my thing down the line, but it supports my LGS and more importantly, is a reminder to myself that often times the fight is within ourselves - do we take the easier route and give up, or adjust to the realities around us. I take a page out of the apostle Paul in the Bible - even though he was in prison, he still made the best of it and had joy. Not because he could have had it worse, but because his focus and his foundational belief was not in his circumstances.
Perspective is important. As a gun owner, these have been dark times. I have only been a gun owner for about 21 years, but there are those who have been gun owners for a lot longer, and they have seen even a worse slow creep into government overreach. Gun owners in every generation have had to deal with their fair share of increased government vitriol towards us, but like many before us, they just soldier on and adjust and life doesn't stop.
It pains me that I get excited over a pump rifle or a single shot shotgun or a bolt action, or even semi auto hunting shotguns but again, looking at perspective is important. Would I want to be in Japan, where all I can own is what, air rifles or shotguns and I am limited to what, 200 rounds a year, having to change out my casings/hulls for new ones? Would I want to be in Mexico where the only gun store is in Mexico City and is government owned and civilians have nothing (criminals are a different story, but that's outside the scope of what I am writing). Yes, we are living beside a super free country (overall) in terms of firearms ownership, but again, looking at perspective, sometimes we only get upset when we compare ourselves.
For those who watch hockey, it reminds me years ago of Chris Pronger when he played for the St. Louis Blues. Guy got a super rich contract, he was one of the highest paid in the league and was quite happy; however, once he found out about some mediocre to decent player making more....now, his contract is an "insult" and he wanted more. He was happy with what he had before he found out what someone else had.
Now saying we should be happy with what we have - we should not be, and I want to be clear in that - but there are countries that have it worse, and I am glad I am not there (going back to Japan - it may not be a bad place to live - it is low crime, but not because of lack of guns but because of a more refined, respectful and community culture that looks out for their fellow citizen.
I have resolved a few things in my life, some of which I can't discuss here, but it all encompasses my general ethos of not letting the government dictate how I live my life and what decisions I make, aside from clear moral restrictions, like not robbing a bank when I need the cash to get my new AX800. So I will support my LGS come hell or high water. If I don't do it, who will? If we collectively stop buying, our LGS will shut down and we then we will truly have nothing. If we don't keep buying (as we are financially able), companies won't keep trying to put out innovative products knowing there are those of us who appreciate and want to see ingenuity, not just settle for the status quo. I love the fact that Schmeisser is putting out a pump action PCC - I can't wait to get one. But on the other hand, if my LGS has only single shot guns for sale down the line - you can be sure I will be in for at least one of them, and will grab a pack of ammo to boot, as well. I may not want it, and I may think I may not need it, but I do need it, for reasons beyond simple personal material desire.
Sadly, many gun owners cannot see the bigger picture, nor can they differentiate the forest from the trees and just ignore the current noise. We can take a page from those before us, who continued to build their collection, stack their ammo, and continued to enjoy legal sport shooting, target shooting, hunting and collecting within the legal constraints (which are constraining more and more) and just develop a tenacity that has gotten them this far.
That said, the Schmeisser 9mm pump may be just the thing I need to keep me reminded of the good old days, event though we all know it's going to be a "cope gun". I already bought a Taipan X and while at first I thought it goofy, it has grown on me - I am just happy companies put these products to market knowing there are geographies that have very restrictive gun laws. Gotta count the positives, I suppose.