Intro: Reports of increased crime as the coronavirus pandemic continues, has triggered renewed public interest in gun ownership, triggering higher gun sales and gun safety training.
Joining us in this discussion is Tom Gresham (or other spokesman from list below), spokesman for Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
Q&A:
- What kind of crimes are increasing during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Answer: Fortunately, most of the crime now being reported involves commercial burglary of unoccupied businesses.
- How long do you think it will be for more violent crimes to ramp up?
Answer: We don’t know. That’s the whole point, so people, many of whom have never before owned a gun, have determined that they need a means of personal safety, for themselves, their families and their homes.
- Where can people buy guns currently? Are gun shops considered essential services?
Answer: After numerous lawsuits by the 2nd Amendment Foundation, the gun stores are now largely considered essential services. Published reports say burglaries are up in cities such as San Jose and Seattle, both in states where governors have arbitrarily decided gun stores are “non-essential.”
- What happens in areas like New Jersey and New York where growing numbers of police offices have contracted COVID-19?
Answer: All the more reason for citizens to have their own firearms since we can’t totally rely on police to show up on a timely basis—and some experts are saying the country could be entering the worst phase of the pandemic in the next two weeks.
- Tell us more about your organization.
Answer: With more than 650,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms is one of the nation’s premier gun rights organizations. As a non-profit organization, the Citizens Committee is dedicated to preserving firearms freedoms through active lobbying of elected officials and facilitating grass-roots organization of gun rights activists in local communities throughout the United States.
Our website is: (www.ccrkba.org)
ABOUT TOM GRESHAM (In Central Time):
Tom Gresham is a spokesman for 2nd Amendment Foundation. He hosts the nationally syndicated weekend radio talk show ‘Tom Gresham’s Gun Talk,’ carried on 266 stations. He also has created, hosted and directed several television series about guns including Shooting Sports America on ESPN, and Guns and Gear on NBC Sports. An author of several books, Tom has also written thousands of magazine articles about firearms.
ABOUT ALAN GOTTLIEB (in Pacific Time):
Alan is a strong advocate of defense. He’s a nuclear engineering graduate of the University of Tennessee, publisher of Gun Week, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, and Founder of the Second Amendment Foundation. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the American Conservative Union.
ABOUT MARK WALTERS (In Eastern Time):
Mark Walters is a national board member of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and a broadcast media spokesman for the Second Amendment Foundation. Mark is the recipient of the 2015 Gun Rights Defender of the Year Award, a weekly national columnist for Ammoland, and author of three books, “Lessons from Armed America with Kathy Jackson”: foreword by Massad Ayoob, “Lessons from Unarmed America with Rob Pincus”: foreword by Ted Nugent and “Grilling While Armed.”
ABOUT DAVE WORKMAN (In Pacific Time)
Dave Workman is an award-winning career journalist and senior editor of TheGunMag.com. He also writes for Liberty Park Press, Conservative Firing Line and several firearms periodicals. He is also communications director for the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. His has authored Op-Ed pieces in several major newspapers including the Chicago Tribune, Seattle Times and Atlanta Journal Constitution. He has also co-authored seven books with Alan Gottlieb, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation.
ABOUT STEPHEN WILLEFORD (In Central Time):
After the deadly mass shooting in November 2017, Stephen has become known across the country as the “good guy with a gun.” Stephen credits his unwavering faith and penchant for preparedness as to why he was able to step in during this critical incident, believing that each day of his life prepared him for what happened on that Sunday morning. In 2018, Texas Governor Greg Abbott appointed Stephen to serve on the Texas Private Security Board. Stephen is a native of Sutherland Springs, Texas, and has been married to Pam Farmer Willeford for 30 years and has three children and three grandchildren.
