Not Toilet Paper, Americans Are Panic-Buying Guns And Ammo In Response To Coronavirus

While people in Australia are stocking up on toilet paper, in Netherlands on weed, the sale of guns and ammunition is going up in the US. That¡¯s right. people in the US are PANIC-BUYING GUNS, amid the coronavirus crisis.

Reportedly, amid fears of social unrest Americans are prompted to turn to firearms as a form of self-protection. According to The Guardian, customers were queuing up outside gun stores on the west coast to stock up on deadly materials.

AP

Martin B Retting's gun shop in Culver City, California, saw queues stretched round the block throughout the weekend.

¡°Politicians and anti-gun people have been telling us for the longest time that we don¡¯t need guns. But right now, a lot of people are truly scared, and they can make that decision themselves,¡± LA Times quoted one person as saying.

Larry Hyatt, owner of one of the country¡¯s largest gun shops, Hyatt Guns in Charlotte, North Carolina, told The Guardian that he had seen something like this only once before.¡°This is only the second time in my 61 years of business that we¡¯ve seen anything like this,¡± he said.

AP

The first occasion was after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school in Connecticut in 2012. ¡°We are experiencing a massive rush to buy guns and ammunition as people feel the need to protect themselves and their families,¡± he further said.

People are not buying hunting rifles but opting for target guns like, AR-15 semi-automatic assault-style rifles. According to Hyatt the reason for the spike in gun buying is, ¡°Financial meltdown, pandemic, crime, politics ¡­ you throw it all into the pot, and you have one hell of a mess.¡±

If you thought the lines at the grocery store are long... good morning from Los Angeles ? pic.twitter.com/NudGqwW4I2

¡ª CJ Johnson (@cjjohnsonjr) March 14, 2020

A major online dealer of ammunition, Ammo.com, reported that in 11 days (February 23-March 4) sales increased by 68%! North Carolina and Georgia, saw a leap of 179% and 169% respectively. Other states that saw increased sales are Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida, Illinois and New York.

Big line for handguns and most the ammo sold out at sportsman warehouse pic.twitter.com/OgfA5EONpa

¡ª Brian Shannon, CMT (@alphatrends) March 14, 2020

Ammo.com¡¯s marketing manager, Alex Horsman in a statement said, ¡®We know certain things impact ammo sales, mostly political events or economic instability when people feel their rights may end up infringed. This is our first experience with a virus leading to such a boost in sales¡¯.

Gun sales are also increasing because of fear of racism and xenophobia.

Academy gun counter in Houston at 2pm on Friday pic.twitter.com/aimqjzGC6U

¡ª Mr. Gonzalez (@EasyOperator) March 14, 2020

¡°People are panicking because they don¡¯t feel secure. They worry about a riot or maybe that people will start to target the Chinese,¡± The Trace quoted David Liu, a Chinese-American gun dealer outside Los Angeles as saying.

At this point of time when people are already in a state of panic, loading up on weapons of violence does not appear to be the sanest of ideas, and it is rather saddening that it has come to this.