Category: Pennsylvania

This isn’t quite a Cabela’s level exit from the East Coast’s (previously) largest sportmen’s show since Cabela’s was an actual sponsor instead of just an exhibitor, but it is very close because of the major profile of the company.

Ruger addresses the concern that so many smaller vendors have about pulling out of this show. It’s not that they don’t support the Second Amendment, it’s that the can often see the difference between profit and loss for the entire year based on the sales at this single show.

One such company is GUTNTAG, a Pennsylvania company that I found mentioned in one of the many headline stories about regional exhibitors pulling out. Their statement says that they are really true believers in the Second Amendment even though they sell cooking seasonings:

We have made the costly decision to withdraw because it is the right thing to do. We are a young company that relies on this one venue to create our operating capital for the year; however we cannot support uninformed businesses caving to political pressures caused by broadly politicized events. We proudly support the 2nd Amendment in the capacity for which it was intended; the right of citizens to keep and bear arms. Our freedom to do so was not for hunting or competition shooting, but protection for law abiding citizens.

In the words of Thomas Jefferson, “No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms. The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.” Friends, if we continue to give in inch-by-inch, we will find ourselves with no protection and a tyrannical government.

With such a strong statement, we decided that we’ll show them some support and buy their seasonings.

I think some of the most interesting reactions have been from folks who are still baffled by NSSF’s request for consumers to continue to support the gun banning exhibition company. This is the take from celebrity hunter Lee Lakosky:

“I don’t know why the NSSF would promote this ban just to please one vendor out of twelve hundred,” he said. “Anyone who believes this isn’t a big deal is wrong. It is a big deal because this is where it starts. There’s a reason for the Second Amendment and we all need to band together and stand behind it.”

Jim Shepherd from The Outdoor Wire had this to say about the statement this morning:

Saying the “hunting and shooting sports community needs to be unified in the face of political challenges” while encouraging attendance at an event which has banned the nation’s most popular and best-selling rifle seems contradictory.

People on Twitter also shared my sentiments when I posted that my first reaction was “WTF?” Granted, The Outdoor Wire adds more to the context in terms of how NSSF may have been limited in how strongly they could condemn Reed Exhibitions, but I don’t think anyone would have complained if they simply cut the last two paragraphs from their statement – the two where they actively encouraged people to give Reed money, even as they ban modern semi-automatic rifles.

TOW notes that as big as many attendees believe that SHOT is for Reed (they manage it on behalf of NSSF), it’s a drop in the bucket compared to their other shows. Hell, even in this industry, the 60,000 people who attend SHOT don’t compare to the estimated 200,000 who attend the Eastern Sports & Outdoor Show. And, unlike SHOT, Reed is directly making $14/head for every single one of those attendees, plus the exhibitor fees of many thousands of dollars.

At this point, ESOS is starting to recognize the backlash. They finally removed Cabela’s from their list of sponsors, and they have slowed their advertising promising certain celebrity speakers who has since publicly cancelled. I even saw one newspaper report that said the ESOS spokeswoman was starting to speak again – though she’s not really saying anything more than the original statement and confirming that they do have exhibitors backing out.

For those who still want to let the ESOS know how they feel about the subject – and let them know if they have lost your business as an attendee – here is a repeat listing of the contact information that they pulled down from the ESOS site right as the controversy erupted:

Group Vice President – Ed Several
Phone: 203-840-5932 Fax: 203-840-9932 Email: eseveral@reedexpo.com

Event Director – Chris O’Hara
Phone: 717-368-7487 Fax: 203-840-9868 Email: cohara@reedexpo.com

Public Relations – Deb Davis
Phone: 717-834-6267 Fax: 717-834-6207 Email: ddavis@conceptoneinc.com

Marketing – Cathy Kitlasz
Phone: 203-840-5871 Fax: 203-840-9781 Email: ckitlasz@reedexpo.com

I contacted Ms. Davis on behalf of the blog, but she has refused to respond. Of course, we’re not alone. Many media outlets have reported that they are trying to contact her and other Reed spokesmen, but they all refuse to return any calls or emails.

UPDATE: And now minutes after I hit publish, Smith & Wesson announces that they are pulling out of the Eastern Sports & Outdoor Show. Wow.

The ban on modern semi-automatic rifles at the Eastern Sports & Outdoors Show doesn’t just apply to the display and sale of the actual firearms and related accessories. According to the early report from Firearms Industry Consulting Group, the new rule also says that vendors may not feature “brochures or documentation that mention or picture any ‘black rifle’ or high capacity magazine.”

This means that the Pennsylvania Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs cannot sell tickets to their raffle for a Bushmaster XM-15E2S A3. They have posted the order form online for anyone who wants to mail in a form with payment. So, if you’re interested in a chance of winning a rifle for $10 (or 6 chances for $50) with a only 500 tickets sold, take a look.

UPDATE: PFSC provides confirmation that even their raffle ticket is banned at the ESOS under the current rules:

PFSC had planned to sell raffle tickets for a chance to win the hottest-selling firearm on the market today. It comes fully-accessorized! Unfortunately, we wouldn’t be able to mention, display or provide a picture of it at the show.

They also include in the announcement that they will no longer have an active presence at the show because of the ban on modern semi-automatic rifles.

They say that there’s no such thing as bad publicity. Unfortunately for the Eastern Sports & Outdoor Show, I don’t think that’s the case for the news generated by their ban on modern rifles. All of the regional headlines about the show just a couple of weeks out are now about the volume of exhibitors who are pulling out of the show and leaving empty booth space behind. That is decidedly bad when it comes to convincing consumers that they should hand over $14 a day to browse empty tables.

• After vendors pull out, gun owners question attending the outdoor show – ABC 27
• Cabela’s pulls out of Harrisburg outdoors show over gun flap – The Patriot-News, The Mercury, The Tribune-Democrat, The Reporter, Public Opinion, Morning Call
• Third Lancaster County business withdraws from Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show over gun flap – Intelligencer Journal
• Celebrities join boycott of outdoor show – Intelligencer Journal, York Daily-Record
• Cabela’s drops out of Harrisburg gun show, cites assault weapons ban – York Daily Record
• Lancaster County exhibitor pulls out Harrisburg gun show, cites assault weapons ban – York Daily Record
• Another Lancaster County exhibitor backs out of popular outdoor show over assault-rifle ban – Intelligencer Journal, York Daily Record
• Assault weapons ban at Harrisburg expo irks enthusiasts – Pocono Record
• Expo organizer’s ban on assault weapons irks some – Daily Local News
• Cabela’s pulls sponsorship from Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show – CBS 21
• Assault weapons sale ban at large PA gun show draws fire – Philadelphia Inquirer
• Cabela’s becomes latest vendor to bow out of outdoor show – ABC 27
• Lengthy list of exhibitors boycotting Eastern Sports and Outdoors Show in Harrisburg, Pa. – The Post-Standard
• Boycott over gun sale ban grows against Eastern Sports & Outdoor Show – The Patriot-News
• Trent Cole jilts Pa. expo over ‘sporting rifle’ ban – Philadelphia Inquirer
• Vendors pull out of show when assault weapons, high-capacity ammunition banned – Herald-Mail
• Celebrity hunters pulling out of Harrisburg gun show – Pocono Record
• Number of exhibitors withdrawing from Outdoor Show continues to climb – CBS 21
• Sportsman Show Boycott – WNEP

Those are just the headlines on the stories about vendors pulling out or sportsmen who refuse to attend. That doesn’t include the initial reporting on the ban. Give it more time, and I suspect that we’ll not only see more vendors withdrawing from the show, but also more stories that effectively squash any energy and excitement that the ESOS might have drummed up with area consumers.

Of course, boycotts are good for some businesses, too. I’ve been following the boycott reports very closely, and it’s really amazing how many businesses are climbing aboard the boycott and claiming they are “pulling out” of the show – except they never had exhibition space to begin with. It’s awfully easy to say you’ll no longer attend an event you weren’t actually planning to attend. A few others have made their proud stand, but they just happen to own businesses and only planned to attend as consumers, not exhibitors. But, hey, they are being public with their support for our rights, so I won’t give them too hard of a time.

And to keep up the energy of supporting the Second Amendment, one retailer that withdrew is now holding a drawing largely for those who support other vendors that withdrew from the ESOS over their ban on modern rifles & accessories.

For what it’s worth, everyone on the list I’ve made up has been independently confirmed that they were on the list of vendors. That doesn’t mean that the list is perfect, but it’s reasonably verified.

I’ll repeat something that I said earlier today about a commenter’s use of the term “Fudd” to describe the situation of the Eastern Sports & Outdoors Show:

I really hate using that term because far too many gun owners are willing to lump everyone or every thing branded “sportsman” or “hunter” into that category. The folks up there on the list of vendors who have pulled out over this decision include quite a few people who sell nothing at all related to the demonized “black rifles,” yet they are sacrificing thousands of dollars to make a stand for our rights.

I get what you are trying to say in terms of how the sponsors are behaving, but just be careful throwing around that term so that you don’t end up turning people against all hunters & sportsmen.

I think that’s especially relevant after more announcement tonights. Several of the archery hunting celebrity speakers have now pulled out of their events at the Eastern Sports & Outdoor Show because of the exhibition company’s ban on all things modern sporting rifle. They are standing with us. Half of the companies on the list I’ve been keeping of confirmed speakers and exhibitors who are sacrificing their deposits don’t sell any products related to shooting modern semi-automatic rifles. Yet, they stand with us.

Just like we would hope that Reed Exhibitions and the Eastern Sports & Outdoors Show wouldn’t judge a gun by its color and aesthetic features, I hope that our folks don’t judge a Second Amendment supporter by their favorite sports.

Just a few minutes ago, Cabela’s announced that not only are they not going to attend the Eastern Sports & Outdoors Show because of their ban on modern sporting firearms, but they have also pulled out of their top sponsorship agreement.

With that news, Sebastian and I have decided in the last few minutes that tomorrow would be a lovely day for a drive to our nearest Cabela’s to buy a few things we don’t actually need. We’ll also send a short and polite note to the manager to let them know of our appreciation for their decision.

UPDATE: The interesting thing will be to see if The Outdoor Channel will continue to keep up their sponsorship agreement with the ESOS. They are the only other top sponsors with specific financial interests at stake with ESOS’s new ban on modern rifles.

Lackawanna County Sheriff John Szymanski has been forced to extend business hours just for concealed carry license applications, pick-ups, and to answer questions about gun permits. Twice a week, his office will remain open until 8pm just to handle the approximately 40 permits a day he has been issuing since the beginning of the month. Last month, he issued 413 permits. That was up over the same month in 2011 by 56%.

The story says that the sheriff’s office couldn’t handle the “constant line” of applicants, so now they have a sign-in sheet–in addition to the added hours. The added hours will be in effect until at least the end of February, but will go back to normal once the rush slows down.

That said, if any Lackawanna County Second Amendment supporters wanted to know of a line of gun owners just waiting to “do something,” this would be a great place to collect signatures on letters to Congress. You know that everyone in the line lives in the county, and it’s only split between two districts – Reps. Tom Marino and Matt Cartwright. Cartwright campaigned on a gun control platform pretty much as extreme as anything you’ve heard about on the table federally, but Marino could use the extra voices telling him to stand up for gun owners. (That said, if anyone is in Cartwright’s district, you should write him anyway.)

Stu Greenleaf is calling for a task force to study the gun issue. Greenleaf has been a thorn in our sides for a while now, but he sometimes votes the right way on our issue. It’s hard to say what the intention is here. On one hand, we shouldn’t trust Greenleaf at all, but on the other hand, task forces are a common way for politicians to be seen as “doing something,” without actually doing anything. Along with blue ribbon panels, they are generally kabuki theater; elaborate rituals often structured to come to pre-determined conclusions. But which conclusions?

The thought has occurred to me that one way to deal with Greenleaf, if he continues down the anti-gun path, is to go volunteer for his next Democratic challenger, just to get him out of a leadership position in the GOP-controlled Senate. The worse he gets on our issue, the more attractive this thought becomes.

Asked if he has publicly changed his mind like Sen. Bob Casey on the topic of banning semi-automatic firearms, Governor Tom Corbett spoke out and made clear that his position is that mental illness is the underlying common issue in many mass attacks.

He made clear that he does not support state action on banning semi-automatic rifles, but acknowledges that the main debate will be at the federal level. He says flat out that banning guns won’t make people safer.