Tag: Guns

The purchase and use of assault rifles is under fire, leaving loyal enthusiasts upset


The Connecticut Citizen's Defense League logo, courtesy of the CCDL official website.

The Connecticut Citizen’s Defense League logo, courtesy of the CCDL official website.

By Bill Ruocco

On Wednesday, Feb. 28, both Walmart and Dick’s Sporting Goods made efforts towards slowing their sales of firearms. Walmart, America’s largest gun supplier, adjusted the age requirement to 21 in order to buy any firearm. Dick’s made the move to completely cease the sale of any assault rifles.

To learn more about the situation with Dick’s and Walmart, click here.

There is no shortage of these super-stores that sell firearms in Connecticut. Take a look for yourself, the map below contains every Dicks Sporting Goods and Walmart in Connecticut that sells firearms.

Locally this announcement did not send shockwaves of any sort given Connecticut Dick’s Sporting Goods have not sold assault rifles since the tragedy of Sandy Hook.

“So-called ‘assault rifles’ have been banned already in Connecticut back in 2013,” said Scott Wilson, president of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League. “The policy to up the age to 21 years on up was more of a surprise.”


Members of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, or CCDL. Photo courtesy of the CCDL official website.

Members of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, or CCDL. Photo courtesy of the CCDL official website.

Wilson is not the only individual who commonly puts the words “assault rifle” in quotations these days. In the gun community, a lot of the frustration is geared towards the broad definition of an “assault rifle” that is quickly placing bans on many firearms that seemed relatively tame and very safe in their eyes.

The remaining frustration is a driving idea that most gun enthusiasts share.

“Our job as a gun rights organization is to educate the public at large about how little more laws would have little effect on such outcomes,” said Wilson. “Remember, criminals bent on murder do not really care about the laws.”

In the minds of most who are passionate about firearms, the recent laws and bans are virtually pointless.

Leaders in organizations specific to gun rights are not the only local individuals who have grown weary of regulations on firearms.

After a quick visit to Blue Trail Range Gun Store in Wallingford, Conn. it was quickly apparent how people feel.

“The key word in the Second Amendment is infringed,” one anonymous individual stated, “That means it cannot be touched at all.”

The man also said, in so many words, that once we give up one of our rights, we are vulnerable to give up everything else.

Major sporting goods stores wade into gun debates


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By Andrew Weiss

Several major sporting goods stores, headlined by Dick’s Sporting Goods and Walmart, announced plans to limit gun sales at their locations. Dick’s announced its plans via social media on Wednesday morning, hitting Twitter and Facebook feeds with their new prerogative revolving around firearms.  

Walmart followed suit that night, adding onto its previous decisions regarding firearm sales.

The announcements come just weeks after the shooting in Parkland, Flordia left 17 dead. The shooter, Nikolas Cruz, used an AR-15 assault-style firearm, also known as a semi-automatic sporting rifle.

However, while the end of assault-style rifles occurs in Dick’s Sporting Goods and Walmart stores across the country, in Connecticut it is the age restriction that hits hardest. The sale of assault-style weapons has been banned in Connecticut since the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012. The incident, when 20 children and 26 total people were killed, sparked cries for gun reform that were met with changes to magazine size sales, registration of certain firearms, and background checks for potential buyers.

The increase of age as a restriction is another step in the way for potential Connecticut gun owners. Emilio Zullo, a junior at Quinnipiac, works in the lodge section of Dick’s Sporting Goods. He sells anything from hunting and fishing goods to hiking and camping materials to, yes, firearms. As a gun owner himself, Zullo acknowledged the increase in steps it takes for a gun owner in Connecticut to purchase or own a firearm.

“In Connecticut specifically, there’s an ammo certificate, there’s a pistol and revolver license, and there’s a long gun license,” Zullo said. “You have to apply for different (types of registration) and they’re expensive. You have to take classes.”

According to Zullo, the hurdles associated with obtaining a gun in Connecticut are different in bordering states.

“When you have to pay over $100 just to get a license, it’s a bit ridiculous,” Zullo said. “In New York, I don’t have to pay to get a license, only a pistol permit. If I want to buy a rifle, I have to pay $150 to be certified (after classes) to buy a rifle.”

Zullo could not comment on the Dick’s ruling, stating only that employees were instructed not to speak on the issue.

Some Quinnipiac students were happy to see the change.

“I think it is a good step in the right direction. I am glad that private companies have decided to do what the federal government won’t,” Marc-Yves Regis, a Quinnipiac junior, said.

Owen Kingsley, a senior at Quinnipiac, agreed.

“I love the decision from Dick’s regarding assault rifles,” Kingsley said. “It’s not a huge factor by itself when it comes to the accessibility of assault rifles, but (it is) a possible decision that could trigger larger legislation in that area. I’m hoping it creates pressure on others to act.”

Dick’s stock has dropped since the Parkland shooting on Feb. 14, dropping 1.85 points to a total of 31.80 on Feb. 27 before the announcement. The stock has been growing since then, climbing more than .6 points back up.

Gun owners in Connecticut have been vocal on the decision. For more, Bill Ruocco delved into how gun enthusiasts are responding to these rulings.