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.
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.