By Matt Manda
There’s a growing chorus for strict gun control following the tragic murders in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas, where deranged individuals took the lives of innocent Americans.
Ryan Petty isn’t among them, though some might expect him to be. Petty’s 14-year-old daughter Alaina was murdered in the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School tragedy. Instead of blaming gun owners that follow the law, he’s inviting them and others with a call-to-action of his own: Go to the range, practice and show your support for the Second Amendment.
His efforts are gaining momentum.
#ResponsibleGunOwnersDay
Petty is also a federally-licensed gun store owner. He’s calling on all law-abiding Americans and gun owners to head to their local practice shooting range on Saturday, June, 11, for a national Responsible Gun Owners Day. NSSF is supporting Petty’s efforts to practice and teach others about responsible gun ownership. He joined Bearing Arms’ Cam Edwards – who was guest hosting the nationally-syndicated Erick Erickson radio show – to talk about his efforts.
“With anti-gun activists and politicians once again calling for gun control measures that will only punish responsible gun owners for the evil acts of criminals, activists have called for June 11th, 2022, to be a day of marches and protests against our Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms,” Petty told Edwards. “I say enough! It’s time for responsible gun owners to stand up and take action. So, I am calling all responsible gun owners to a national day at your local gun range on June 11th, 2022.”
Petty added, “Being a gun owner demands responsibility; becoming and maintaining proficiency with firearms is part of that responsibility. Your neighborhood gun range is the best resource for training and education on firearms proficiency, safety, handling and storage.”
Interested gun owners can participate in #ResponsibleGunOwnersDay anywhere in the country at their local, neighborhood shooting range. Find a range near you at NSSF’s website wheretoshoot.org.
Gaining Steam
Petty announced his #ResponsibleGunOwnersDay idea, in partnership with NSSF, over social media and the feedback was immediate and positive.
“This is a cause worth supporting!” tweeted Fox News contributor and retired Marine (ret.) Johnny “Joey” Jones. Jones visited SHOT Show 2022 and spoke about the importance of firearms and what safe ownership and practice meant to him. “The face of the Second Amendment is the face of any American,” Jones said at the time. “This Constitution – the Bill of Rights that we have – they’re for all of us.”
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In his social media post announcing #ResponsibleGunOwnersDay, Petty told his followers it’s easy to find your nearest community practice range to participate. “Need help finding a range for #ResponsibleGunOwnersDay at the Range? Find it here –> www.WhereToShoot.org #LetsGoShoot.”
Second Amendment-supporting Americans gave Petty some immediate feedback. “I’ll BE OUT THERE SIR!,” said one woman. “#ResponsibleGunOwnersDay sounds AWESOME – see you at the range!” another exclaimed. Second Amendment advocate and veteran Virginia Kruta added, “This is a really good idea. #ResponsibleGunOwnersDay.”
Advocate Dan Roth expanded the call and invited his followers to join him too. “I’ll be heading to a local range on this day. If you are interested in joining me, let me know and we’ll see what we can do. It could be a great opportunity to learn about safe and responsible gun ownership,” he tweeted.
Saturday, June, 11, is coming up fast and all signs show that #RespsonibleGunOwnersDay could be a boon to demonstrate America’s law-abiding gun owners are responsible and looking for more education, training and safety. They’re showing that the answer isn’t more gun control on those who obey the law, but enforcement of the laws to hold criminals responsible.
The Landscape
More than 40 million Americans purchased a firearm between 2020 and 2022. To date, there have been 34 months of at least 1 million firearms sold per month and it’s still going. That number includes roughly 14 million new first-time gun owners. The gun-owning community is now the most diverse it’s ever been – with women and African-American and minority buyers leading the new wave.
President Joe Biden and some in Congress are clamoring to pass more restrictions on law-abiding Americans looking to exercise their Second Amendment rights. Not all lawmakers agree with the proposed bans. U.S. senators are cautiously working on a legislative proposal that would be focused on solving problems instead of pushing political agendas.
While gun control groups stage their rallies and garner the attention of major media networks and talking head TV pundits lauding their “courage,” Petty is urging Americans in communities across the country to head to their local shooting range and demonstrate a different kind of courage – the courage to lawfully own a firearm, stand up for Constitutional rights and to refuse to be a victim.
In a country where most of us can carry legally why would you not?
“prince teddy” kennedy is famously quoted as saying “Nobody should have guns except the army, the police, and my bodyguards. And im not so sure about the police”. One reason the left protests at the police getting leftover surplus military gear, (to meet the power posessed by their heroes the drugmomsers….. er, drugmongers) and their curious paeanegrysistical romantisisation of robin the hood, frank and jessie, bonnie and clyde, billy the kid, pattie hearst, freddy kreuger, the pimps and johns, the jabbers, snorters, and reefers, et.al.; so honestly worded by o’bomba, “ah inten to reconstruck amurka as we know it!”. (For growing up in california and hawaii and djakarty, he sho souns suthin!). Its all aesops feathers, kids; as ben franklin said, who gives up liberty for comfort, deserves neither. Ban No-Gun Zones? There are some churches say please no guns, but dont say never-any. And, security personel are for verifying (teachers lounge) doors are shut AND locked/latched, and should be standing by when they are held open for deliveries. BT,DT. Vigilance never sleeps, so that you can.
People need to wake up to the fact that 99% of the mass shootings happen in gun free zones. Also that most if not all mass shootings are False Flag events planned to cause hysteria and further the gun control agenda by the deep state. In schools with armed teachers/guards there are no mass shootings. Point two; the second amendment is a God given right that shall not be infringed so any law that infringes on our rights in anyway is illegal. Point three; The MSM never reports on the many lives saved by lawful responsible gun owners. It doesn’t fit the gun control narrative.
Remember all those folks in Washington who are who want to take away our gun rights have armed security guards or can afford to hire them. I’m sure most of their children are driven to school and picked up by security people at private schools. If these people are serious they would implement some of the following: One entrance one exit in all schools. Security checks like they have at all airports. Armed security guards at both one entrance and exit point. Full time monitoring of web sites before an attack takes place. I know this would not stop all the crazies but would go a long way to cxurb shootins instead od making another law this type of person will ignore.