The bullets are back

August 6, 12:50 PMDenver Gun Rights ExaminerDan Bidstrup

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My brother and I attended a gun show last weekend and I have good news.  Bullets are back.  Not only was I able to buy all the 9mm rounds I wanted, but my brother found adequate supplies of .380 ammunition as well.  Stacks of .223 ammo were also in evidence.  Since our government hasn't changed in six months, what has changed?  Economics 101 tells us that the marginal utility of the next bullet will be less than the last one.  In other words, if I have no bullets to shoot in my pistol, I really, really want the first 10 bullets I can buy at whatever price I find them.  The 500th bullet, I will shop around for the best price, and after 1,000 I will probably stop (I think).  Manufacturers have been running flat-out since November of 2008, and have finally caught up.  Enough Americans have enough ammunition that they feel they secure.

Since the government hasn't changed, why do they feel secure?  Is it because we all have 1,000 rounds of our preferred ammunition stockpiled and we can't conceive of a firefight where an additional 200 rounds would have made a difference?  No, I think it is because we have renewed confidence in our fellow citizens' good sense.  Poll after poll is showing renewed support for our basic right to keep and bear arms.  We see efforts to curb gun ownership fall short of needed votes.  We see efforts to raise money for the Brady Center in Chicago falling flat.   We see regular citizens who haven't protested in their lives stepping out to join others at town hall meetings, TEA parties, and Obamacare rallies calling for less government intrusion in our lives.  We are willing to take care of ourselves and our own.  Stop spending money the country doesn't have and don't come taxing us for it.  Gun ownership is, for many, the first step of taking care of ourselves and our own.  It begins with personal safety and security and extends to our community and our state.  Before the Great Society we relied on our families, our communities, and our churches to care for our less fortunate, not the federal government.

This is a resilient and generally optimistic country.  The majority that sees the glass half full rather than half empty have begun to stand up.  One indicator of that to me is piles of ammunition at a gun show.