Locals divided on gun control debate

DAYTON (WDTN) - Guns have been a part of Andrew Palmer's life since he was a teenager.

Two years ago, he turned that love into a livelihood when he opened PSG Gun Store in Beavercreek.

For a man who makes his living selling weapons, you can imagine what he thought of President Obama's plan to toughen gun laws. "It's just ridiculous," said Palmer. "It's like curing a headache by cutting off the head. There's other ways to combat this, but it's like they're taking the easy way out".

Palmer said his customers aren't the same people committing crimes. "I've sold probably 5,000 guns in two years and have had nothing come back".

Which is why Palmer believes the President's plan is misguided. Local gun right's advocates have agreed and said many of the directives don't do anything to prevent future attacks.

Larry Moore is a volunteer regional leader for the Buckeye Firearms Association. "I think american people need to sit down and ask some serious questions," said Moore. "What would these proposals do to our freedoms? And which of these proposals would have stopped any of the mass public murders that we've had in this country? Largely, they wouldn't".
 
Moore believes despite tougher background checks criminals will continue to obtain guns illegally. He said the last assault weapons ban didn't do anything to reduce crime rates and limiting the ammunition in magazines isn't the answer. "If someone is breaking into my house and I haven't stopped them in the first 29. I need 30. It's that simple," he said.
    
Reverend Jerome McCorry is on the other side of the gun debate.

"What we are saying is if you are protecting yourself with a M-16 or AK-47, then maybe you need to call someone outside of yourself," said McCorry, President of Ceasefire Dayton and the Adam Project, two anti-violence groups aimed at changing the gun culture in our community.

McCorry said President Obama's plan isn't the entire solution but, it's a start.
    
For Palmer, it's also the beginning of what he calls panic buying. He reports his store has been packed with people stocking up on ammunition and weapons, fearful of what will come next.

"It's good now, but will it be good later? Probably not," warned Palmer.