ARM USA's Freedom Reporter
September, 2001
Freedom in Peril
Frank was having trouble sleeping that Tuesday morning (nothing new) and he was watching Fox News. Somehow I was awakened (probably to the words "Holy shit!"). When I opened my eyes I saw a building on fire. A plane had crashed into the building. Oh my God, what a horrible ‘accident’! All those people - oh my God. We watched together and I hoped and prayed for people to get out of the building alive. I was now fully awake.
We continued to watch, all the while wondering how this could have happened. Did the plane veer off course? Did the pilot suffer a heart attack mid-flight? What on earth could - OH MY GOD! A second plane just hit another skyscraper! HOLY - words can’t explain what I felt. Probably what every other American who was watching felt at that instant as well.
At that precise moment my world changed. On September 11, 2001, the United States took a hit like never before. Terrorists shook the very foundation of our universe when they crashed not one, but TWO passenger airplanes into the World Trade Center, and another at the Pentagon. Later, another plane failed to hit its mark thanks to the courageous Americans on Flight 93....
Now I'll be the first to admit that I'm so caught up in living day to day and struggling to make this gun store work that I don't know what's going on in the world like I should. Its hard enough keeping up with what’s going on in California and the United States. I won't even claim to know what's going on across the country, except I can tell you this - THIS AIN’T OVER. It's only just begun and the worst has yet to come.
I wish I had a buck for all the times chills ran up and down my spine. For each time I became nauseated, seeing the pictures, hearing the reports and anticipating what is sure to come. For every tear that welled up in my eye, thinking of the families who have lost loved ones, the children (including my nephew’s friend Joey) who lost their Dads and the unborn children who will never know their fathers, all because of people that hate America so much that they sought to destroy us on September 11, 2001.
Feel safe and secure in your home? Can’t say that I do. We've all seen the news reports of car bombs, teenagers strapped with explosives entering crowded marketplaces and discos in Israel. Never would we have thought (except for a few who may have envisioned such monstrosities) that this could happen here, in the United States, the greatest nation on earth. I think we know now that this can and most certainly will happen here. Car bombs, hijackings - I shudder at my own thoughts. I can only hope for the best but prepare for the worst.
Gun Sales Jump in Wake of Terrorist Attacks
You may have heard lately that gun sales have increased since September 11th. Late September, October is generally the time of year we start to get busier, peaking at the Holiday season in December. We’ve sold a couple of shotguns that we may not have sold otherwise, but for the terrorist attacks.
I’ve been online quite a bit lately, checking out what’s going on across the country. On one message board I read many people reporting their local gun stores selling all of their "assault" type rifles and shotguns within just a couple of days. Many have sold out on their common calibers of ammunition. A distributor tells me that Wolf Ammunition had "no more in their warehouses," and they probably won’t have any more til October or November. We had a little bump in ammo sales too, but nothing to write home about. Either most of our customers are already well-stocked on ammo or they don’t feel they need to be. Hopefully the former rather than the latter.
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We’ve begun making and selling t-shirts and stickers specifically relating
to September 11,2001 and aimed at supporting the relief efforts in New York.
Also, as advertised in the OC Register Friday, September 21, $50 of every full
size gun safe sold will also be donated. If you’ve already got a safe but
still want to help, stop by and we will make sure your donation gets to New
York.
TIRED OF the CLINTONS
In the same fashion we’ve grown accustomed to, the media continue to practically grovel at the feet of Slick Willy and his husband. I know I’m not the only one disgusted by Hillary’s forced applause at President Bush’s speech last Thursday night. You can’t mistake the look on her face for anything other than "Geez, I really need to get to ironing those socks." Hillary’s behavior is shameful and pathetic and if she gets elected for a second term in New York - well, let’s just say I might have to send out another newsletter.
I’m also getting sick of the media referring to Clinton as "President Clinton" and referring to George W. Bush as "Mr. Bush." It has been nearly a year since the people CHOSE George W. as their leader. For the media to suggest otherwise is partisan and simply immature.
The long road ahead...
Long, dark months of trials and tribulations lie before us. Not only great dangers, but many more misfortunes, many shortcomings, many mistakes, many disappointments will surely be our lot. Death and sorrow will be the companions of our journey, hardship our garment, consistency and valor our only shield. We must be united, we must stand undaunted, we must be inflexible.
Winston Churchill, October 8, 1940
NEVER, ON ANY FRONT
While we have mourned our losses and searched for solace this past week, we have united our hearts and our minds. Our wills remain strong and steadfast. Our spirits are soaring with determination.
Americans are now asking themselves, "What can I do to help?"
Millions have prayed and tens of thousands have responded to blood drives and have donated money to the Red Cross and other trusted organizations. That will continue. But what else can you do? The answer may be more simple than you realize.
The answer is work harder -- harder than you've ever worked before. Here's why:
As America and her allies unite, there is an important aspect of the terrorists' strategy to destabilize the civilized world that cannot be ignored.
David Dolan, a former CBS correspondent in Israel, stated this week, "(The) enemies concluded in the 1970's that the great United States could eventually be brought to its knees by internal guerilla-style terrorist strikes that would wreak emotional and economic havoc.
"America's gigantic warships and far flung military bases would prove basically useless... Militants realized that the main target for attack should be lower Manhattan, since that would severely injure the massive U.S. economy -- the key element in America's power and prestige."
The terrorists were successful in wreaking emotional havoc. However, the economic havoc our enemies have conspired so hard to achieve can be stopped!
You see, our enemies used our own airplanes to destroy our lives and property, and now they want to use our own fears to destroy our economy. They've physically killed our countrymen, and now they want to economically kill the rest of us.
Our free economic system is psychologically driven. When you're scared, you stop spending, when you stop spending, the economy comes to a standstill, and more workers are laid off, creating a downward spiral.
The value of the American dollar is based on consumer confidence and productivity. That's why, more than ever, Americans need to insure that our economic base remains strong by doing two simple things -- work harder and spend money! The money you spend has to be earned by good old fashioned hard work.
The same holds true for our government. The $40 billion that has been pledged by Congress to fight this terror does not grow on trees. While Congress does have a printing press in the basement, the fact remains, that the value of the money is only backed by the labor it takes to create it. If American consumers are not working, not buying products or services, and not paying taxes, then the $40 billion might as well be Monopoly money -- it is worthless.
We cannot fight this new war with fake currency. If there were ever a time for Americans to roll up their sleeves and get to work, now is the time.
You may not be in the military -- but you can do your part in assuring victory in this new war by being a confident and loyal supporter of our economic system by shopping with your hard earned dollars.
There are no excuses. If you don't have a job, find one. If you can't get one, then do something constructive and fix up the house. If you're retired, volunteer to fix up your community. No matter what your circumstances, each of us can apply more effort to our occupations and volunteer activities.
Even though our thoughts and prayers during this past week have taken us away from our jobs, this is not the time to curl up in a ball and pretend this is all going to go away. If you want to do your part in making America stronger, now is the time to open your wallet and buy American to put other Americans to work.
The stock market will be re-opening(has reopened). The terrorists will be watching the financial television networks, with great hopes that the opening bell will spell disaster. Nothing would make them rejoice more than to see the markets nosedive into economic chaos, forcing businesses to close. They are hoping that investors will run for the hills, causing an erosion in confidence of our capitalistic system. We've already seen it. Our airline companies are on the brink of collapse. What can you do?
Buy American stocks! Make solid investments in our blue chip companies that employ hundreds of thousands of workers and who make up the backbone of our commercial prosperity. If you like smaller companies, then buy those too. Mortgage rates are very low and stocks have been undervalued for too long. You have a golden opportunity to personally participate in America's economic triumph and thwart the terrorists' plans. And buying U.S. Savings Bonds doesn't hurt either!
It's time to invest in America!
It's time to put our shoulders to the grindstone, work harder and better at our jobs, and unite our pocketbooks to show the terrorists that they will NEVER win on any front.
-- Lee Simonson, Publisher, lees@petwarmers.com, www.petwarmers.com
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The value of the American dollar is based on consumer confidence and productivity. That's why, more than ever, Americans need to insure that our economic base remains strong by doing two simple things -- work harder and spend money!
Useful links:
The Real Reason for this Newsletter...
Ok, so things have calmed down quite a bit since September 11. If you’re here in California, that is. Or one of the thousands of other places not directly, immediately physically affected by the terrorist attacks. If it wasn’t one of your loved ones missing in the rubble of the World Trade Center. Some place other than New York. Pennsylvania. The Pentagon.
How can I NOT be affected? you ask. My country has been attacked - how can I not be affected? What I mean is this. Can you just imagine for just a moment if the terrorists had boarded planes at one of the LAX, San Francisco, or John Wayne Airports? Equally disastrous results may have ensued if they had hijacked a plane here and pointed it at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station!
We would never want this sort of tragedy to befall ANYONE. I can’t imagine the way I’d feel if it had happened right here. Instead of them, we would be the ones waiting hours in line to fill up on gasoline at 4 or 5 bucks a gallon. Just like a few weeks before Y2K, our local grocery stores stocked cases and cases of water in the aisles and by the end of the year it was all gone. We’d be the gun store that ran out of guns and ammo because people started panicking and grabbing whatever they could get.
If you’re smirking now and thinking that we must really love it when the shit hits the fan, then you really have no idea who we are. Pardon my language, please.
The real reason we wanted to get the newsletter out, rather than sending a post card and having people (MAYBE) come pick one up is this - We’ve been through a few catastrophic events in California - the Northridge earthquake, San Francisco. Watts Riots. Rodney King. Many of our customers are READY, come what may. But many are NOT.
We want our customers - most of whom we’ve formed warm friendships with - to BE READY. If we’re prepared and nothing happens, what have you lost? If something DOES happen and you’re not prepared, you stand to lose a LOT!
In his Thursday night speech President Bush spoke of the struggles ahead and warned we would encounter dangers and asked for patience in what will be a long struggle. All involved realize and are resigned to a long hard, battle against terrorism.
You can take this with a grain of salt - that’s your prerogative. We just
hope our friends will be prepared.